Why Did/Didn't You Leave?

epiphony

Hey, guys!

Not sure if this belongs here, but I'm an English student starting to get into online journalism and I'm working on a piece about the rapidly increasing rate of emigration with the youth and college graduates of today.

I'm looking to get some quotes for this article I'm working on and was wondering if anyone would be willing to just voice their opinion? (This is completley unpaid by the way, purely doing it to build up a portfolio of sorts)

I want to hear from those of you who have moved away permanently, temporarily and also those of you who moved but came back or never left at all.

Why did/didn't you leave Ireland? What made you want to stay? What is life really like over there? Is it all sunshine and roses like it seems? Or is the veneer fading away for some of you?

There seems to be a serious stigma growing today as well that travelling is a thing you must do after college, a right of passage almost. Those of you who don't have much interest in travelling, do you feel the same? Why do you think people feel like they have to travel?

Any help would be greatly appreciated guys as I think some quotes from people with actual experience would help me a great deal!

Stuck Cone

Kicked out, caught with a considerable amount of hash

Doc

I was actually working for a company that specialized in residential property development and refurbishment in London.

When the property market began to turn bad about 4 years ago the company started making people redundant. I knew that it was only a matter of time before I would be next so decided I would start saving and do something I have always wanted to do which is get out and see some of the world.

Eventually I was made redundant and shortly after the company went into liquidation. It was December, I went home to Dublin for Christmas and new year's during which time I booked a one way ticket to Bangkok and left Ireland in January on my own with a backpack full of clothes and a rough plan to travel around South East Asia for as long as my money would let me.

I spent roughly 6 months in Asia and was contacted on Facebook by my old Australian flatmate from London asking if I was going to come visit her while I was travelling. I got a one year working holiday visa online for Australia and a ticket to Melbourne.

I arrived in Melbourne with the idea I would visit my friend, work for a while so I could earn some money and continue on travelling. I got a job in Architecture and made some really good friends. I never got around to keeping on travelling as I figured I have a good job who sponsored me to stay in Australia, I live in a city I really like and have lots of good friends. If I continued traveling I would have had to eventually return home to a job market where I would have struggled to find anything and felt like a leach on my parents.

I'm happy here and although I love Ireland and miss my friends and family that are still there I can’t see myself moving back yet anytime soon.

markymark21

Well me and GF love travelling, You get the bug once you start really! Staying in Ireland doesn't really cut it when you've spent some time abroad. We've also used travelling as a means to gain international hospitality experience. Always looks good on the CV if you have worked abroad.. We also knew we could make good money in Oz so we're hoping to have enough money saved to put a deposit on a house when we get home.

ddixon

I didn't leave because there was just so much to experience in Australia. Much more than i could get back home so I stayed.

hussey

Mod Does not seem to be an Australia question more of a living abroad question .... moving

Fysh

I'm not entirely sure how suited this thread is to Living Abroad - OP, you may be better off looking at the Media & Research board if you've got a publisher lined up for the article...