Welcome to our May issue of the Overseas Newsletter. Emma Nic Shuibhne, originally from Ireland, now has a broader view of the world due to her travels. After completing her studies in Dublin, Emma decided to move farther afield to Durham, England in 2019 to pursue her master’s degree. Her study honed in on International Human Rights Law, particularly the legislation developed by the United Nations and the Council of Europe. Emma’s passion was housing rights; this became the thrust of her thesis which further examined how international housing rights could support the rights of the Travelling Community who often face evictions and inadequate living conditions. Continuing her academic journey, Emma is now a PhD candidate in the Netherlands and has noticed the discrepancy between the rights of tenants in Ireland and other countries. For instance, Emma points out that in the Netherlands, there are rent checks to validate if a landlord’s rent price is just.
Kate Ashe-Leonard, full of excitement, sailed back to Dublin after being away for an extended period. While her goal is to sail around the world, she equates coming home as significant as the journey itself. Enjoying her time back in familiar territory, she is aware that she will have to return to her sailboat to complete her journey around the world. She admits, the thought of settling down terrifies her more than navigating across oceans.
Another contributor, Laoise Murray, shares her experience of relocating to Aarhus in Denmark to pursue her master’s degree. She has discovered differences in lifestyle that she hadn’t expected. While she acknowledges Denmark’s merits, she also shares that something is lacking- a sense of warmth, friendliness, and enjoyment of life. However, despite her longing for the warmth of familiarity, she admits that living in Denmark has helped her understand her life’s desires. Her earnest wish is to find a place where she feels she is a part of the community.
Laura Kennedy recently described emigration as a matter of simple arithmetic in her monthly column. She weighed the pros and cons of living abroad versus an ideal lifestyle, assuming there were no financial constraints. Laura wrote about how, if money was no object, she would choose to spend her summers on the Irish coast, treating her niece and nephew with sweet delights and indulging in a dip in the cool seawater. She emphasises the necessity to account for financial implications of living abroad, posing a crucial question to aspiring emigrants – whether they desire a slower-paced life or one where they are always on the move.
Meanwhile, Leah Driscoll, who moved from Ireland to Lisbon, shared her key experiences. She highlighted how the local climate significantly influences the lifestyle in Portugal, often bringing pleasant, early-autumn-like days during winter. Due to favourable weather conditions, outdoor activities are integral to daily life, enabling people to transition seamlessly from professional to leisure mode, Leah notes. However, she also faced certain obstacles, one being the language barrier. She acknowledges the effort to learn Portuguese as a necessity to socially integrate with the locals, despite being partially aided by yoga sessions and coffee shops.
Moving to Texas in 2007, Éamon Ó Caoineachán has been gradually discovering the peculiar experience of studying about Ireland while residing in America. He completed his Master’s in English from the University of St Thomas and had a deep connection with the small, Catholic liberal arts university. Following his English MA, Éamon pursued another Master’s in Irish studies at the same university. He expressed how reconnecting with Irish culture through his academic journey significantly affected him as an emigrant, stating that being part of an Irish community after many years felt like a therapeutic experience.
Susan Bolger, a Madrid resident, is employed by Tourism Ireland and dedicates her time to enhance the country’s visibility among the natives. Her primary job responsibilities entail implementing B2B and B2C marketing strategies throughout the year with an aim to ensure the steady increase of incoming visitors to the country. Susan feels fortunate to occupy her fantastical job role. She has been designated as the marketing leader for Spain and currently manages a team of six in Madrid. Expressing her satisfying experiences, she proclaims, “Promoting Ireland overseas has indeed been a prestigious part of my career journey.”