The Irish Arts and Culture Program

My time in Ireland was incredible! The workshops were all engaging and the artists we worked with were all talented and kind. The Local Hands Workshops were my personal favorites because we got to work with local artists and experience more traditional arts such as painting, wood turning, weaving, wood carving, and calligraphy! Outside of the workshops, we would take a trip somewhere new every other week! We went to some beautiful and amazing places all throughout Ireland!! My favorite trip was to Dingle and Dublin.
On Irish Gap Year, all of the counselors are super supportive! The housing was good, the food was good, what more can you need! I felt that I grew a lot through this program and I wouldn’t change my experience for anything in the world!

This experience is one that I will never forget. I came to Ireland not knowing what to expect. I swear as soon as I got off the plane I could feel that the air was different. Ireland is definitely top on my list for the most beautiful places on earth. For the upcoming gappers, have your mind open. Try new things and try to meet people in Bundoran. The people in Bundoran are so interesting and with a combination of all the fun workshops, that's what made my trip. Also, the staff put together amazing trips for us. On some of the trips, I may have abused Mcdonalds too much, but that's just because I am a normal American. On the trips, I loved exploring the artifacts and sights that make Ireland so badass. We got to visit castles, breathtaking sights, meet some awesome tour guides, and learn from outstanding artists.

Irish Gap Year is an amazing program that I am very happy to have been a part of. I didn’t think I would have liked all the activities and artistic stuff but by the time the program was over I was very sad to leave because I had secretly taken a passion to everything. While on this program I have been able to do many amazing things and enjoyed meeting amazing people and working alongside them. I got to learn how to step outside of my comfort zone and try new things that I didn’t think I would enjoy. The best thing was the friends that I made on the trip and they helped me realize that it’s a lot easier when you’re part of a team that is there for eachother. But the best part of this program is the things you get to do while your with a program like IGY. I will always remember the happy times and the amazing memories and friends from my journey.