Relocating to Dublin from abroad

Luke1

Hello all Dubliners,

I have recieved a job offer in Dublin and will be relocating from Sweden in the end of January. As I've never been in Dublin or Ireland before I have some questions I was hoping you could help me out with.

1. I will be working in D15, Blanchardstown. I'm hoping to live in the city centre or atleast fairly central instead of living in the outskirts. Is it hard to find a room to rent in the city centre?

2. I will have to rely on public transport to get to and from work. Now, I have heard that buses don't really follow the schedules and pretty much comes and goes however they like, is this correct? Also, would you happen to know if there are good transport links from the city centre to Blanchardstown? Some mornings I might have to start work at 7, or even 6 at times. Do buses run this early? Lastly, approximately how long does it take from the city centre to Blanchardstown by bus?

3. I will be moving by myself and have no friends or contact with anyone in Dublin. Is it easy to get in touch and make contact with Irish people in Dublin as a foreigner?

4. There is supposedly alot of immigrant workers in Dublin. Which countries do the majority of immigrants come from? How are immigrant workers viewed upon during these times of economic crisis?

Alot of questions, I know, but I would be very grateful if you would answer them.

Thank you,
Lucas

obie_22

Hi Lucas,

A few short answers to get you started.

1/ There appears to be a decent selection of places to live in the city centre. Good place to start looking would be www.daft.ie

2/There are a number of buses from the city centre to Blanchardstown. The main one being the 39. others include the 37 and 38 although they don't go directly to the shopping centre which is at the heart of D15. Buses are meant to go every 10mins however as you say they can be inconsistent. During the week they aren't too bad for consistency. Not too sure what time they start in the morning but you can check this at www.dublinbus.ie

3/Irish people are very welcoming. Just get involved in as much sport/socialising as possible.

4/ There are large eastern European and African communities in Dublin.

Hope this helps even a little.

FreudianSlippers

You should consider looking for places to rent perhaps in the Phoenix Park Racecourse apartments or on the Navan Road.

IMO this is good for reliable buses to both City Centre and Blanchardstown and not too far from either.

As far as how immigrant workers are viewed upon during these times of economic crisis?
Well, I don't personally see much discrimination although you do hear about it.
I think there is far less to worry about if you are Western or Northern European... I think you won't really have anything to worry about tbh.


As for new friends, I think you've already found a goldmine source - browse boards.ie and post places. Go to the social events! I don't think people have a problem forming a good group usually in Dublin or any cities in the country for that matter.

athtrasna

If you have to be in Blanchardstown for 6am then you will either need a car, a bike if you live around the Phoenix Park, or live in Blanchardstown as the first bus to Blanchardstown is at 6am.

The buses to Blanchardstown have been unbelievably and unacceptably unreliable since they changed the routes back in the autumn. Every 10 mins in reality is often every 35 mins and the problem with the outbound route is that there's only a very short section of bus lane. Journey could be anything from 30 mins to 90, or if you want a snow report - 5 hours!

Sorry but I think the city centre is not an option without a car if you have early starts.

FreudianSlippers

athtrasna wrote: »

If you have to be in Blanchardstown for 6am then you will either need a car, a bike if you live around the Phoenix Park, or live in Blanchardstown as the first bus to Blanchardstown is at 6am.

The buses to Blanchardstown have been unbelievably and unacceptably unreliable since they changed the routes back in the autumn. Every 10 mins in reality is often every 35 mins and the problem with the outbound route is that there's only a very short section of bus lane. Journey could be anything from 30 mins to 90, or if you want a snow report - 5 hours!

Sorry but I think the city centre is not an option without a car if you have early starts.

Good call... didn't think of that!

RoastBeefDinner

You may want to seriously consider finding a place close to work for the first few months at least. It's going to be tough enough moving away from your family and friends as it is,
never mind having to re-adjust to a new way of life in a strange country with no friends. If your job is important to you then that would be the way I would approach it.
Then when you get more familiar with the city you can look at your options about which side of the liffey you wanna live on or if you really do like it here.

Polar101

If you'll be working for one of the larger multinational companies in the Blanch area, and have to start early, there's most likely an early morning bus service provided by them.

Luke1

Thanks alot for your replies! You're probably right, I guess the best thing for me would be to leave close to work. I will however have a chat with my employer about the bus service that was mentioned and ask him for advice aswell. Thanks once again.

padraig.od

Would it be worth your while contacting Human Resources at your new company? If they make a habit of hiring workers from abroad then they should be able to offer some support or give you advice on where to live etc.

hmmm

If you're into sports Dublin is a great place to be and it's an easy way to meet people. Lots of soccer clubs, rugby, GAA, hockey. There's great hiking nearby, and there is a good mountain biking community. Watersports clubs are easy to find too, kayaking, sailing and that ridiculous thing with parachutes and surfboards seems popular.

Luke1

Thanks for your replies. I've been informed that there is a bus organized by the company for the early starts so I won't have to worry about that. I'm also looking to pick up Muay Thai as soon as I've settled done, hopefully I'll find a club nearby.

I'll be arriving in Dublin in just a few days and I have to say I'm really excited about it.

Thanks again everyone!

Lab_Mouse

Luke1 for muay thai post in the martial arts forum.Plenty of boxers there to give you directions

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/forumdisplay.php?f=264

and welcome to dublin:)