When a good speaker speaks his mind, everyone listens. Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to flatter other people with your speech power? Come to Ireland and experience what most dream to have, the gift of gab with just a single kiss!

Gift of the Gab refers to the ability of one person to speak well, and at times to flatter without offending. History has it that the stone set into the walls of Blarney Castle can give you the gift of gab. Tourists from all parts of the world travel to Ireland to kiss the Blarney Stone. It is said that kissing the Blarney Stone will give you the gift of gab or eloquence. How can a kiss on a stone give such power?

The Blarney Stone

The Blarney Stone is said to have been presented to Cormac McCarthy by Robert Bruce of Scotland. McCarthy was then the Lord of Blarney in the year 1314. During his reign, Scotland was caught in the Battle of Bannockburn and McCarthy was said to have supported the Scots. In gratitude for his support, Bruce gave him the stone.

There are other versions of the Blarney Stone’s history but whichever is true, it doesn’t change the kissing tradition a bit. Some kiss the Blarney Stone out of curiosity while others do it with a firm belief that after that ritual, they will go home with the gift of eloquence and that whoever they talk to will be spell bounded by their speech.

How To Kiss The Blarney Stone

Contrary to what others may have imagined, kissing the Blarney Stone isn’t as easy as go to the Blarney Castle, find the stone and kiss it. I believe there should be quite a challenge. As with any other things in life, you can’t get a precious gift like this without passing a series of test.

First, you need to climb the Blarney Castle’s spiral staircase to be able to reach the parapet at the top of the walls. The Blarney Stone can be found inside the wall rocks. Second, you need to lie on your back and put your head under the parapet. But don’t worry, you don’t need to be gymnast to be able to do this. There are handles which you can hold on to and there are also castle staffs to help you out.

Whether the Blarney Stone actually gives you the gift of gab or not, the kissing tradition is worth an experience. Who knows you might leave the castle speaking in words that makes people wonder, is this an angel brought down to earth?

This entry was posted on Tuesday, May 29th, 2007 at 12:11 pm and is filed under Dublin Attractions. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.