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Category: Ireland

Splish Splash: Takin’ a (Seaweed) Bath

Splish Splash: Takin’ a (Seaweed) Bath

Remember that amazing picture of my mom that I submitted for Vagabond’s photo contest? Sadly, it didn’t win. The picture that did was taken from the top of a mountain…on a ridiculously beautiful day. Unfortunately for me (and my photography), we didn’t experience many sunny days while in Ireland. Occasionally we had good visibility, sure. But bright blue skies? Not so much. Wah-wah. The number of clouds we experienced on the tour certainly didn’t factor into the amount of fun we had. I took that picture of Mom on a…

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HELP! Vagabond: Photo Contest

HELP! Vagabond: Photo Contest

Could you help me? Vagabond Tours is having a photo contest for the best picture taken by a customer during their 2015 tours. You know I love a good contest, but I’m not exactly a professional photographer, and I’m having problems choosing which pictures to submit. What’s the prize? The winner receives a vase from Dingle Crystal. While on our Driftwood tour in June, Mom and I got the chance to watch Sean Daly, Master Craftsman at Dingle Crystal, hand cut a few…

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At the Edge: Cliffs of Ireland

At the Edge: Cliffs of Ireland

Back to Ireland! Wait…what? You thought I was done with The Emerald Isle? Hardly. I’ve just been distracted by impromptu girls’ weekend and YouTube channels and such. But there’s still a lot of ground to cover. So here we go. Last month, there was an article floating around the interwebs about eleven places people risk their lives to visit, and number seven on the list was one of my favorite places in Ireland: the Cliffs of Moher. The article focuses on the bike…

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Getting to Second Base with the Blarney Stone

Getting to Second Base with the Blarney Stone

“I just have to kiss the Blarney Stone!” That was one of the first things my mom said after we decided on our trip to Ireland. I resisted an eye roll, because I get it. When in Rome, you have to throw a coin in Trevi Fountain. When in London, you have to see Big Ben. When in Cape Town, you have to go to Table Mountain (or at least take a picture of it from below). These are the places to check off…

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Traveling with Mom is SOOOO Embarrassing

Traveling with Mom is SOOOO Embarrassing

What is it about the mother-daughter dynamic that changes when we get together? The two-week trip to Ireland was the largest amount of time I’ve spent with just my mom since I was in high school. And like high school, she managed to embarrass me everywhere we went. There was that time at the Irish Whiskey Museum in Dublin where she went straight for the biggest bottle they had. And then, there was that time (which happened right after that…

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A Defense of the Selfie Stick

A Defense of the Selfie Stick

There’s been a lot of negative chatter about selfie sticks over the last couple of months. Run a quick search for “selfie stick bans,” and you’ll find a plethora of places that have disallowed the little device; albeit the majority of places on these lists appear to be museums, and why people want to take a picture of a piece of art when there are so many beautifully done prints is completely beyond me. Disney World has been the most recent place…

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World’s Worst

World’s Worst

It’s official. I am the world’s worst travel blogger. I had grand aspirations. I was going to post every night of the trip and keep you up to date with all the day’s activities. But let’s face it. When presented with the choice of sitting alone in the hotel room with my computer and slogging through hundreds of pictures or being out at the pubs and experiencing the sights, sounds, and tastes of Ireland, it was a pretty easy decision….

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Dublin: The First 36

Dublin: The First 36

I’m not sure, but I think I’ve been awake 32 of the last 36 hours. My mom and I made it to Dublin safe and sound, albeit, the trip was not as leisurely as I had hoped. My flight was delayed, then canceled, then un-canceled, which cut a good two hours out of my layover (I had scheduled three). What was meant to be a slow dinner at the Atlanta airport ended up being a quick stop at the food…

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Bag Lady: Carry On

Bag Lady: Carry On

*I wrote this last week, but for reasons that will be obvious at the end, I’m not posting this until today. Mom’s birthday tour of Ireland is just over a week away. I can count the number of days on my fingers (no toes required), and the pile (as my family affectionately calls the stuff you want to take on a trip) is growing. Over the last month and a half, I’ve been receiving updates from my mother about what she’s…

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Motivating Mom: Part III

Motivating Mom: Part III

First, an apology. Mom, I’m sorry. I’m going to bring up the shoes. You know the ones. I also apologize for everything else. Love, Your Baby Girl *  *  * A little back story on my relationship with my mom. We get along great! We have so much fun together! My husband loves her, and she loves my husband! And sometimes, I want to kill her. Ok, so now that I’m in my thirties, I rarely want to kill her,…

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