Saying goodbye

As an expat, saying "Goodbye" is part of my every day life. Sadly it doesn't get any easier, and I'm not really good at it. The first few years of my "Irish life", I had to say "Goodbye" a lot. If you're a foreigner in this country, you will understand straight away. The first parties I went...

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The passport adventure...

As I was reading Vicky's post about how hard it was to get a proper passport picture of her 3-weeks old daughter, it reminded me of our own adventure with Ciaran's passport 6 years ago. Taking the picture was the easy part, obtaining the actual passport was a bit harder. First of all, I learned...

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Channelling my inner French fashionista

Sometimes I feel there is a preconceived idea that all French women are effortlessly stylish and knowledgeable about fashion. In my case, this couldn't be further from the truth. Contrary to my sister, who is a borderline shopaholic, I don't really like shopping for clothes. And if I have to buy...

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7 random things I love about Ireland

1. Traffic lights During my holidays in France, I stopped a bit too close to a traffic light and as a result couldn't see the colour properly. Instinctively, I looked straight ahead to check the one on the other side of the crossroads. But there was none. In France there is no traffic light facing...

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The cultural difference that took the longest to get used to

Irish Breakfast or... Breton Langoustines? This is going to sound cliché, but when I moved to Ireland 12 years ago, the hardest thing to adapt to, was the way Irish people eat and drink.  Gastronomy is a big thing in France. Mealtime is so important that French people take at least...

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Somewhere on the seaside

Last year I participated in a writing contest and recently thought about the piece I wrote. Someone asked me where I felt "at home" in Ireland and it reminded me of that text (which is not technically about Ireland, but a bit... well, you'll see). The theme of the contest was "A place that allows...

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Irish honesty

If you went through Dublin airport recently you may have noticed the above "Plane water" display in the hallway between security and "The loop" shopping area. I didn't pay attention at first, but after a second look, I realised it was completely unattended. There was just a big box in the...

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The Irish connection

We're finally back. All of us, at last.  On the way over, I thought I was going to have a nervous breakdown. The plane was late, French passport control officials inefficient and I really thought I was going to miss my connecting train. Of course, one of the French passengers started to yell at the "gendarmes" saying the service was crap. And of course, they replied they didn't have enough...

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