I have always heard that the people of Ireland were magical, but recently I learned this first hand. I traveled to Killarney, Ireland early last month for a large travel blogging conference, #TBEXIreland and sadly missed my oldest son’s birthday while I was away. Total mom guilt ensued well before I left for the trip. My oldest is an old soul who loves artwork so when asked what I could bring back from Ireland for his birthday he immediately lit up and responded with “a painting.”
While in Ireland and on a tour of the breathtaking Dingle Peninsula with Hidden Ireland Tours, I explained my mom guilt situation to Kay, our tour guide. She immediately said, let me talk to Mary, who manages the Dingle Distillery. “Mary knows everyone.” 48 hours later, I met up with Kay and Mary at one of the evening #TBEXIreland events and they handed me a gift-wrapped painting from local artist June McIntyre at Dingle Artworks. Not only was it gift wrapped but it was signed by the artist and she wrote “Happy Birthday” in Irish.
The fact that all these remarkable ladies helped out this mama melts my heart. The painting now hangs proudly in our son’s room and is a consistent reminder of why travel is so important – It’s about the amazing connections you make with people from other parts of the world. This experience will forever be a part of my Ireland experience.
This story isn’t over as I can’t wait to travel back to Dingle with my son so that he can meet all of these wonderful people in person and experience the magic of the Irish people and the amazing Dingle Peninsula himself.
