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Moving to a new country is common nowadays. Many people get jobs abroad and move with their family in the hope of a better life.

Yet relocating is never easy. It’s a challenge for both the parents and the children. And we worry if our family will adjust to a new culture and way of living.

17-year-old Bianka moved to Ireland with her family four months ago, from Dubai. Born in Hungary, Bianka spent her life between both regions. Read about how she adapted to Irish life:

Overcoming Cultural Differences

The first things you notice when moving to a different country are the cultural differences which involves the way people act, think and live. I moved to Ireland from Hungary about three months ago. I knew my life would transform. Before moving to Ireland I lived in Dubai for three years where my life was different. When I originally moved to Dubai, I didn’t speak the language which was a challenge. People bombarded me with questions I couldn‘t even understand which was nerve wrecking, there’s no denying that. Yet as the weeks and months passed, I realised I understood more each day, and I got used to the situation.

Some people might think after having lived on a different continent, moving to Ireland will be easy, but they forget it’s a totally different country. It was much easier adopting to the lifestyle here as I was already speaking the language and was from a European country. Yet the first thing that caught my eye in Ireland was that people are happier and kinder to each other, and it surprised me to see that anyone is up for a conversation.

On the first days of school a few people immediately came up and showed me around school. The teachers were even more welcoming. By the end of my first week, I already was invited to a party which showed me how much the Irish love to celebrate and socialise. I also found it interesting that they have many Irish slang words so watch out! It may take time to understand them all!

The Irish love sports. Every time there are sports events, all the stadiums are full which is great because these sport events bring the people closer. So my advice to my peers for overcoming cultural differences is: Try out these new things about your new lifestyle and be open-minded. After all you do learn a lot of useful things from other cultures and you might discover some new qualities, you didn’t even think you had.

The Education System

When moving somewhere with your family you need to consider the schooling system in the country. Is it of a high standard? Do children have enough opportunities to study what they are interested in? Do teachers motivate their students and interact with them? These are some questions a worried parent might ask. Well I can commend that Ireland has one of the best education systems without a doubt.

Here, children have options, and are supported and inspired. If a student has any issue or concern she/he can talk to any of the teachers. They also have a mentoring system in my school where each individual is assigned a teacher which also encourages a great student-teacher relationship. In Hungary the teachers can be more distant with the students, and their motivational methods were more traditional.

Another standout quality I discovered is I could choose my own subjects, which wasn’t an option in either Hungary or Dubai. I was so delighted that I could finally study a topic I was truly interested in. In Hungary, the education system can be too demanding at times. We had to learn about ten subjects including chemistry, physics, history, a second language, biology, etc. And our level of mathematics in Hungary is very high. I remember an American math teacher once told me that the topics we were learning in maths (in secondary school), were only being taught in US University!

In Dubai we couldn’t choose our subjects but at least the demand wasn’t too high. I learned the same subjects as now, the only difference was that I had to learn Arabic and they had Islamic Education. We had a lot of sport competitions too and we had to wear uniforms too (unlike in Hungary) which helped emphasise that we are all equal no matter where we come from.

I also found it great that there are more subjects you can study here than in my home country for example Business, Engineering, Home Economics and Agricultural Science. There is also a wider range of school activities here. Debating as a school activity doesn’t exist in Hungary and I also like that the teacher in our school organise many events like the school musical, a play which the students can audition for and a school choir which performs now and then.

I like that the teachers often take students on trips which helps them learn while also encouraging teamwork and social activities. Here in Ireland, they organise Diversity Week and LGBT Week in the school which teaches students to accept everyone and fight against racism. Nothing like this ever happened in any of the countries I’ve lived in before.

From Hot Deserts to Rainy Regions

Do I need to even mention it? The weather was one of the biggest differences after having lived Dubai! Firstly, it took time to adapt to the scorching heat, walking in 60°c. The only thing Dubai and Ireland had in common was people carried umbrellas to protect themselves from the extreme heat rather than the pouring rain. Rain is something rather rare in Dubai. In fact, I remember everyone being sent home from school because of the rain so I wouldn’t be exaggerating if I said the locals were even scared of rain!

In Ireland, the weather can get kind of chilly and rainy but that doesn’t seem to bother the Irish. They have adapted to this weather really well, in fact people are still swimming in the sea which is about 19°c in September. I often see people on the streets walking around wearing just a T-shirt when I was wearing my winter jacket. And it’s often pouring rain and our jackets seem to be useless as the wind blows the rain in several directions, so you’re soaked wet by the time you reach home, anyway!

Even though it might rain a lot in Ireland, the major perk is everything is so green. You can find it all here: lush green parks, patchwork fields and forests galore. Another benefit is that it doesn’t get really cold during the winter. Back in Hungary, it was an often -15 °c during winter so I was thrilled to be able to get away from those frosty temperatures. The temperature in the summer is also pleasant as it doesn’t become insufferable like the desert; it’s a happy medium.

Do you have a similar experience of moving to a country you would like to share? Or perhaps you would like to find out more about itContracting’s permanent roles in Ireland? Contact the team today for more information.