While I was in Ireland last month I met up with a DNA cousin whom I matched on Family Tree DNA. I am not usually the one who contacts people but in this case, I did. David Malloy is my second cousin once removed. My grandmother and his great-grandmother are sisters. We exchanged a few emails and when he found out that I was visiting Ireland, he made reservations to come to Dublin and stay while I was there.
We met in the Den Bar at the Landsdowne Hotel. Did I recognize him at first sight? No, not really. I did look at him as he stood at the bar but since we hadn't exchanged pictures I didn't immediately recognize him. Luckily he came over to our table which had me jumping to my feet and into his arms.
We were immediately chatting away like we had always known each other. I have found this to be a common reaction. We know right away we have two things in common, ancestors and the love of genealogy. I have met quite a few of my cousins who I didn't know I had over the years and it has been the same every time.
We had some really interesting information that I didn't have and I have my knowledge of using DNA to nail down relationships.
We met again the next day for breakfast and then spent 5 hours figuring things out. We found that we have a lot in common and it is obvious that we share lots of DNA. I am not suggesting that it will always work out this well, but in my experience it has. Be sure to meet in a public place and if possible not alone.
I wish I had asked our friends to take a picture of us together but we were so busy talking that it never occurred to me.
