Up North vs down South

[JammyDodgered]

I'm from NI, and moved to England at 18. I haven't any experience of living in the Republic at all, only having visited the usual tourist route cities for weekend breaks, no family down south. What is it like to live down south? I'm getting itchy feet and want a change of country. Ireland is an obvious option because I've a right to live there no problem. To be honest, considering Scotland too but that's a different story.

I have tried looking at sites designed for these questions but the information is so dry and insufficient.

Has anyone lived on both sides of the border? Where do you prefer?

There are a lot of things I love about home and really miss but there is a lot of things I hate like intolerance and marches and bloke mates having to switch from Bill to Liam depending on what area they're going to. And jesus the litter. All the fucking litter! Flag painted curbs. Peelers necessary on the street between the celtic and rangers fan pubs on derby days. Hell fire and brimstone ministers screaming in the street. Petitions of concern. Flags! Also, I'm not sure living within a hundred miles of my mum is a great option, I like my space! The price of a pint in Belfast these days, flip.

But I miss the chat, the craic, the sayings, people being so friendly and kind to strangers and pronouncing Primark properly. I'd honestly also love to live once more in a place where being irish isn't a "thing." "Are you Irish? I love the Irish!" "Why?" "I don't know... Everyone does! Do you say things like wee and craic and aye?" I feel like an oddity even though I'm in a city full of plenty of other people from back home.

So the Republic, I'm wondering about quality of life, the job market, wages, public transport, healthcare (that's a big one), day to day stuff like how much sway religion has on politics, do people give a shit about each others' religion, how's the price of food, how much do people drink, do you know your neighbour (depends on where you live I guess).

Any responses much appreciated!

You must be from a very dodgy area? This is not my experience of NI at all! Bill to Liam? I don't understand that one. I've only lived in England and NI. Scotland for a short time but never ROI. NI wins hands down. By the sounds of it Scotland is more for you, maybe an Edinburgh suburb?

You won't find anyone saying Primark rightly or wrongly down south...

I was going to ask if the right way to say Primark is "Pennies" Maud

OP, I live in Belfast (well, Bangor) and have done for nine years now. I grew up in Dublin but moved here right after graduation so I don't have much experience of being an adult there.

I will say I have no desire to move at all. I think the pace of life is that bit slower in Belfast, everything is a little bit easier. Just seeing the time, effort and money it took for my Dublin friends to buy houses compared to us and our Belfast friends alone was enough to convince me!

The sectarian crap doesn't impinge on my daily life at all. I guess it depends on where you live and who you mix with. I'm early 30s and more of my friends are in mixed marriages/relationships than not. The politics is exhausting! I try to adopt a head in sand approach as often as possible!

The NHS is another big plus for NI, I imagine you would find it very strange to be paying €60 to see your GP!

Religion has a smaller and smaller impact in ROI with every day it seems. The obvious example being the equal marriage referendum. The exception is schools, you don't mention DC so I don't know if that would be a concern for you.

Having come down on the side of NI, I have to say both are great places to live.

How do you pronounce Primark ?
Is it PryMark ?
Or PreeMark?
We call it Penneys in the Republic. No idea why it has two different names.
I have heard they get nicer clothes in Primark than in Penneys.
A friend of mine used to go to Newcastle, UK ( not Co. Down )
and said Primark was much better.

I say Preemark (Belfast). When Penneys decided to open their first UK store which was in Belfast - there was a fear that JC Penneys (the US company) would chase them for having the same name so they used Primark.

Everything teachingpost said- I from ni live here now but lived in Dublin too- don't know about cork Galway or other regional towns but Dublin drawbacks are eye watering property prices , childcare and even decent healthcare- free NHS, though not perfect, in NI. Do not let the sectarian crap put you off- research where to live to avoid painted kerbs, but in everyday work and leisure we all live together without any hassle. It's those bloody politicians!!!! I feel that will shift though in a few generations, young people today are so much more integrated !
Although if you in tech industry so much more employment in Dublin, Microsoft just announced another big investment- I feel not same job opportunity in NI and infrastructure not as good as ROI

I really think comparing "North" and "South" is akin to comparing France to Germany.

They really are two totally different countries in spite of both being on the same small Island. The whole culture and feel of both places is so different. Education, health care, standard of living, everything really is so so different. I find very little comparable between the two.

Quality of life can be high for high earners and there are a lot of jobs in the cities, particularly Dublin, for those who are well educated especially in the areas of IT and finance. House prices in Dublin and other cities is high. Most people would pay for private health care as the health system is over burdened but that is a personal choice. Personally, I wouldn't be without private health insurance and it does give you more options. You have to pay to see your GP unless you have a medical card which is usually for those who have long term illness or are not working. This costs on average €60 per visit and medication is paid for on top of that. Public transport is good in Dublin and improving all the time.

People in Ireland are like people everywhere with regard to knowing your neighbours and drinking - it varies from person to person. Stereotypes of Irish people and alcohol are totally outdated and inaccurate.

I agree that there are differences in house prices, job opportunities etc. I have lived in ireland and NI for about 25 years each and wouldn't describe them as being as different as France and Germany.

I travel between the two regularly with family in both and it never ceases to amaze me how similar the people are.

Hi Jammy, how did you get on?

I've been thinking of doing the same, But it's difficult to get any info on finances. I'll also need a house share 😳