Tell me why living in Ireland is shite

[NonanteNeuf]

Myself and DH live in Switzerland, we’ve been here 7 years. We’re at a point right now where we are thinking of moving home.

My contract with work is finishing end of December (fixed duration contract for a project) and I’m finding it hard to find another job. DH could get a job in Dublin no problem.

I fear though that we are romanticising Ireland. Please hit me with the reality!

Go raibh maith agaibh.

It's not. It is at times, but that's the same as anywhere else really. There are certain things of course but i don't think we're exceptional in that regard.

Dublin traffic is insane, city is over priced. Jobs can insecure, lots of rolling contract roles. Schools are over subscribed and difficult to get into.

People can be petty and nosey and Irish begrudgery remains alive and well.

Big drug problem in Ireland and in Dublin.

Thank you both.

We've got one DD who is in Uni here and would stay on to finish her degree so schools are not an issue.

We currently spend a fortune on rent anyway and DH wouldn’t take a salary drop. They’re actually pretty similar salaries funnily enough.

Have you roots in Dublin? Would you be looking at city centre working (eg finance) or peripheral (eg medtech/pharma)?

Poor public transport, no snow or skiing or mountains. Weather is way wetter. Chocolate can't compare. Way less organised? But that maybe a good thing!

But it's fairly good as long as you avoid commuting on the M50.

Frankly Op, I'd grab the chance....

Cliqueyness and the who you know mentality.

Lots of people have told me that they have gone for interviews In ireland. And that they didn't get the job.

Someone with less qualifications and less experience got the job. Because their parents knew the boss.

Lots of unfairness

The weather is shite today!

I smiled when I saw your post. I worked in Switzerland for 4 years (near Lausanne). We really liked it, what was meant to be 1 year was extended to 5, but eventually it was a mixture things (work opportunities, school system, closer to family) that made us move back to England. I'm currently working remotely at "home" in Northern Ireland but hope to be moving again in Feb or Mar next year if things go to plan. In fact one of the options we're looking at is the Dublin area, so have been researching that a bit. A few thoughts from my side as DH and I debate this:

• Dublin accomodation and transport options are really not good for us. Lots of amazing job opportunities (I'm a sw dev), but I have concerns about quality of life.
• Outside Dublin? Lots of job opportunities too, but I really don't know too much about those options, we'd have no family or network.
• Staying in NI? MUCH cheaper, but poor job opportunities. I'm comfortable here, but DH hates it (he's English).

Our kids are both in college, so we are very mobile for a few years, and have a secure home-base in SE England. Interestingly, though we have great memories, we've no interest to go back to Switzerland.

Maybe tell us what you're romanticising?

I left the UK after nearly 25 years of living overseas in various places (US, France, various bits of England, ME) to move home in 2019, and while it's not been entirely psychologically straightforward (we were gone a long time), I still felt that I was moving to a saner, more humane society that was at least working on its problems. (I won't lie, it has also been a real rest being away from occasional, but unpredictable anti-Irishness in the UK, which got worse after Brexit, and spoiled my memories of somewhere I had become very fond of in many ways.)

The weather. It is SHITE. I moved back about a year and a half ago after many years in the south of England and had forgotten quite how bloody wet it is.

I'm in NI but still doing my job based in England, I work remotely. If I got a local job I could knock at least £20k off my salary.

I beg to differ! Tis a grand soft day 😂

Tis a grand soft shite day!

Dublin much drier than west or NI, if that’s where you’re moving.
high cost of living, Dublin City centre has gone down hill past Covid. Recent events have put a dent in Ireland’s self-image as a progressive country. Lots of complaining (more so in the media than in real life really) but overall a pretty good society to live in despite all that.

Well we don't like to actually say that!!! IDK, i'm just used to it really. Rain is nothing. A flood might raise an eyebrow, but rain in general is par for the course.

Come visit for a week or two or three. Now while the weather is ... what it is. Stay in the area you think you fancy. Get up and travel at rush hour. in the direction of likely employment. Every day. Do it both in a car and on "public transport". Find out your achievable salary, work out your tax give, look at costing everything from health insurance, to GP visits, to cars, housing, clothing, eating related costs, a bottle of wine ... Only then consider how you'd be fixed financially. I know Switzerland is eye-wateringly expensive but it is all relative to disposable income. Go look at some houses and talk to EAs and rental agents. If you don't have serious money available for housing don't even think about it. If you have health issues don't even think about it. And remember every time you want to travel to another country from here you have to get on a plane and be preached at/niggled by your conscience because of the carbon emissions.

Admittedly, today where I am is more 'howling gale and buckets of water being flung at the window' than 'soft day', but I'm not bothered by rain, either. I've lived in hot, dry places and found it wearing.

I don't like monotonous weather of any kind.

The dog and I are looking out the window at the cold, grey, wet, listening to rain and wind and getting more depressed by the hour as it just won't let up.

I live rurally and cannot comment on Dublin except to say I haven't been there in about 3 years and last time I was there said not going back for a very long time as it felt dangerous and we didn't enjoy it. We were on the luas with kids and it was awful and intimidating.
Live in the very douth, also very wet but happy.
Health care is shit without health insurance. You probably know that, but spend as much on health insurance as you can afford.
Extra expenses are alcohol, eating out very expensive, any kind of gym, exercise classes seem expensive, although not sure how it compares to Switzerland.
Live is good for kids who like outdoors. Lots of religion still in schools, difficult to avoid unless you are near a big urban centre.
Looks for towns and places with big non local communities for vibrancy.

I have to say, today has been like night all day. Incredibly dark. But time of year i suppose!

Every November I am surprised by how rotten it is when it get dark so early! You think I'd expect it after a life-time of it. Roll on 22nd December and it is onwards and upwards from then!

OP. If you're not subscribed to Irish newspapers get a couple of subscriptions and read them every day to get a sense of what's going on and the mood of the country. It isn't great right now. I've no idea how things are in Switzerland but tbh I'm not sure if now is the time I'd decide to move here.

I had a huge reply typed out and accidentally refreshed and lost it 🫣

@KnutonHardz we’re in Geneva which is a beautiful clean and compact little city. There’s huge house issues here and many of my friends live in France north and south of the lake.

Family is the big pull for us. DH is forrin and would never live in his home country again. His parents are still alive but it takes the same time to drive there from here as it does to fly from Dublin.

My sister lives near the Ashtown Gate of the Phoenix Park so we’d be looking near there, city side of the M50. I’m a HR Business Partner so location for work is flexible for me.

This might be a bit OT, and i apologise if it is, but i'll tell the story anyway. I have no health insurance. I had my only child in the public system, there were no bells and whistles, but it was grand. More recently, i developed an eating disorder, and became dangerously underweight. At the the request of my GP, the HSE sent two people out to my house to explain to me that they would be taking me into hospital (rather than shove me into a van or some such). They gave me a date and time and i checked myself in. For the first while i had someone in the room with me 24/7. I think i was more sick than i realised. But eventually, they nursed me back to some semblance of health, and it was free at the point of access. Just an alternative POV.

weather today is awful although generally I think Irish weather is ok. rental market is awful. Public transport is not great - I am nowhere near a luas line or dart and buses are slower than walking in traffic.

I don't think the traffic is much worse than other cities, it does get quiet sometimes at least, in London there are traffic jams at 10pm.

Health care is not great, I have a GP since I have lived here a long time but i have heard it can be hard to get one. Specialists can be a year wait even with private health cover.