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.

If you have a low income then GPs are free.

Should be free for all kids in my opinion.

Under-8s are free and afaik there are plans to roll that out to under-12s, though I could be wrong on that.

I earn 50k and have a GP visit card!

I have friends whose household income is probably north of 400k (before tax).

I see no reason at all why they shouldn't pay for their kids GP visits. Neither do they.

I mean, let's argue about the cut off point, for sure, but as a blanket statement I don't think this makes much sense.

Mind you, said friends still get child allowance, which they wouldn't get in the uk. It's all swings and roundabouts.

You have been snipping negatively and someone was going to react..
You attempted to slander Irish Mammies too. 😁

And here we have it, yes it was Dublin and yes the hotels can be even more expensive. It’s cheaper in London

I'd say one of the main differences between Ireland and the UK is London. I like Dublin, which is the equal of most British cities, but London is a different beast altogether. It isn't a city. Manchester and Amsterdam and Munich are cities. London is a mini world. The Royal College of Art, for example, is ranked the world's best art school. Yet the majority of students who go there aren't even Brits – they're Italian, Brazilian, Chinese, Polish...you name it. London has its faults (it can be dirty, violent, overcrowded, expensive and cruel), but it's an incredibly interesting place. It belongs to that minority of cities (like Paris and New York) that draw in artists, writers and intellectuals from across the world. You meet such an interesting mix of people, and that is reflected in British culture generally. Most British people visit or work or study in London at some point, and it rubs off. You only have to look at the historical figures who've lived there – everyone from Freud and Karl Marx to Van Gogh and Arthur Rimbaud. We forget that many countries don't have a huge international city. Holland doesn't, nor does Australia or Sweden or Canada. I wouldn't even say that Rome or Berlin compare to London.

I suppose Oxford is another exceptional place. It's often ranked among the very best universities in the world, and is certainly one of the most famous. Like London it draws in talented and interesting people. To me, London and Oxford are the most interesting things about this island. Without them, we'd be a grey, rainy little place that no one paid much attention to.

My dd has a medical card because we get DCA for her autism .

I suspect that there is to use that well known saying a difference between Tourism & Immigration

Lists of 10 things are going to have 10 things in them. That's how lists of 10 things work.

How about the National Museum (prehistoric and medieval material), the National Museum Collin's Barracks (post 17th C material and world ethnographic collection), the National Gallery, the Municipal Gallery (late 19th & 20th C art), the Museum of Modern Art (housed in excellent 18th c building), the Natural History Museum, the Little Museum of Dublin, the Museum of Literature, the Chester Beatty Library (world class Islamic and Asian collection), the Tenement Museum, Dublinia Museum (Viking age and Medieval material), the Ark childrens' cultural centre, the National Print Museum, St Patrick's Cathedral, Christ Church Cathedral, the National Library (runs exhibitions), the Royal Irish Academy (runs exhibitions), the exhibition space at the National Botanic Gardens (handily close to Glasnevin historic cemetery and museum). That's off the top of my head, there's loads more.

Within 30 miles, accessible by bus, you have the Boyne Valley prehistoric complex, older than Stonehenge and far bigger and more complex, Glendalough early medieval monastic monastic site, with its magnificent setting and museum, and the Newbridge museum of style icons with a jaw dropping collection of movie costumes.

Ireland has far fewer big houses like the ones the National Trust maintains in the UK, for obvious historic reasons, but there's still a lot out there, between museums and OPW sites.

oh - Dublin Castle.

and the GAA museum at Croke Park.

Where do you live OP? I find it hard to believe your 18 year old can’t find at least a part time job. All the kids I know have jobs, and there are loads of hospitality jobs around here (Berkshire/ Oxfordshire/ Hampshire border).

To be fair now CastleTownBere & Doolin are nice during the summer , i think they’re fairly bleak in the winter , but I do agree beautiful scenery & that ..

@Dappy777 , great post. Agree with everything you say about London 👍 it's been my home for 23 years and it certainly has its shortcomings but I couldn't imagine living anywhere else

Yes

So to continue with my weekend roundup of things I've done in that horrible kip that is Dublin, (yesterday was Georgian Dublin, Blessington Basin, and the pub in Fizzbra).

Today (a bit reluctantly because of the drizzle) off I went up the foothills of the Dublin Mountains. Yes there are mountains in Dublin, as well as a great shoreline, and woods and forests, OMG yes, Masseys is near the Hellfire Club but enough of that for now. Sure there's nothing to do in Dublin is there.

My target was this place. Famed for its law breaking in defiance of the Excise Man back in the day, when the blue lamp was an indication from a height that the revenue men had gone home for the night, so in ya come from the boats with your contraband. My brother is a muso and he plays here occasionally by subbing for the resident guitarist/keyboard player when needed. Today was one of those days, and a great hoolie was had by all. Then the sun came out and we sat on the benches and enjoyed the spectacular view. What a place, and the pints are not 12 quid either.

https://thebluelight.ie/

Drink in that view....

https://www.google.com/maps/place/The+Blue+Light/@53.2546872,-6.231153,3a,75y,41.47h,87.5t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1szVfPoJTgLAVO2pTz1GrTxA!2e0!6shttps:%2F%2Fstreetviewpixels-pa.googleapis.com%2Fv1%2Fthumbnail%3Fcb_client%3Dmaps_sv.tactile%26w%3D900%26h%3D600%26pitch%3D2.502994850008548%26panoid%3DzVfPoJTgLAVO2pTz1GrTxA%26yaw%3D41.46890270589537!7i16384!8i8192!4m6!3m5!1s0x48670991b5ec4197:0xb07d5397c659472b!8m2!3d53.2546195!4d-6.2314683!16s%2Fg%2F11bbrl3nsx?entry=ttu&g_ep=EgoyMDI1MDcxNi4wIKXMDSoASAFQAw%3D%3D

Duplicate post (for some reason)

I see you are the same as her. Rude, ignorant and nasty.

An acquaintance of mine just told me that she is moving out of my UK city, as she wants a change.

I wished her luck.

I didnt say to her "no one will be begging you to stay"

Because I am not a nasty cow.

I’m Irish descent and my husband is from Northern Ireland.

He is on a couple of FB Irish groups and some of the posts are horrific. There was one recently looking for a missing person, he was young, early 20s, but described as vulnerable. He also happened to be Black. About 80% of the responses were really rascist ‘hopefully he’s gone back to his own country, his sort aren’t welcome here’ ‘why are we wasting time and money looking for him instead of caring for our own’ and they were some of the milder ones. It made both of us ashamed of our roots. Yes Ireland is a lovely country but it’s not without its problems and faults.

I am not fond of Dublin, but that is because I am from Cork, not because I live in the UK 😂

Also, this thread has given me a lot to muse on today. In a nutshell... Ireland and the UK are neighbouring islands with some similar and different things to do (bigger cultural differences and some small differences in terms of bin collection fees or council tax) . Most Irish and English /Scottish /Welsh/Northern Irish people who live on either island are happy with living there and speak positively about visiting the other island.
I'm okay with the differences and will continue to enjoy living on and holidaying in both islands.

It seems to be serious enough to you that you continue to keep posting about it.

My DS has a genetic disorder, he has to see 5 consultants in Dublin across 3 hospitals, an immunologist. Neurologist, hematologist, pediatric Consultant etc.
Never cost me a cent for hospital care under the hse, other than GP visits, a&e and private therapies OT etc.

I personally don't mind paying for the GP, those who have free access book appointment for simple issues they could treat at home, it stops this, granted you have to be a very low earner, average wages between a working couple won't qualify for free care.

When I lived in the UK, people took the piss with booking appointments, take a paracetamol.

Lastly, if you're on a public waiting list, you can pay for private treatment in NI and then apply for the 💯 HSE reimbursement, we have many people from NI using private hospitals here and claiming it back

Education is better too