Fellow Irish abroad, do you ever think seriously about going home? Or have you?

[FlattenedWhite]

Just wondering whether any of you who have lived away for, say, more then ten years, have seriously considered returning to Ireland, and if you did, how has it been? I've been living perfectly happily all over the world since the mid nineties, but the nagging thought that we might be happier in Ireland occasionally comes up. Especially having had a child who is growing up culturally English in a place where neither DH (also Irish) nor I feel as if we want to stay on much longer, and which got us thinking about how different it would be for him growing up in Ireland. And there are things I get impatient with, like the hysteria about Good Schools and the middle-class parenting angst I've never come across to anywhere near the same extent in Ireland. Not to mention Brexit.

But I'm very aware of the experiences of some family friends who'd lived in the US for years, had two children there, moved back to Ireland and lasted less than two years because they weren't able to settle (plus picked an unfortunate moment of downturn...)

Thoughts? I know it's Craicnet, but the heat is making me gloomy...

Oops I meant to add '... and knows of the events leading up to the death'

I dream of moving there (to a rural area) but have never even been. I'm two-thirds Irish and 15% scots according to a DNA test. My aunties have been, many times, but the elder generation who have nearly all passed on now spoke wistfully about it as though it was a place where we were not wanted even though it was their grandparents generation who left. :(

I think of returning a lot. I moved to Englad when I was 19 and like a lot of things about it but I miss so many more things about home. That said I haven't lived there for more than 6 months not wearing school uniform, so I don't know if I'm really just longing for the ease of childhood and the reality night not be quite so rosy if I returned home as a working, mortgaged, tax paying mother. Much like here in England.

Mimi where are you from?

You know this thread has quite a lot to insult people who actually live in Ireland, if they chose to be insulted

We aren't "3rd class citizens" and we do have a better education system (among a great number of other things we excel at) This thread is basically people slagging off a country they don't actually know that well since they haven't lived there in a long time.

I lived in London and the US for 18 years and moved back last summer to suburban Dublin, near where I'm from. We'd been thinking it over for a couple of years. DH (also Irish) commutes to London weekly. I'm delighted we made the move back, we have a lot more space and the kids have settled well (aged 7 and 4). There seems to be less pressure on them in school, shorter school day, less homework.

I don't find it much more expensive than London though we do have to pay health insurance (but it's about the same as we paid in council tax monthly so evens out there). We have a lot more space, we could buy a house after years of renting and love being near the sea again. Our main reasons to move back were to buy a house and family, parents are not getting any younger. I loved London but definitely was ready to leave. Yes, of course, Ireland has problems but I want my children to grow up here. They love having their extended family nearby. No regrets here.

Doyouremember I'm Australian and we've been here many generations now on both sides. A few came as convicts arrested for political reasons from Scotland at end of 18th C but most came out from Ireland, not really by choice but as 'freemen' (as possible as it is to be free when you're starved and hounded out) in the 1840's. Still quite a bit of fear actually with the whole GWOT thing. Mum's family is from North but not those Ulster types, Dad's family came from Kerry mostly.

Mimi
What is GWOT ?

Mimi
What are 'Ulster types'?

Erm what are "Ulster types"???

I miss things about Ireland - the people being chatty and friendly, that you can get out to the sea or the mountains from the city very easily. But seriously considering moving there? No, couldn't afford a house, probably would earn less and would be scraping to pay the ridiculously high childcare costs. There's also an advantage to being foreign abroad in that you don't face any expectations from yourself or your family about where you live or what school the kids go to. No Jones' or old schoolmates to keep up with.

I just started a thread in chat and was kindly directed here

We are thinking of moving to Dublin but we literally can't make a firm decision

Dh is from Dublin and I'm Australian but we've been in London for 7 years and have got quite settled. But we want to be near family, we have 2 dd and I feel they are missing out on that.

Reading this thread I've gone from yes let's move to no let's stay depending on which post I'm reading!

Should say I'd move back to Australia tomorrow but it seems less disruptive to life to make the short jump across. But maybe we're taking the short term easy option - and see, we're back at square one with where to go !