Travel Trip Ireland The Gathering

This May 17, 2013 photo shows a tall ship _ a replica of the vessels that historically carried millions of emigrants from Ireland _ sailing into Dublin port. The ship was participating in The Gathering, a yearlong tourism initiative to boost the country's economy by luring its diaspora home. (AP Photo/Helen O'Neill)

Travel Trip Ireland The Gathering

This May 17, 2013 photo shows 5-year-old Callum MacCobb posing with his flag on Dublin docks as he greeted the tall ships sailing into the port. The ships were replicas of vessels that once carried millions of emigrants away from Ireland to seek their fortune elsewhere. The event was part of The Gathering, a yearlong tourism initiative to boost Ireland's economy by luring its diaspora home. (AP Photo/Helen O'Neill)

Travel Trip Ireland The Gathering

This undated photo from the Powerscourt Estate shows the gardens and grounds of the estate in Enniskerry, County Wicklow, Ireland, with the Wicklow Mountains in the background. The Powerscourt Estate and other great houses, castles and gardens in Ireland are hosting events connected to The Gathering, a yearlong nationwide event inviting Irish emigrants and their descendants home to celebrate their heritage. Powerscourt recently hosted a talk by a genealogist to help visitors track their “Wicklow roots.” (AP Photo/Powerscourt Estate)

Travel Trip Ireland The Gathering

This May 13, 2013 photo shows an actor re-enacting Padraig Pearse's famous oration at the grave of Fenian Jeremiah O'Donovan Rossa, who died in 1915. The oration fueled Irish Republican sentiment which led to the Easter Rising a year later. The reenactment is part of a guided walking tour of the cemetery, which is hosting events related to The Gathering, a yearlong initiative to bring Irish emigrants and their descendants back to Ireland to celebrate their heritage. (AP Photo/Helen O'Neill)

Travel Trip Ireland The Gathering

This May 13, 2013 photo shows the giant round tower above the grave of 19th Century Irish politician, Daniel O'Connell, who founded Glasnevin Cemetery in Dublin in 1832. The cemetery, steeped in Irish history, is hosting events related to The Gathering, a yearlong initiative to bring Irish emigrants and their descendants back to Ireland to celebrate their heritage. The cemetery's family events for clans (O'Neills, O'Donnells, O'Briens, etc.) include a walking tour, a museum visit and help in tracing kin. (AP Photo/Helen O'Neill)

Travel Trip Ireland The Gathering

This May 18, 2013 photo shows a plaque on Dun Laoghaire pier in Country Dublin, Ireland, dedicated to "The Forgotten Irish" _ the thousands of young Irish who emigrated to Britain during hard times in the 1950s and 1960s. Many spent their working lives sending money to support their families in Ireland, yet were unable to afford to return themselves. As part of The Gathering, a yearlong event in Ireland to bring its diaspora home, a group of volunteers sponsored about 50 elderly emigrants on a weeklong visit, including an emotional wreath-laying ceremony next to a plaque in their honor on the pier. (AP Photo/Helen O'Neill)

Travel Trip Ireland The Gathering

This May 18, 2013 photo shows the pier in Dun Laoghaire harbor in Country Dublin, Ireland. Hard times in the 1950s and 1960s drove thousands of young Irish to emigrate from the harbor, catching the ferry to Britain in search of jobs. Some returned for an emotional reunion as part of The Gathering, a yearlong event in Ireland inviting its emigrants and their descendants home. (AP Photo/Helen O'Neill)

Travel Trip Ireland The Gathering

This May 18, 2013 photo shows the modern day pier in Dun Laoghaire harbor in Country Dublin, Ireland. Hard times in the 1950s and 1960s drove thousands of young Irish to emigrate from the harbor, catching the ferry to Britain in search of jobs. Some returned for an emotional reunion as part of The Gathering, a yearlong event in Ireland inviting its emigrants and their descendants home. (AP Photo/Helen O'Neill)

Travel Trip Ireland The Gathering

In this May 13, 2013 photo shows a view from the pier in Dun Laoghaire, a port town in County Dublin, Ireland where thousands of young Irish emigrated to Britain during the 1950s and 1960s. As part of The Gathering, a yearlong event in Ireland to bring its diaspora home, a group of volunteers sponsored about 50 elderly emigrants on a weeklong visit, including an emotional wreath-laying ceremony next to a plaque in their honor on the pier. (AP Photo/Helen O'Neill)

Travel Trip Ireland The Gathering

In this May 13, 2013 photo, Marie Theresa Gill, center, poses with her friends Kathleen Greenhough, right, and Mary Murray at the pier in Dun Laoghaire in Dublin Co., after a wreath-laying ceremony to honor the so-called "Forgotten Irish" _the thousands of young Irish who emigrated to Britain during the 1950s and 1960s. Gill and Greenhough were among those emigrants. They returned as part of The Gathering, an effort by Ireland to bring its emigrants and their descendants home to honor them and their heritage. (AP Photo/Helen O'Neill)

Shamrock