Why I'm swapping sunny Spain for dear old Ireland
Many emigrants who left this country in the grim days of the 1980s are now returning to a place they hardly recognise. After travelling the world and working abroad for the past 15 years, Fiona Forde reveals why she is happy to be coming home from Madrid to live in Ireland
During a visit home to Ireland early last year, when I was living in Spain, I watched the Spire go up in Dublin city and couldn't help but wonder what this tall, bright structure would come to represent. It had no tie with our past, no cross on top of it. Yet it appeared to represent us as a nation and what we were aspiring to as we stepped into a new millennium, as we secured our place in the world as a growing and modern country.
Now, as I find myself living here once again, I see new Ireland reflected in the Spire. This tall, anonymous structure could be found in any capital in the world yet it sits comfortably in the heart of Dublin. It reminds me how international we have become as a nation, how modern we are as a people and how much we have in common with the rest of the world.
When I left Ireland 15 years ago, it was a gloomy place, rife with unemployment and beset with interest rates that were crippling half the mortgage holders in this country. The six o'clock news rarely failed to talk of another horde of people due to join the dole queues. Many parents feared an uncertain future for their children, and we were largely a homogenous crew back then. That was the Ireland of 1989 that I remember. I was 21 and I opted for life abroad.
What started out as a one-year adventure took me to all five continents. From Australia to Japan, El Salvador to Canada, from southern Africa to the northern climate of Scotland, before being lured by the Mediterranean and the comfortable lifestyle of Madrid. Life abroad treated me well and each port of call was enriched by the contrast of what I had just left behind.
But towards the end of last year, Ireland began to beckon and life back home began to appeal again. On visits here during the past few years I watched an Ireland that was undergoing rapid change, modernising and growing up. It was becoming very cosmopolitan, a very modern place. I wanted to be a part of that Ireland and so it was that I returned to the nest earlier this summer.
The Ireland of 2004 stands in stark contrast to the Ireland of 1989. And while hardly a day goes by without someone telling me I am stark raving mad to have given up life in sunny Spain for dear old Ireland, I think there is a lot to be said for this place and above all its people. Sure, we may not have brought home as many medals as the Ethiopians, the Kenyans, or indeed the Americans from Athens, but would we settle for their economies and their lifestyles?
For all its mistakes and misfortunes, the Celtic Tiger has brought affluence and wealth to our country and has diversified our society. The Dublin I have decided to make my home is a strong and vibrant place that offers much to whet the cultural appetite. It has been enhanced with infrastructure (even if there are still many miles to cover and bridges to cross) and modern architecture. Many of its people are enjoying a standard of living that our forebears would never have dreamed of. New cars line modern-looking streets that are filled with well-dressed, modern-looking people. Our high streets and shopping malls boast the same shop names and labels as most other European capitals. We sip cappuccinos and lattes on terraces on a fine day and we can take our pick from an array of international cuisine in stylish restaurants by night. And we can talk about it all in smoke-free bars that are no longer a hazard to our health.
Our economy continues to grow while most other countries attempt to deal with a stagnant state. The reverse effect the growing economy has had on emigration has allowed people like me to come home, knowing there is a place for those who want to contribute to the future. Like any life change, coming back can be a big ordeal, regardless of the length of time spent away. But it is made easy by the fact that this is now a multicultural society, where all nationalities are present and where the sound of foreign languages on the street is no longer alien. And although immigration has brought with it its fair share of problems and anxieties, it has also introduced a new set of traditions, cultures and values here that have prised our eyes open to the globalised world in which we live.
Earlier this year we confirmed to the world that Ireland is a country to be reckoned with as we successfully headed the European Union during one of its most decisive moments. In recognition of that, we now bid Charlie McCreevy farewell as he takes up his post as one of Europe's top commissioners, while Cork prepares to be the European city of culture next year.
But our achievements have come at a hefty price and our country has become one of the most expensive places in the world in which to live. With my mind still set on Spanish prices, I begrudge paying out 3 for a cup of coffee and I shudder at the asking price for a bottle of wine. My eating habits were crudely curtailed when I became accustomed to restaurant prices and taxis are no longer a common form of transport for me. I truly sympathise with those who tell me they have just entered the Irish property market, aware of the sacrifice it will have meant to secure a place on the bottom rung of that expensive ladder.
Fortunately, the atmosphere on the streets doesn't carry a price tag and nothing can be more valuable than our people. This is a cosmopolitan country and we have become a cosmopolitan race. Irish people take themselves seriously today and exude a confidence that reflects what this country has become. And while we moan about the cost of living, congestion on our roads and cloudy skies, let's not forget who we are and that we are the epitome of this new international Ireland.
I don't know what bends await me on the road that lies ahead, but I will be interested to see how they will impinge on my own life plan and my relationship with this country and city. Will I be in such a good mood a year from now or will life as an Irish taxpayer have dulled the experience? I do wonder.
Fiona Forde was editor of the English edition of the Spanish daily 'El Pais', is a producer with the 'Sunday Supplement' on Today FM and is a freelance journalist based in Dublin.
Source: Irish Independent
www.unison.ie/irish_independent/
From: The Belfast Telegraph
www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/features/story.jsp?story=557135
Irish property :
www.irishpropertyworld.com
