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Generation Emigration

Generation Emigration

The Irish Times forum by and for Irish citizens abroad

Monthly Archives: December 2012

departures1 Coming home and leaving again

At this time of year, many emigrants, Irish and otherwise, have spent time at “home” with relatives at great inconvenience and expense to themselves. It is important that family, community and the nation value emigrants, and let them know they are appreciated and remembered no matter where they are, writes Bobby Gilmore.

goodbye Tearful goodbyes as emigrants make their way back home after Christmas
  • News
  • December 30, 2012, 18:42

Irish Times photographer Cyril Byrne visited Dublin Airport today to capture the queues and emotional goodbyes as emigrants made their way back home after the Christmas break.

just saying ‘There’s 10 good reasons to go, but a thousand tiny ones not to’: short film

Just Saying, a short film written and directed by Dave Tynan, about loving Dublin, leaving Dublin and being left behind.

brian thumb Emigrant Christmases: ‘Skype was broken. But actually I was relieved’

‘Christmas outside, in a summer dress’… Five Irish emigrants around the world share their experiences of how they celebrated with Ciara Kenny

Philip thumb Remembering my mother at Christmas

Lives lived abroad garner subtle differences. Perceptions are altered. We who leave never forget our roots but we soon see things differently. Emigration instils a sense of independence and family bonds are shaken loose and set adrift with the passage of time, writes Philip Lynch.

London to Brighton Veteran Car Run Have your say: How has Christmas been for you in Ireland?

Did you travel back to Ireland this year to spend Christmas with friends and family here? If so, we want to know what you’ve been enjoying most, and what your impressions of the country have been. Have things changed since your last visit?

Holly thumb A Polish-Irish Christmas

When I step outside today, it will be into two feet of snow. Sleighs are a better form of transport for kids than strollers. No high-tech gadgets at Christmas can beat the joy of throwing snowballs and making a ‘bałwan’ with your kid, writes Damien Moran.

Ken Livingstone at Labour party offices, London, 21/3/2012 Generation Emigration features on RTE’s Home News series
  • News
  • December 24, 2012, 10:00

The final episode of Brian O’Connell’s Home News series, which aired on RTE Radio 1 on Saturday, was about how new online publications are reaching out to Irish readers around the world.

Ercus Long (left) with James Hanlon in Canada Christmas with new friends in Whistler

I came to Canada for a better way of life, where happiness is measured by how many days you go up the mountain in winter or how many days you spend in the bike park in summer, writes Ercus Long

Andrew Sweeney thumb Being away has made me change the way I see Ireland

Being away from home at Christmas gives me time to reflect on what I’ve learned in the last year while teaching in Korea, writes Andrew Sweeney

Aiden Connolly thumb Slowly does it to succeed in South Africa

WILD GEESE: Aiden Connolly, MD, Lowe and Partners Advertising, Cape Town. It took a while for this Waterford man to assimilate to the ‘Rainbow Nation’.

Diarmuid thumb The time of year when home seems very far away

CIARA KENNY found out how the Irish abroad will spend Christmas this year

Migration map thumb Migration map: where in the world have Irish people gone?
  • News
  • December 19, 2012, 11:52

Locus Insight and the International Organisation for Migration have developed an interactive map tracking migrants around the world.

Philip Lynch thumb No call for turkey heroics Down Under

Christmas in Australia is centred around barbecues, surfing, cricket and yacht races, but memories of my Irish Christmases are never far from my mind, writes Philip Lynch

A mother welcoming her daughter home from abroad at Dublin Airport today Home for holidays: emigrants welcomed home for Christmas
  • News
  • December 18, 2012, 18:30

VIDEO: The Irish Times visited Dublin Airport today to speak to groups of families and friends as they welcome their loved ones home for Christmas.

DesEmily-thumb One last family Christmas in the Caribbean

Our family faced bereavements, redundancy and cancer diagnosis this year. After a challenging 12 months, we’re taking our teenagers for one last family Christmas in Martinique rather than making the trek back from Brussels to Dublin, writes Des Collins

Xmas-2010-thumb How the pinch steals Christmas

New technologies and cheap flights mean young emigrants are more connected with home at Christmas than their counterparts in the 1980s, but that doesn’t necessarily make things easier for those who are reluctantly living abroad, or for those left behind, writes Alan Keane

President Higgins wished President’s Christmas message to ‘all the Irish at home and abroad’
  • News
  • December 16, 2012, 15:33

VIDEO: In his Christmas message today, President Michael D Higgins recognised the difficulties faced by families because of rising unemployment and emigration, but said Ireland is defined by its people and not its economic hardship.

Gerry thumb Riding out the recession in the Middle East

Tax-free salaries and a construction boom are attracting Irish workers to Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Abu Dhabi and Dubai, but some struggle with the climate and culture, writes CIARA KENNY

dalkey archive Dalkey Archive ad raises questions about fairness of ‘internships’

An advertisement by Dalkey Archive Press for interns for its new London office went viral today, sparking outrage online for putting ridiculous demands on interns who were being asked to work for free. Have you come across employers or job ads looking for interns like this? Is working for free expected of young people where you live?

martina gannon thumb Sponging up life education in Canada

I have found independence during a study exchange in Toronto, which has woken me up to the realities of adulthood, writes Martina Gannon.

The Cronin sisters waiting to welcome home their father in Dublin Airport recently What is the impact on children of having a parent working abroad?
  • News
  • December 13, 2012, 01:00

A psychology student in Trinity College is looking to interview families with one parent working overseas. Can you help?

census_2011 Irish-born population in England and Wales falls sharply in last decade
  • News
  • December 12, 2012, 12:01

The number of Irish-born people living in England and Wales fell by almost 125,000 in the last decade, according to the first detailed figures to emerge from last year’s census in Britain and Northern Ireland.

Macs Beach GAA Competition thumb New documentary to showcase GAA abroad
  • News
  • December 12, 2012, 01:00

‘Home from Home’ is a new two-part television documentary which will tell the story of Irish emigration through the GAA abroad. If you play GAA in Toronto, Auckland, Christchurch, Dubai or London, Midas Productions wants to hear from you.

karenoreillyskiing thumb Non, je ne regrette rien

Wages are low in France, but the food is great, wine is cheap, and we have beaches and ski slopes on our doorstep, writes KAREN O’REILLY

Christmas bondi thumb Spending Christmas in Ireland or abroad?

BBQ on Bondi or roast turkey dinner with mammy in Monaghan? What are you looking forward to about Christmas, or what will you miss most? We’re looking for readers to share their plans for the festive season with us here on the blog.

suitcase Emigrant suitcases, five-star chefs, US visas and the Pogues
  • News
  • December 8, 2012, 17:45

This week’s round-up of irishtimes.com stories about emigration and the Irish abroad.

Brendan thumb A life on the move proves a recipe for five-star success

WILD GEESE: Brendan McGowan, executive chef at the St Regis Hotel in Doha, Qatar: Dubliner Brendan McGowan has travelled widely in building his career

Elaine Hartigan thumb First my uncle left, then my siblings, now my son

For generations, Irish families have been saying goodbye to loved ones. But no parent wants to consider the possibility that it might be for good, writes ELAINE HARTIGAN

dolequeuethumb Emigration ‘disguising unemployment crisis’

The number of people signing on the Live Register now stands at 432,300, or 14.6 per cent of the workforce, according to figures published by the Central Statistics Office today.

Hugh McCaffrey wrote for Generation Emigration in March about teaching in Japan Best blogs by teachers abroad
  • News
  • December 4, 2012, 11:12

TeacherPort, an online resource for teachers working overseas, has just announced the winners of its 2012 best blog awards. The list is a good resource for teachers looking to find out about living and working in Asia, the Middle East or South America.

Philip Lynch: 'Emigrating is akin to voting with your feet' ‘Going was easy. Staying away is much more complicated’

I was a naive young man when I left Ireland in the 1980s, with no idea what was in store for me in Australia. As the years have gone by, saying goodbye after visits home and staying away has felt more poignant and painful, writes Philip Lynch.

planethumb News of the week
  • News
  • December 1, 2012, 01:00

Irish Post debts, emigrant voting rights, egging the Taoiseach and emigrating doctors and nurses: a round-up of all the news stories relating to emigration and the Irish abroad on irishtimes.com this week.