‘Ireland specialist’ gears up for 13th trip
In April, Ruth Kuehn, North Fort Myers resident and owner of Far and Away Travel, will make her 13th trip to Ireland.
She says she fell in love with the country when her plane touched down on her very first trip, and now it permeates her life. She follows Irish politics. She couldn’t have been happier when her daughter married an Irish man. She tells anyone who will listen about the country that captured her heart.
“I might as well have it on my forehead,” she said as earrings bearing a Celtic eternity symbol dangled from her ears and she held onto her purse, a clutch covered with the word “Ireland.”
“My husband has no desire to go back, but he knows I’ll go every year. I’ll go every year until I die, either with a group or by myself.”
Kuehn is originally from Oklahoma, though she and her husband lived for many years in El Paso, Texas, before moving to North Fort Myers 12 years ago. After a long career as a real estate broker, she has now been in the travel business for 25 years.
She’s a member of the Cape Coral Irish American Club and participates in their Irish festival each year, but on St. Patrick’s Day this week, she’ll simply get together with friends to celebrate.
“I have friends as Irish crazy as I am,” she said. “We’ll get together and have dinner.”
A trip to Ireland is more reasonable than most people think, Kuehn said. She often books into a tour and the land portion for this year’s trip – set for early April – cost $1079. Airfare can range from $675 up to $1400 depending on the day, so often the trip is under $2000.
Kuehn is a world traveler and has been on all seven continents, including two trips to Antarctica.
“There’s a glacier on every corner,” she said.
But her “favorite place on the planet” is Dublin, Ireland.
“I like to go breathe the air,” she said.
She enjoys the green of the land and the coating of mist that often settles over it. She also prefers the beer, which is not pasteurized as it is in the U.S. She has more than 100 CDs of Irish music.
The people are friendly and warm, she said, and the history rich and long.
In a “Love Letter to Ireland,” Kuehn writes, “Ireland is just one beautiful Kodak moment wherever you are. Irish history lives everywhere going back 7,000 years.”
She always tells potential travelers that she has three rules when it comes to Irish travel: 1 – You will have a good time; 2 – Bring an umbrella, because she promises it will rain; and 3 – Always pay in local currency.
Though she hasn’t even left for this year’s trip, she already has friends wanting to go on next year’s. She has gone with as many as 20 in her group and, at times, all by herself.
“I have my favorite restaurants, favorite pubs, favorite everything,” she said. “But there’s always something new, too.”