Charging into #Barkworld -Part 1 of the furtastic fun!

I recently got back from Barkworld, another pet-friendly conference situated in Atlanta, GA. Only this time, I had neither of the pups with me. Honestly, it was such a last minute decision with my chaotic schedule, as usual. I am so glad I was able to make it though! It's been several years since I've been to Georgia and it's still as friendly and welcoming as always. My arrival was somewhat grand with a limo shuttle bus service being sponsored by Bayer. The bus had colored lights, tv screens and a cute little bar! Our greeter quizzed us on cat and dog questions making the shuttle ride short and sweet.

Once I settled into the gorgeous Westin Hotel, I made my way down to check in to the conference and get ready for Speed Dating. Ya, speed dating... LOL, with the brands! What were you thinking? It was the first time I've ever done speed dating, ever...and I wasn't sure what to expect. It was unexpectedly good, there were different sponsors set up and you had a brief 7 minute chat with them. You didn't get to chat with all the sponsors present. Barkworld paired bloggers and sponsors with mutual interests together.

This turned out to be my icebreaker to those sponsors for the rest of the conference. It facilitated the beginning of the development of some fantastic relationships. I had gone into it slightly apprehensive of how things would turn out but my fears were completely unfounded. Most of these sponsors had already looked me up and knew fairly well about my blog and I soon found that the 7 minutes were over too soon. Speed dating is an unique experience I haven't had at my prior 2 conferences this year. I left thinking that all conferences should have this. It gave personal time with brands and allowed the opportunity to get to know them a little more before the whole conference becomes swamped with people.

Being that it was before Halloween, I was lucky enough to see all the furry little bunches of love in costumes at the Howl-O-ween Pawty that night! I couldn't go two seconds without going "oohhh" and "awww"! I ran into a lot of friends that night and PepperPom and his mom were sweet enough to have brought a little goody bag for JR & BabyPom! Enough talk, we'll let the pictures do the talking!

Disclaimer: Barkworld provided 1 night's accommodation for my attendance. No other form of compensation was received. Opinions expressed belong to Whirlwind of Surprises and are NOT influenced in any way. Please view my full disclosure, TOS, and privacy policy. Please take the time to enter my other giveaways while you're here.

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                                                         Until next time,