A tour of Ireland wouldn't be complete without kissing the Blarney stone. Blarney Castle was built nearly six hundred years ago by one of Ireland’s greatest chieftains, Cormac MacCarthy. The Blarney Stone is a block of bluestone built into the battlements of Blarney Castle in 1446. It is said that kissing the stone endows the kisser with the gift of gab.
The legend goes that Queen Elizabeth I wanted Irish chiefs to agree to occupy their own lands under title from her. Cormac McCarthy, the Lord of Blarney, handled every Royal request with subtle diplomacy, promising loyalty to the Queen without "giving in". Elizabeth proclaimed that McCarthy was giving her "a lot of Blarney".
Karen and I couldn't resist - though I wouldn't say either of us is lacking in the area of gabbing :)