My beloved and I are considering relocating from the US to Ireland. Weather is said to be famously dreadful. Data seem to agree: "Expect rain every other day, temperature rarely above 55 (according to one source), or 68 (another).

That said, I lived in Hong Kong for many years, had projects in other Asian cities, where "the rainy seasons that meant anything from a refreshing, short-lived, welcomed and easily managed cloudburst (Singapore) to weeks of wet so pervasive that mushrooms sprouted in one's closets. One has to be a bit more granular about rain. So -- residents of the Emerald Isle, expats in particular, a call for candor.

I've just read old posts that include one from a wise Padraig, who noted that questions about a place can't be truly answered without knowing about who's asking. My lady and I are just 60, both city-loving writer/editors, both inveterate travelers with all the requisite curiosity about, patience for and love of differences. We revel in our wine and dine, our song and adventure, our new ingredients and new views. In short: we're pretty easy. Thanks for any and all thoughts.
RT

Assuming you can get a residence permit, here are some things to condider.

Ireland is currently undergoing a recession verging on depression, so you should assume that you will be living on your capital and pensions rather than seeking employment. Young people are again leaving the country in search of work.

You should assume that the government, after many years of spending wildly, will be forced into austerity measures that will probably curtail support of such things as public transportation, health care, and the arts, and you should expect taxes to rise as well.

These are political and macroeconomic issues that may be completely outweighed for you by other factors, but you don't offer any information about what you find attractive about Ireland.

Ireland has a moderate temperate climate - never really hot or cold. Rain is very frequent - but is often mist or very light drizzle. You do not get incredible downpours for 30 or 40 minutes and then the rest of the day dry as you do in tropical areas. I'm sure there are some days with steady or even heavy rains - but I've been 5 times and have never seen any. But - sunshine is rare too.

Begging your pardon, nytraveler, but I also have been 5 times and have seen much more sunshine than rain. One of the worst sunburns I ever experienced as an adult came from wandering about one of the Aran Islands for a day.

Thanks, folks. Good points re austerity (residence not an issue as my lady's a citizen, though has never visited) -- and nytraveler, that sounds like what I'd expect. I visited only once as a guest of the Irish Tourist Board and there was nothing notably wet or dry. In the absence of a "don't even think about it" comment, I guess we'll continue thinking about it.

rt

If I understand you correctly you are considering relocating to a country you have never visited - why?

I live in Ireland and would describe the weather as damp. An American colleague who lived her for a short time joked that everything rusted! and a Norwegian friend who has lived here for the past 20 years says it feels colder in Ireland than in Norway as the damp gets into your bones - our climate is not good for arthritic suffers. We can get very nice hot weather in summer for a few weeks but the past 3 summers have been awful - next summer who knows.

You say that you are city loving and enjoy wine and dining. Dublin has many excellent restaurants where you will not be disappointed but make sure you have an abundance of Euro to cover the cost - Ireland is not cheap in fact I find Dublin as expensive as London.

I hope I am wrong but I fear that you have some sort of romantic image of Ireland which is why you want to relocate here. Ireland today is a very modern country, people work and go about their business and don't sing and dance the day away!

....I hope I am wrong but I fear that you have some sort of romantic image of Ireland which is why you want to relocate here. Ireland today is a very modern country, people work and go about their business and don't sing and dance the day away!..

or do what a friend of ours calls "moanin' and croonin'"

You also need to consider health care and the like - how will you deal with that? You probably won't be covered by the Irish system and so will need some private insurance.

Ireland is in deep financial doo-doo at the moment at in talks with the EU about help. Things will probably get a lot worse before they get better I fear.

On the upside property prices, which were very high due to the Celtic Tiger effect are dropping again, which might be good news for you.

I strongly suggest you make an extended holiday to the country before you do anything else, and decide if it really is the place for you. Preferably not in the summer so you can see what sort of weather Ireland gets at other times of the year.

It is easy to fall in love with a place in summer, without knowing anything about what it is like the other 9 months of the year. winter.

Thanks to all again. Cambe, I did visit once, and of course that's not a data set sufficient to make any decisions. Your comments re weather, however, just might be. As far as holding a romantic image -- absolutely! We're writers! Seems a nice holiday at the best time of year might let us retain that image while we relocate somewhere else.

Appreciate everyone's help. Should our paths cross, it's my shout, as I am, respectfully,
Runningtab

You really need to spend some time there before making any decision.

I'd follow what was suggeted above, and say that the best idea is to determine the maximum visitor stay period, and then go.

Are you considering only Dublin? Or elsewhere also? If so, rent a place for the duration in all locations. To be really serious, do this a few times. Once in summer, once in winter.

Check out the real estate listings, medical system, taxation, government benefits,etc.. while there.

Then you will have personal experience, which is best.

Spot on Michel_Paris, though Cambe's comments have pretty much put us off the idea of full-time residence. The thought of growing arthritic, osteoporotic and rusted all together is pretty effectively off-putting.
rt

My viaion of an ideal future is a place in Europe for 6 mnths and back home for 6 months. In practice renting would be better, but TBD

Maybe somewhere else?

You could consider one of the other Irish cities, Galway? Cork? Limerick? Writers in Ireland are well supported by the government (Ireland has an impressive 4 Nobel Prize winners). If the writing you do is creative, then you don't pay income tax on your royalties.
As for the Irish weather, I think the main thing is the unpredictability of it. You can easily get four seasons in one day.
http://www.jeremytaylor.eu/Dublin_1.htm
http://www.jeremytaylor.eu/West_Ireland_photos_1.htm

runningtab, I am not trying to put you off Ireland and would concur with everyone else that you need to spend some time here in different seasons to decide if Ireland is the right place for you to relocate.

Yes, you can get all four seasons in one day but the generally speaking the weather is damp - not cold, not hot. A friend of my mother has recently moved to Spain during the winter as she has osteoporosis and the drier weather during winter helped her condition.

Spend a bit of time here in different seasons to see if it suits you. Your romantic idea may change, I hope it doesn't but you need to spend time here in all seasons to find out.

Good luck

Here is an interesting read: http://www.expatinfodesk.com/news/20...rience-survey/

Here's the rest of the equation. I plan to sell my house in the Dordogne in the next 5 years or so and buy something else (I think in Europe). The Dordogne house is my dreamhouse, but it's not a house to grow old in. Property prices in Ireland look very appealing now (I totally understand they may not be in a few years). I have Irish citizenship. SO (runningtab) does not. Ireland holds some appeal on several levels for us, though it's true I've never been and SO only briefly. I have quite a few relatives and friends there, there's no language barrier (to speak of),we know a fair bit about the culture and admire it, and it's close enough to the Continent that we could envision hopping over frequently. We see "bad" weather as a fairly big negative, though.

We totally agree we need to spend a lot of time there (or anywhere) before we buy a property. I give people the same advice when they ask about moving to France. We are also considering Morocco or another, smaller place in France...maybe other places as well. SO has been an expat most of his life, and I've spent quite a few cumulative years of mine traveling and living in other countries. Being expats does not phase us. Between us we speak quite a few languages well.

So, we were just sounding out the Ireland possibility. Upon further reflection I think we will want to be somewhere warmer, but thanks for all your thoughts.

StCirq, I think you can be giving us advice!

I've thought about France as a place to live, but have not yet wrapped my mind around city or country.

At some point, I (and many others I'm sure) would be interested in "the story" of how a move to the Dordogne happened, lessons learned,etc..

St Cirq and runningtab - Ireland is a wonderful place for writers and artists (huge generalisation I know, but we get so many foreign writers and artists coming to live here it must be).

BUT there is one comment you said above that leads me to think it may not be for you: "We see "bad" weather as a fairly big negative, though".

Put it this way, if Irish weather was dependable I would LOVE to spend my holidays here, tour our beautiful countryside, walk by the sea etc etc. But it is totally undependable. About 4 years ago I decided to give Ireland another chance as a holiday destination and it rained on us for all bar the last day of our 2 week break. Every chance I get I'm on the RyanAir to the south of France or further afield. If bad weather would ruin your experience then I suspect Ireland is not for you.

Hi runningtab, I have been living here (via Atlanta, GA) about 4 years and it is not the rain or weather that bothers me, as much as the lack of daylight hours in the winter. It can get a bit depressing. IMHO..March through September here is lovely.

Another big issue, from personal family experience, is health care. Even prior to the recent economic meltdown, Ireland's health care system left a lot to be desired, especially for older people. I come from a medical family, father/uncle/aunt doctors, mother/sister/aunts nurses...living in Ireland and USA. My father has literally saved multiple Irish family members from incorrect diagnoses (or been too late to) after years of bad doctoring just on his visits home.

Additionally, Dad fell in Ireland and fractured his skull and we...my sister and I...saved his life three times in the hospital when medical staff refused to do what we would consider common and necessary tests here in the States for obvious issues. We refused to move from their path until they performed the tests...one CT scan showed another cranial bleed they hadn't seen, one lab test showed Dad was in a low-sodium induced coma not just "resting," etc. It was 8-1/2 weeks of 24-hour care and advocacy by my brother, sister and I to ensure my father survived their medical system.

Hospital nurses in Ireland can make few, if any, medical decisions for patients. They must wait to have nearly every action or order approved by a doctor or consultant. Treatment is significantly delayed as a result.

In addition, the best and brightest doctors are leaving the public health care system and setting up private hospitals and medical centers. My Irish aunt now tips her general practitioner 20-50 Euros to get earlier appointments instead of waiting 9 months for an appointment. When she was finally greeted by the doctor in the emergency room, another 68-year-old aunt, complaining she really didn't feel well, was told "Ah, but haven't you had a good, long life already?" Just as in the business world, there is definite age-bias in the health care system.

We love Ireland and both I and my parents would love to return "home," but the health care system scares the heck out of us.