To think that life seems better in rep of ireland?

[PunnyOliveTurtle]

ok...hear me out...My DM is Irish and she has not been home in a good few years, I haven't been over since I was 15, I'm early 40's now. So i decided to bring her over to visit her sisters as they are all getting older...late 60s/early 70's.

I had a wonderful time. I caught up with all of my cousins...and here is where I noticed the divide...they all have gorgeous homes and I mean stunning! Some in the country, some in the town, all fab new builds or gutted and updated old houses. A couple in new housing estates which were FAB!!
One of my cousins has just bought a new home...her DH is driving a 2025 car, they are off on hols next week. I asked her if she won the lotto and she laughed saying she wished, savings are now depleted and she was "broke". I know she has no credit cards because she metioned that she didn't have one when we wer talking about booking dinner somewhere and they wanted to take a deposit.

They all have great jobs...a lot of them are teachers...like i was. But they are no where near as stressed as I was. They are on holidays already and have been with a few weeks.Some are nurses but work part time in private hospitals, others work in big pharma companies, banking etc.Their dh's also have great jobs, engineers, managers in tech/pharma, one owns a construction company, one is a farmer.
All and I mean ALL of their DC who are of uni age are in university...no student loans. They have a grant scheme apparently. None of my cousins themselves have student loans...they are in 30's to mid 50's. (Can you tell we had an in depth discussion on uni and fees etc!)
Their DC aged 15+ all have summer jobs...in a local chippy, local cafe, one on a farm etc. My 18 yr old cant get a job at all!!

Everything just seemed so positive there...and im sure its not but I cant put my finger on it...it really got me.
I'm struggling most months...this trip was part on credit card. DD looking to start uni and i dont know how I'm going to help her... I know they say dont compare and I know there must be those struggling in Ireland too but there seemed to be A LOT more money being thrown around.

Has anyone said that ‘a nice walk’ is the only thing to do in Ireland? It too has ‘cultural events, museums, days out, beautiful architecture’ etc. I’m not sure why you’re so intent on dismissing it.

You remind me of a now-deceased aunt of mine, who emigrated out of necessity in the 1950s. She hated seeing Ireland thrive, she wanted it to remain what it was when she left, she was so bitter that the newer generations could have the great life there that she couldn’t have.

It does if you live in Essex and want to get to the Edinburgh fringe festival, for example. Or if you live in northern Scotland and want to access the multiple ‘things to do’ in London.

There's loads of that in Ireland, you just haven't made an effort to look for it.

Highly debatable!

Same if you lived in cork and wanted to go to a festival in belfast. Most people dont do that, they go to the events that are near them

In Dublin, you have access to the mountains or the coast via a short drive. That's not true of plenty of uk cities.

Ffs.

There isn't loads of that in Ireland.
Yes there are food festivals in ireland for example. But they are small.

There are bigger festivals in the UK. There just are.

The UK is a bigger country.

Again with the reducing Ireland to ‘nice walks’ argument when people have given lists of other attractions and ‘things to do’. As my dear old mother used to say, only boring people get bored!

It is true of a lot of uk cities.

In my uk city , i can walk to a beach. It is a quick drive to cliffs, mountains, forests and national parks. There are great walks around here.

You could easily do Cork-Belfast return in a day. It’s motorway the whole way, if you have the motivation to do it. Essex- Edinburgh return in a day… not so do-able or accessible.

Mate. I live in london (from Dublin) and absolutely count going for a mountain hike close to the city as a nice thing to do. It's a huge benefit if you like the outdoors.

My mother used to say that phrase to my brother when he complained that he was extremely bored in rural Ireland.

He would then always reply to her "if only boring people get bored, you are calling me boring. So i am boring you. As i am boring you, you are bored too"

He was intelligent

Do you think bigger equals better?

Was he?
i don’t think that’s proven by his response to her!

Here's a good resource for what you could be doing in Dublin this weekend

https://www.visitdublin.com

Loads there. Check out the festivals and events tab in particular.

Theres no way you can do cork- belfast "easily" in a day.

I had to drive that distance to go for a hen party once with friends.

We were all absolutley dead by the time we got there.

You can. I’ve done it. A few times.

Not Cork to Belfast, but if based in Dublin or in the centre, much of the country is very easily accessible. You can drive to Galway from Dublin in just over 2 hours. Same goes for Belfast.

Dont be rude. Yes youre not getting it.

If she insulted him using that phrase, she was also insulting herself.

She said only boring people get bored.
She was calling him boring.
He said "if you are calling me boring , then i am boring you, which means that you are bored".

"If as you say , that only boring people get bored, then you are also boring".

And as i said ive also done it. And its not an easy journey

Are you saying that your experience is more important than mine?
Why's that?

Honestly, Cork to Belfast is doable. It’s motorway driving. Leave Cork at 7.30, be in Belfast by midday. Spend 6-8 hours around Belfast, then leave at 7/8pm, be back in cork by midnight or shortly after.
if you have the interest and motivation to do so, you’ll do it.

To be fair, if you find a city like Dublin boring, that really is on you.

No, I’m saying that your experience isn’t universal. I’ve found it easy, you haven’t.

And your experience also isn't universal, as i found it challenging and so did my friends.

Its definitely not a distance that anyone would drive for fun

That’s making the assumption that she used boring as a verb ‘you are boring me’, she may well have been using it as an adjective ‘you are a boring person’.