Exactly one month from today my family, including my two brothers, parents, and Justin, will be boarding a plane to Ireland where we will spend six days exploring the rolling green hills from Dublin southwest to Shannon before flying to London to spend our final four days. Having the opportunity to fulfill my parents’ dream vacation to our ancestors’ homeland is beyond exciting and we are looking forward to the gorgeous scenery, outdoor activities of golf, hiking, and kayaking, and meeting the wonderful people of Ireland. The added bonus of visiting London fulfills many bucket list dreams of visiting Buckingham Palace, Tower of London, and Big Ben to name a few as well as the opportunity to hopefully see Olympic Park immediately prior to the Summer Olympics.
While we have booked our accommodations for the ten days, I would be extremely appreciative of any recommendations you can offer in regards to quaint restaurants, sites to see, or special spots we simply shouldn’t miss. Thank you in advance for your advice!
Also, since I will be out of the country for ten days in June I would love to seize this opportunity to feature guest bloggers who want to share their recipes, personal style, travel experiences, DIY projects, or anything and everything in between. You don’t need to have a blog, just something to share so if you are interested, please send me an email at thethreadaffect@gmail.com. Thanks so much, I’m looking forward to hearing from each of you.
The Thread Affect 
You’ll have so much fun! I love London!
A good tip if you were interested… I visited Kensington Palace with my Dad last year to see the ‘Enchanted Palace’ exhibition. You have to search for the seven princesses throughout but it’s all done with incredible lighting and sound effects and is truly stunning! There’s a Vivienne Westwood dress featured which is so amazing!
Here’s a link… http://www.wildworks.biz/the-enchanted-palace.html
If you do decide to check it out, it takes a few hours! The people around are really helpful, but don’t say much unless you really ask! If you’re interested, stick with it and eventually they’ll not stop telling you interesting stories 😉
Sorry for the long message, haha!
Kath x
http://thosevintagethoughts.wordpress.com
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Thanks so much for the great idea Kath! We will definitely have to look into that! It sounds like it would be a great time! Thanks for the suggestion! 🙂
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I am so jealous right now! My husband and I are planning a trip to Ireland, he is part Irish part Cherokee (crazy mix) and he has never been to Ireland. I look forward to hearing all about your trip, enjoy! 😀
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I will definitely let everyone know all the details of our trip!! So excited to go! 🙂
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wow!! beautiful pictures, it looks like an awesome trip!! 😀
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I love, love, LOVE Ireland!
One thing I would highly recommend is when you are near Shannon, go to Dromoland Castle at least for a tour around and a drink…but better would be for High Tea! They also have a lovely golf course. But the High Tea is just so cool! And while in Dublin, Trinity College to see the “Book of Kells”, Dublin Castle and head to the big park that has the PM house in the center of the grounds. The house is what the White House in the US was based on and you will totally see the similarity! Just outside of Dublin is Clontarf Castle which is a cool blend of old castle and new hotel. If you are near Limmerick Bunratty Castle is pretty cool and they do a dinner show that isn’t bad. Up near Galway in the Burren you can see the Poulnabrone Dolmen – it felt a bit like being at Stonehendge. There is also The Rock of Cashel which is cool and has St. Patrick’s Cross and Hore’s Abbey is near there…makes for some beautiful pictures. By then you will be saying “ABC!” (another bloody castle!)
Have a great time!
Cheers,
Laura
p.s. let me know if you think, or would like, I can help guest blog.
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WOW. Thank you for all those amazing suggestions! LOVE the ABC! comment, can’t wait to share that one with the family! If you are interested in guest posting, just shoot me an email at thethreadaffect@gmail.com with the post you would want to share! Thanks so much Laura!
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My pleasure!
Hope you have a great time and I look forward to seeing what you have to say about your time on the Emerald Isle. 🙂
I’ll send you an email this weekend.
Cheers,
Laura
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When our younger daughter and I went to London some years ago, on our first day we took a Big Bus tour in the morning (which was soon after we arrived, since we flew in from the US.) We had an excellent guide/narrator, saw lots of things as well as got our bearings (and, in our case, stayed awake.) You can get on and off whenever you like for 24 hours after you buy your ticket and included were some other goodies, like a free lunch at your choice of a few restaurants (we chose an Irish pub) and a free half hour (I believe) tour on the Thames. We thought it well worth the money and if the weather’s good, the bus ride is great!! Have a wonderful time.
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Thanks so much for the advice! We ended up doing a bike tour that was included with our 3 Day London Pass that took us around to all the big tourist locations! We loved it too, but I’m sure the bus tour would be great too! Thanks again! 🙂
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I see I didn’t get my advice in before your trip, but the bike trip sounds great. My husband would love that as he’s a biker (pedaling kind.) How was your trip? I’m sure it was great. Ireland is so green and just like a normal sized country that somehow got shrunk with all the rain. Home of my favorite brew–Guinness!! Welcome back.
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