It’s very sad that it took me this long to post a blog about my trip to Ireland this summer but I hope you’ll forgive me as you scroll through some of the awesome adventures I had with people I now consider dear friends. So now I’ll just dive right and and tell you that I traveled to Ireland in July this year for a honeymoon session and then to meet up with some friends before we all attended a HOF Photography Workshop (I will attach a link to their site at the end. Featured in this blog post you’ll see some of the awe inspiring landscapes we visited and some action shots of me and my friends hiking around Ireland. Almost all of the backpacks and bags you will see in this post are House Of Flynn bags or HOF. I’m not being paid to talk about these bags at all but I do use the Rucksack backpack for all my travels, I love it and would recommend it to anyone. It’s an amazing company that not only has beautiful bags but plans absolutely amazing workshops.

The first day I arrived in Dublin after not sleeping on the plane, got my rental and went right into driving in the city of Dublin to grab food and then meet my couple. I won’t lie I don’t care for how narrow the streets in Dublin are but it is a beautiful and historic city. After my shoot that afternoon ( which you can view here http://bethelannphotography.com/dublin-honeymoon-session/) I drove straight to the Air B&B in Shannon I was staying at with three other girls from the workshop that was two hours away. I ended up having to pull over to take a quick nap because jet lag and no sleep. Got back on the road and finally made it and met Vicki and Brittany briefly before I passed out. The next morning Caitlin joined us and we all got in my rental to go explore Killarney National Park. Which of course was so stunning, gorgeous waterfalls and endless beautiful woods, a castle…. it was all so so gorgeous. The one surprising thing was it was really really hot. We were all prepared for the rainy cold Ireland but I ended up walking around in my tank top instead of the two sweaters I brought with me. After we were done hiking around for the day we found some great Irish food and headed back to our Air B&B.

The next day we packed up to meet the rest of the girls for the workshop at our hotel in Shannon and while everyone was still arriving a few of us went and had a photo shoot at Corcomroa Abbey and you can view that session here http://bethelannphotography.com/corcomroe-abbey-cliffs-moher-couple-session/ We then stopped at this magical little chocolate factory called Hazel Mountain Chocolate https://www.hazelmountainchocolate.com/ I got gluten free cake and I about died because it was so good. And then we drove back to our hotel just in time for a brief meeting with everyone before we prepared to drive to the Cliffs of Moher the next day.

I have SO much to say about the Cliffs of Moher, it is my happy place, a place I feel at peace. Every single one of my new friends felt the same way and we all were in our element here. There was live Irish music which just added to the magical feel of this gorgeous place. We snapped so many pictures of each other and later one there was a surprise couple shoot with our teacher Savannah Kate Morgan and her husband which you can view here http://bethelannphotography.com/romance-cliffs-moher-wayland-savannah/ I truly can’t say enough about this day and the beauty I got to witness. I think we all bonded over our shared love of capturing beauty, nature and adventure and it was the beginning of so many beautiful friendships. There is just something about traveling with people that really bonds you, I feel the same with all of the couples who invite me to travel with them to. My gypsy soul longs for these kind of connections.

We all got to know each other so much over the next view days, exploring pubs in Ireland, twirling in front of Ross Castle (where we stayed for a good majority of our time in Ireland), taking photos of a mermaid, a sleepover during a black out and oh so much laughter. The magic of Ireland can only be beat by the amazing friendships we created there.

Ireland will always be a magical place for me and I can’t wait to make another trip. If you are making plans to visit this beautiful country make sure you go see the Cliffs of Moher and take a silent moment to take it all in, drive across the beautiful countryside, stop at Hazel Mountain Chocolate and get yourself some yummy chocolate, go to an Irish pub and dance with some Irish men. It’s an absolutely life changing experience. My last bit of advice is you go with the people you love because this is a country that needs to be enjoyed with those closest to you.

Well that’s all I have for you right now. Here is a link for those of you curious about those bags and HOF workshops. https://www.thehouseofflynn.com/ Enjoy scrolling through the majestic views of Ireland!