Stuff you miss about Ireland when abroad

Antar Bolaeisk

The colour green.

I love the first breath of air getting off the plane in Dublin.

Anything pork related.

Irish beef.

The general vibe of friendliness.

Rain!

Bigtoe107

I miss a lot of things about Ireland, but the one that stands out most is the general ease at which people talk to one another.

I have been living abroad for a while now and have done a fair bit of traveling, most social interactions I have found feel a little forced and contrived; at least in the initial stages.
Irish people generally move from small talk to deep conversations and back again without any effort even on first meeting somebody.

Duffy the Vampire Slayer

Given that I live in Colombia, I miss seasons. It doesn't feel right for the weather to stay the same all year round.

Sadly, I can't miss the rain because Bogota has at least as much as Ireland.

TheBeardedLady

My family
The milk
The milk
The milk
Did I mention the milk?
The skies
Some variation in the weather
Our ability to be silly and make tits of ourselves for a laugh - the Spanish have something called "Sentido de Ridículo" which means they get embarrassed about looking silly, so people try their damnedest to be cool as cucumbers all the time - it's boring.
The milk
Fresh, clean air and the greenness of it.
Laid-back attitude and people not flying off the handle over every little thing.
Not being miles from the sea.


Loads of other stuff.

Cake Man

A lot of people at home complain about always bumping into the same people in their town and everybody apparently knows everyone else's business but living abroad in a major city I have to say that's something I actually really miss. I think there's a lot of comfort in that familiarity of knowing you're going to go down your local shop/pub/supermarket and be guaranteed to see people you know. I think that's why we have a good sense of community at home.

Same as what others have mentioned, a good irish pub, chocolate, crisps, deli rolls, local and national GAA games, just being understood when using expressions like "ah goway outa that", "I will yeah", "yeah that's grand, sound!".
It gets frustrating having to repeat yourself all the time.

I know the weather is usually always sh!t at home but there is a lot to be said for lashing on a roaring fire on a winters night!

Stinjy

I would kill for a good chipper right now!!

also a breakfast roll would be nice (not that i was even a big fan of them at home but i need one!)

a newsagent! we dont have little corner shops that you can just grab a bottle of club orange and a chocolate bar etc, you have to go into a major shop and even at that you wont get single bars / single cans

on that note club orange!!

the language - presses, trollies , grand... all words I've had to explain oh and "I will yeah" try telling someone here that it actually means No they can't comprehend it!

mammies home cooked dinners.

my puppy

friends

crisp sandwich..

Now I miss home.....

Rawr

I'm expat over in Norway, and it's usually food, drink, and the small things.

Sausages - Because the Norwegians think that frankfurters are a suitable substitute, despite them barely having any meat in them.

Irish Rashers - Because they just aren't good enough elsewhere.

Buying alcohol from a normal grocery shop - Because in Norway you can only buy booze from special government-run shops that are only open while I'm at work and close the second I leave for home.

Buying stuff from a normal-sized shop on a Sunday - Because in Norway there's a bizarre rule that only allows a grocery shop to be open on Sunday, if it's just about big enough to store the food, and maybe some customers (*maybe*). Often the queue to the till will snake around the aisles themselves, meaning that your whole shopping is done while in the queue.

An Actual Pub - Not a bar, not the corner of a night-club blaring music, not an 'Irish Bar' that insists on doing the same with 'authentic music'. A pub! Essentially a very large sitting room that dispenses booze to me. This I believe Ireland has gotten down to a tee, and I miss it.

MRnotlob606

red lemonade , Jacobs mikado biscuits, a good mass.

MRnotlob606

Stinjy wrote: »

I would kill for a good chipper right now!!

also a breakfast roll would be nice (not that i was even a big fan of them at home but i need one!)

a newsagent! we dont have little corner shops that you can just grab a bottle of club orange and a chocolate bar etc, you have to go into a major shop and even at that you wont get single bars / single cans

on that note club orange!!

the language - presses, trollies , grand... all words I've had to explain oh and "I will yeah" try telling someone here that it actually means No they can't comprehend it!

mammies home cooked dinners.

my puppy

friends

crisp sandwich..

Now I miss home.....

Aww the poor puppy:( I want to cuddle your puppy.

iDave

So in summary unhealthy food and alcohol!

jester77

Low taxes and family. In terms of food and beer, there is always better alternatives if you look.

Pumpkinseeds

The only thing I missed was spending Christmas with my parents and brother. Really, nothing else to miss.

SpaceTime

Lapin wrote: »

Grumpy and unhelpful staff in Bus Éireann and Irish Rail.

Transport for London more than make up for that I can assure you as do the good people of the SNCF (French Rail) and the appropriately named, RAT-P (the operator of the Paris Metro).

CIE isn't that unfriendly! I saw an old lady in London struggling with her ticket being told "If you put the f###ing ticket in the machine it would help dahling!" By a helpful member of platform staff in London.

French scenario : I asked in fluent French where to get a train to .... and the guy said : do I look like a map! Shrugged and walked off.

Chris Martin

On my college 3rd year, spend 5 months in Spain and a month into a 5 month stay in Venice.
How bad says you.
Home comforts are sorely missed though.

'Calling a pint a pint'
Sunday Roast
Mon-Sat Roasts
Tesco (and other big stores)
The English language.
Sarcasm
Cheap sh!te (EDIT: In discount stores and the like, buying stuff in bulk, not saying Ireland is a country of bargains..)
The word sh!te


Had a pint of Guinness over here, I don't really drink Guinness but found an Irish bar. Tasted like the keg made the trip to Venice on the back of a donkey. Tasted watery and flatter than it should be. Paid 6.50 for it as well... Won't be happening twice.

Also miss family, friends, nights out, laid back attitude, comedic news headlines, English commentating on football/sports events.

Try to immerse yourself in the culture but after 3 weeks of pasta you think to yourself... How many would I kill for meat, 2 veg and gravy.. :P
Also don't like going places and guessing what I'm eating..
Black spaghetti freaked me out.. Spaghetti in squid ink...
I dunno, baby steps, lets not run before we can walk, had paella for first time ever last year and half the ingredients in it for first time as well..
Squid ink is a step too far for now..

Magico Gonzalez

Not much of a tea drinker, but there was a lot of excitement when a few of us got together and someone handed over teabags brought over from home. The host went off into the kitchen and made everyone a brew. Much eulogising of the heavenly irish teabags, ah these are the business etc.

After everyone downed their mugs he told us that he had in fact stored away the teabags from home and served up the local muck that we had been complaining about 30 mins beforehand.

Tea, it's all in the mind.

Too hot for Guinness here, but in a few months when winter rolls in I'm usually yearning for a good pint.

Wompa1

iDave wrote: »

So in summary unhealthy food and alcohol!

Fresh Air!

Being by the sea was another one. Didn't think I'd miss it, I don't even swim in the feckin' thing but there's something very calming about being by the sea...

Also not just the unhealthy food. Meat from animals that haven't been injected with steroids and the like....but maybe the meat is shot up over there and it's just people are more honest about it here, I don't know. When you go to a grocery store here, it's not uncommon to see 7% retained water on a pack of chicken fillets...

The smell of the rain in the field and the luggage doors operatin'

sbsquarepants

Real redheads

Lollipops23

A Tyrant Named Miltiades! wrote: »

The smell of the rain in the field and the luggage doors operatin'

I'd forgotten about luggage doors operatin'!!

*sobs into overpriced Canadian coffee*

Foxhound38

Antar Bolaeisk wrote: »

I love the first breath of air getting off the plane in Dublin.

There are few better feelings in the world!

fits

The weather. The last two winters in Finland were tough. Milder than usual but still seven months of cold dull grey sh!te. And the food. Especially meat.

TheBeardedLady

iDave wrote: »

So in summary unhealthy food and alcohol!

...and milk.

Foxhound38

TheBeardedLady wrote: »

...and milk.

Except that UHT milk

It's sh*te

Coeurdepirate

Galway, the craic, people, deli food, mountains. Berlin has enough incredible aspects to compensate though.

Kevin McCloud

The misery.

Galwayguy35

I spent 2 years in London and thought the Guinness there was muck, not the same quality as here at all.

ArnoldJRimmer

The bread, its absolutely awful in the US. Which is why i always stock up on the Odlums brown bread mix when I'm home so I can make my own

Guinness is fairly sh!te here, but there are other good beer options which I go for instead. Mulligans of Poolbeg St is usually my first port of call when I get home though

Proper curry sauce

Having the craic. Basically being around people with a similar sense of humour. For the most part, the Americans I know are very nice people, they're just not much craic to be around

AngryHippie

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2057388954

the evasion_kid

I miss the characters you find in ireland,you get them all over the world but it just seems Ireland breeds some of the funniest.

conspiracycat

[Deleted User] wrote: »

Hankerings: Fish and chips. Guinness. Breakfast rolls.

Actual things: Being able to own a car. Easy banking. Easy insurance. Being a citizen. Safe roads. Real alcohol. Real goods. Real documents. No bribes. Competence. Police do police work. Amazon.

Where are you?

chrissb8

Lived in Berlin for 6 months. Only back last week.

What I missed:

-Cheese and onion crisps, Butter and Milk, chicken fillet rolls, Roast dinner.
-Not having to dull down my accent and also the lingo we use is brilliant.
-No one takes themselves seriously and can laugh at their own expense.
-The landscape and the Sea. Walked up Killiney hill and just took in some brilliant views on the weekend. The peace I get from looking out on the Irish landscape is beautiful.
-Coming into an Irish pub and everyone is happy and animated and looking for a great night.
-Our (sometimes too) laidback nature and our ability to have huge craic.
-Fresh refreshing air

punk_one82

Haven't been away for long enough to miss many things yet (only been 4 months), but reading this thread has made me realise I really miss the air in Ireland!

LizT

The food. Ireland do dairy and meat products especially well.

Irish people are actually pretty well mannered as well, compared to where I live now.

Jinonatron

The weather is good all year around with no extremes. Never too cold or too hot and it rains **** all compared to some other countries.

The air. Ireland has very fresh and clean air compared to China

COYVB

Wishing I wasn't in Ireland :P

COYVB

ArnoldJRimmer wrote: »

The bread, its absolutely awful in the US. Which is why i always stock up on the Odlums brown bread mix when I'm home so I can make my own

This! Have Mammy COYVB sending regular supplies of brown bread mix over to me in Canada

THEZAPPA

My family,
My dogs,
Good pack of king crisps,
Fry up,
Friends,
Proper gaffs where people don't just leave after one drink,
The fresh air,
Real bread,
Better but still terrible drivers xD
The sense of humour,
Being able to have a good conversation when meeting someone for the first time,
The big green parks and trips to Glenda lough on a sunny day,

But mostly my family and dogs seriously miss them

Stinjy

MRnotlob606 wrote: »

Aww the poor puppy:( I want to cuddle your puppy.

me too! He's so adorable and a little troublemaker but god I miss him!!

glassdaisies

the pubs
the landscape
how genuine and laidback people are
bulmers
my friends

Ruu

Humour and Irish sarcasm, where else can you say the following and get something other than a puzzled look or having to explain things?

Co-worker: Will you work my desk shift?
Me: I will, yeah.

After noticing someones bad hair.
"The head on ya!"

Foxhound38

I miss Ireland while I'm away

whatismyname

Whether it's that you live away from Ireland... or just away on your holliers.... what is it that you miss about Ireland when away?

Started thinking about my list, and realised it's largely food / drink related... oops...

Was never a massive tayto fan, but now that I live away from Ireland and can't get them, I'd kill for the auld tayto.

Ballygowan - this probably sounds stupid, but one time on landing in Dublin Airport after being away for months, I bought and drank a bottle of ballygowan and there was something really homely about the fact that it was ballygowan - yet it's only fecking water. Nope... I don't get it either...

Snack boxes from the chipper - it's rare to see a chippie here selling southern fried chicken, and as much as I love my KFC it's just not the same... I did think I'd sourced it one night and ordered my chicken and chips... opened the wrapping and there was a piece of chicken in BATTER... I don't know why they insist on putting batter on every piece of food here, but I wasn't too impressed, let me tell you! I'd near travel home for a yummy snack box... even better, covered in salt, vinegar and ketchup...

I'm sure there's bits of Irish banter / slang / craic that I miss - many of the Irishisms that they mention in the other thread... but it's been so long I've not got a clue... but pretty sure there's nothing quite like the auld fecking banter and the craic we have in Ireland, and sure we're all grand

People understanding my accent - Being able to talk as fast as I want and not have people wondering what the feck I'm saying. Then again, it's only out of Ireland I get to have a different action that people enjoy... and of course to bring joy to the masses of people by saying 'dirty-tree-and-a-turd'. Could never do that in Ireland

Dublin - I don't miss my home town all that much at the moment - well at all really - but it's way too long since I've been in Dublin and I miss you. Hopefully one day we will meet again.

Am sure I'll think of more, but sure isn't that enough to get us started

whatismyname

Oh and I miss people actually getting my sense of humour. Which can be quite dry and sarcastic at times, like only Irish people can perhaps. Here, I make a joke, and almost always have to follow it up with 'em, yeah, that was a joke' after everyone just looks at me strangely.

Although, there was that type in uni when my classmates told me that they had finally 'got' my humour, that they'd just thought I was a bitch only that point... so me... yeah... maybe not :P

Duke O Smiley

The water protesters

tippspur

I was never away

whatismyname

tippspur wrote: »

I was never away

awww

I dunno..... ever left your home town... when we could make a 'what do you miss when you leave your home town' thread?

The Backwards Man

My doggy.

Kevin McCloud

My 7610.

Cookie_Monster

the air of depression

DivingDuck

Newsagents, especially in the US. In every city and town in Ireland, you are never more than three minutes from somewhere you can buy a bottle of water and probably some kind of snack if you're in dire straights for something to eat-- a sandwich, a packet of crisps, a bar of chocolate, something. In the US it sometimes feels like you could walk for miles without finding anywhere to grab something quickly.