A fascination with Irish history was what prompted Cristina Santoyo (34) to move from her native Mexico City to Dublin in 2024.
This fascination began at university where she first came across the writings of Irish rebel, diplomat and human rights activist Roger Casement.
“He denounced the colonialism in Africa and in Brazil. I found that very interesting,” Santoyo says.
Curious about Irish history, she began to watch the TV show Derry Girls, which is set during the Troubles.
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“I thought, oh my God, this is hilarious, but at the same time, it’s very dark.”
This piqued her curiosity and so she then read more widely about Irish history.
“I think in my mind I could sense that there were some similarities between Mexico and Ireland. I find it fascinating how Ireland went from being a small European country that was nothing like its neighbours to one of the richest and most developed countries in Europe.”
In 2023 she came across an advert on Instagram for a women’s GAA club in Mexico City. Santoyo had left college and made a promise to herself that she would experiment with new things, so she decided to go along for the tryouts.
“I went to my first practice and just loved it.”
The coach was a man from Cork who was living in Brazil with his partner. Though she confessed to having no idea what she was doing, the coach was very positive and encouraging.
“People don’t usually tell me that I am doing amazing, so I decided that I will just come back every week.”
Santoyo made many friends through the club, which she said mainly consisted of other Mexicans with a few expats mixed in. As this was the only GAA club in the country they had to travel abroad to play against other teams. During her time with the club Santoyo played in two tournaments in the US.
However, at the time Santoyo was growing weary of her job as a civil servant.
“I felt that I needed to take a pause and decide what I wanted to do next.”
She decided that it might be a good opportunity for her to improve her English and booked herself into a short English course in Ireland.
“I thought I would just go for six months, I didn’t have a farewell party or anything. I was just like, I am going to Ireland for six months to see how it is because I’ve never been there and I’m obsessed with it and that’s weird.”
Moving to Ireland as a student was a big adjustment for Santoyo, who went from living alone to sharing a room, then living in digs with a family and now living in a big shared house.
Despite the housing challenges, after six months she decided to extend her stay in Ireland by beginning a master’s in international business at the National College of Ireland. It was around this time that she met her partner on a dating app.
“We had a very similar career path. He had also worked in politics, then went to work for a consulting firm and now he is in the corporate world. So, we trauma-bonded over those experiences,” she says.
Her partner also loves GAA and around the time she met him she joined Na Gaeil Nua, a new club that was set up specifically for the international community. She got involved with the club as one of her old coaches from her team back in Mexico put her in touch with the club’s founder, who is from Venezuela.
“It feels like the UN. There are 52 nationalities or something like that. It’s a very, very nice place to meet new people. And then I invited my partner and I said, well you insisted that I join a club to meet new people so now you join.”
Her partner has since joined the club and Santoyo is serving as the club’s secretary. Na Gaeil Nua became a GAA-affiliated club last December.
Alongside her studies, Santoyo works as a chef in a creche, a job which she got through a friend from her English course.
“It’s all about hiding vegetables to keep them [the children] well fed and nourished without them knowing.”
While Santoyo understands why Dublin gets a lot of bad press because of the housing crisis and lack of public transport infrastructure, she really enjoys the city’s slower pace of life.
“We go to London quite often because I have friends there and there you have people rushing and yelling things at you, but Dublin is nothing like that even though it’s the capital city.”
She also says she values how polite Irish people are. For Santoyo this is best realised in how people thank bus drivers, which is something she says she has rarely heard in big cities. When she arrived in Ireland, she says she was shocked by how helpful people were.
“People will go out of their way to help you with things,” she says.
Santoyo’s partner is also taking Spanish lessons as they have booked a trip to Mexico so he can meet her family and friends later this year. She hopes to split her time between Ireland and Mexico in the future.
“I would like to stay here, I think it’s a good place to live but my family is over there.”
We would like to hear from people who have moved to Ireland in the past 10 years. To get involved, email newtotheparish@irishtimes.com or send us two lines about yourself using the form below.
