This piece is part of an ongoing series in which we will explore how travel has shaped our lives - who we are and how we see the world. We will include multiple voices in the course of the series, and we welcome YOUR submissions. When we look over our lives, we can see milestones and events that have shaped us along the way. We can observe the ways they’ve shaped our world-views, our sense of culture, our characters, and shaped the way we look at others who are different from

For as long as I can remember, Ireland has been number one on my bucket list. I can’t fully explain why, as no one that I’d known had