Living Abroad

[deiseach]

Is you from novin island o suvin island?
I bet you drink Guinness duntcha

[brokencrossbar1]

Is you from novin island o suvin island?
I bet you drink Guinness duntcha

[seafoid]

I was always fascinated by other places as a child and when we went to France when I was 14 it like being in paradise.Everything was different and it seemed to be much more sophisticated. there was a big gap in living standards between Ireland and France then. I also though the people were of a higher standard, far away from the humdrum of Easht Galway.

And going to London at first was fabulous. There is a process of settling in that is a bit like falling in love.  But it doesn't last.
Living abroad means you can do different stuff. Could be skiing or eating ut more or barbecuing 6 moments out of the year.

Now with kids I look at abroad a bit differently. What kind of values does the place have?

This is a big thing at the moment for me regarding Switzerland. 

2 things. First is the attitude to handicapped people. There are none. They are all aborted. A friend of ours who was trying for a baby mid 40s had 3 abortions before the Wunschkind came along, And that really disturbs me. Because life is not about being perfect. It is about something else.  And this board is closer to it.


Second is about refugees. CH wants them to pay to be safe in Switzerland.


One other thing about Ireland I would miss about being away  is having the kids learning Irish. I want to give them the de Bhaldraithe dictionary when they are 21 so they know where they come from.   

[Hardy]

life is not about being perfect. It is about something else.  And this board is closer to it.

Tony Fearon takes care of that for the board, fair play to him.

[thebigfella]

I suppose anywhere I've lived/worked more than 3 months.

Where did you go?
England
France
Netherlands
Italy
Switzerland
Germany
Japan
Australia
New Zealand
Mexico
Canada
USA
Venezuela
Brazil
Argentina
Cayman Islands
South Africa

Why did you go?
Study and work. My decision rather than necessity too.

What profession are you involved in?
IT

What is your standard of living?
Excellent as work either paid the living expenses or I earned a good rate. Even the standard of living was good at College compared to my friends at home.

What do you miss about home the most?
Not having the same network of friends to hang out and routine (although I could say the opposite now).

What do you love about being away?
Not having the same network of friends to hang out and being forced to meet people. Easy way to make new friends is to ask random girls out on dates; so it was a lot of fun.

Anything else you'd like to add?
If you are single with zero commitments, never turn down an opportunity to work abroad; and especially if someone else is paying. I know too many people my age who have never traveled and turned down various opportunities. I find it a bit depressing as there is way more to life than togging out on the bench to not play junior football 

[tc_manchester]

Where did you go?England since 1989

Why did you go?Had been at QUB for 5 years and wanted to get out of Belfast - applied UK and Ireland and took the first job offered

What profession are you involved in?IT - analyst programmer

What is your standard of living?comfortable

What do you miss about home the most?Not having to repeat myself twice - ease of conversation and the shorthand we have with each other when you're brought up in the same culture

What do you love about being away?I've made good friends and have enjoyed myself - lived in London and Manchester so have enjoyed the opportunities that big cities give you.

Anything else you'd like to add?Was transferred to Dundalk 2000-2003 but work brought me back to England. The time in Dundalk crystallised what I missed when I went back to England. We're moving back this summer probably to Kildare where my wife has family.

[STREET FIGHTER]

A lot of people involved in I.T so far.....

[illdecide]

A lot of people involved in I.T so far.....

Yeah thats why most of them are on the GAA Board

[STREET FIGHTER]

A lot of people involved in I.T so far.....

Yeah thats why most of them are on the GAA Board

Funny was going to say the same but didn't want to ruffle feathers lol....

Certainly offers a good opportunity to travel/relocate alright

[deiseach]

Funny was going to say the same but didn't want to ruffle feathers lol....

[gallsman]

What do you miss about home the most?     .........people respecting personal space.

This seems interesting and possibly annoying.
Can you give some examples of how it takes place?

It's pretty simple. Spanish people don't look where they're going, they don't make the same level of effort not to bump into you. Come to think of it, they have no concept of space at all, never mind personal space. They'll walk down an aisle in a shopping centre with a big trolley, leave it there and then walk three aisles away to find what they're chasing etc.

[foxcommander]

What do you love about being away? - Lifestyle. Freedom to wear what you like or take up any hobby you want without people looking at you like you're not wise.

The freedom to wear your leather hotpants or chaps while you're out shopping in San Francisco I presume

[Puckoon]

A question for all you who made the big decision to live abroad.

Where did you go? Reno, Nevada. Left home in 2002. Came back for to graduate in 2003 and returned to Reno in 2004. Been here since

Why did you go? Came for a year for college. Then there was a girl...

What profession are you involved in? Business Management/Development for Biotech and Pharma outsourcing

What is your standard of living? Solid, but we can't be reckless. There's college to pay for down the line. Cars are paid off. Falling apart, but paid off. Mortgage is slightly less than 1/4th of our monthly income for a 4 bedroom house, 1900 square feet.

What do you miss about home the most?

The cosyness of Irish life. No matter what time day or night I could just walk through my parents front door at home. People are a little more guarded here in that regards. There's no "dropping in for a cup of tea". Need to call etc..., even my wife's parents. I miss good stout. I miss good sausages and bacon and vegetable soup and toasties from the pub. I miss only having to pay 700-800 quid a year to play golf. Miss the football, club and county. I've missed pretty much every family wedding (and we have a big family), and the weddings of so many friends. I miss the Ulster Herald and the Irish News (but I am not going to pay for them)! I miss the middle of the road politics. Imagine that, missing Irish politics.

What do you love about being away?
I love the general positive attitudes of almost everyone I have met. The generosity of people has been overwhelming at times. Folks from all walks of life would open their doors to you here, the only requirement seems to be as long as you're a good spud - you're welcome. I love happy hour:-) and the weather. Reno is an amazing place, growing monthly. Cost of living is very reasonable, weather is phenomenal and the women are pretty. 


Anything else you'd like to add?
Raising a child in America is daunting, but I have little choice, I can't abscond with her and take her home, although I'd love to and her stepmother (my wife) would move to Ireland in a "New York Minute".  Having gone through both systems and been here since i was 21 I firmly believe that Irish kids are smarter leaving high school/grammar school but American kids are generally more dialed in in their college years. Maybe it was only me that f-ed around in college but the college kids here are driven and focused on post graduate degrees/courses/career paths from their first year in college and very rarely are letting the ball drop on their goals. Often times I regret being stuck here, but you have to let that go pretty quick. It's a great place to be stuck. From a travel home perspective, I wish I was geographically on the east coast, but all in all I am in a great place that I think is my home. Home Home will always be Ireland, but when you've spent the majority of your adult years somewhere with no plans to return you kind of have to think of it as home.

I'd encourage anyone to take the leap - just beware of the black velvet band.


Sorry for all the questions....just find it fascinating

[Mikhailov]

A question for all you who made the big decision to live abroad.

Where did you go? Reno, Nevada. Left home in 2002. Came back for to graduate in 2003 and returned to Reno in 2004. Been here since

Why did you go? Came for a year for college. Then there was a girl...

What profession are you involved in? Business Management/Development for Biotech and Pharma outsourcing

What is your standard of living? Solid, but we can't be reckless. There's college to pay for down the line. Cars are paid off. Falling apart, but paid off. Mortgage is slightly less than 1/4th of our monthly income for a 4 bedroom house, 1900 square feet.

What do you miss about home the most?

The cosyness of Irish life. No matter what time day or night I could just walk through my parents front door at home. People are a little more guarded here in that regards. There's no "dropping in for a cup of tea". Need to call etc..., even my wife's parents. I miss good stout. I miss good sausages and bacon and vegetable soup and toasties from the pub. I miss only having to pay 700-800 quid a year to play golf. Miss the football, club and county. I've missed pretty much every family wedding (and we have a big family), and the weddings of so many friends. I miss the Ulster Herald and the Irish News (but I am not going to pay for them)! I miss the middle of the road politics. Imagine that, missing Irish politics.

What do you love about being away?
I love the general positive attitudes of almost everyone I have met. The generosity of people has been overwhelming at times. Folks from all walks of life would open their doors to you here, the only requirement seems to be as long as you're a good spud - you're welcome. I love happy hour:-) and the weather. Reno is an amazing place, growing monthly. Cost of living is very reasonable, weather is phenomenal and the women are pretty. 


Anything else you'd like to add?
Raising a child in America is daunting, but I have little choice, I can't abscond with her and take her home, although I'd love to and her stepmother (my wife) would move to Ireland in a "New York Minute".  Having gone through both systems and been here since i was 21 I firmly believe that Irish kids are smarter leaving high school/grammar school but American kids are generally more dialed in in their college years. Maybe it was only me that f-ed around in college but the college kids here are driven and focused on post graduate degrees/courses/career paths from their first year in college and very rarely are letting the ball drop on their goals. Often times I regret being stuck here, but you have to let that go pretty quick. It's a great place to be stuck. From a travel home perspective, I wish I was geographically on the east coast, but all in all I am in a great place that I think is my home. Home Home will always be Ireland, but when you've spent the majority of your adult years somewhere with no plans to return you kind of have to think of it as home.

I'd encourage anyone to take the leap - just beware of the black velvet band.


Sorry for all the questions....just find it fascinating

Puckoon, was in Reno about 17-18 years and thought it was a great spot. Short stop over but was impressed. Appeared like a nice spot even then, obviously much better now I assume.

By the way, are you from Tyrone ??

[Puckoon]

Great Spot with a tremendous amount of outdoor activities. Lot of work going into tidying up the downtown "Strip" area which has been deteriorating since the 70s/80s.

From Omagh, Yup.