When I first arrived in Cork to study, the language, \u201cIrishisms,\u201d took some getting used to. The Irish speak English\u2026 but not the English you\u2019re used to. <\/p>\n
On the train, you\u2019d overhear girls talking about \u201cyour man,\u201d aka that guy. I\u2019d hear compliments on an outfit, and the response was always, \u201cCheers, Penneys!\u201d\u2014which I thought meant \u201ccheers, thanks\u201d in Irish for the first few months, until I realized they were saying it was from the beloved bargain clothing store, Penneys.<\/p>\n
Later, I moved to Dublin<\/a> for a job. There was still a cultural learning curve. The Irish have a wholesome way of saying they like you by \u201cslagging you\u201d\u2014poking fun through banter. I arrived dressed for New York business: work skirts and a blazer, only to realize everyone else wore jeans and a jumper. They\u2019d ask me where my interview was. I eventually gave in. The only time suits came out was when the CEO was on-site.<\/p>\n For nine years, my then-boyfriend (now-husband) and I spent any weekend we could escaping the bustling city of Dublin and its traffic for a quieter, more relaxing time in Ballina, County Mayo\u2014located on the banks of the River Moy, nestled in the foothills of the Ox Mountains. Americans often refer to it as \u201cBal-lean-ah,\u201d but locals call it \u201cBal-in-nah.\u201d<\/p>\n I spent my early summers earning my keep on the bog\u2014an area where the Irish harvest peat, or turf, which is then used as heating fuel. Rural homes in the west of Ireland are often heated by ranges that warm the boiler and the whole house. Sure, there are newer homes with air-to-gas heating, but is that as much fun as something you worked so hard for? Imagine paying a few hundred bucks for a full year of heating. A fine turf shed, stacked perfectly, becomes a proud asset of any rural home\u2014and a visual reminder of the winter ahead, as it empties out wheelbarrow load by wheelbarrow load until the cold, dark days pass and summer comes. Then the cycle repeats itself.<\/p>\n When COVID hit, and the offices closed, my in-laws called and said, \u201cI think it\u2019s time to come home.\u201d We had no idea that leaving Dublin for Ballina that day would be the start of a whole new chapter. Like so many, we were filled with uncertainty\u2014but we were officially home in the west of Ireland.<\/p>\n That year, the weather brought blue skies and warmth\u2014a miracle from the Irish weather gods. We made the most of it, exploring every bike trail we could. The hiking in County Mayo is breathtaking, from Achill to Pontoon, from beaches to Downpatrick Head.<\/p>\n It\u2019s known for its food, too. And not just the Irish cuisine you might expect. A famous \u201clocal\u201d Chinese dish is called Chicken Dry Hot & Spicy. It\u2019s what I crave most when I\u2019m over in New York City. It\u2019s also recently been put on the map by Instagram and TikTok sensation Garron Noone, a local.<\/p>\n For travel across the rest of Europe, we have Knock Airport in Mayo, with daily direct flights to the UK and other popular holiday destinations\u2014just under a two-hour drive to Shannon Airport and three hours to Dublin. Take a two-hour flight, and you can land somewhere magical, like the German Christmas markets or Paris in the spring.<\/p>\n Just one of the many joys of living in Ireland\u2026 with Europe on your doorstep.<\/p>\n Editor’s Note: Think you need Irish ancestry to get an Irish passport? Think again. In Passport to Ireland<\/a>, we reveal five legal pathways Americans can use to qualify\u2014even without Irish heritage. One of them could be the key to your EU passport. Watch the video now and see if you qualify.<\/a><\/p>\n Learn more about Ireland and other destinations by signing up to our daily IL Postcards e-letter and we’ll immediately send you a free report: 20 Countries Compared, Contrasted, Ranked, and Rated.<\/p>\n You don\u2019t have to be rich to enjoy a pampered retirement, you just need to know where to go. <\/p>\n With our 34th Annual Global Retirement Index, our experts hand you a detailed roadmap. By submitting your email address, you will receive a free subscription to IL Postcards, Overseas Dream Home, The Untourist Daily and special offers from International Living and our affiliates. You can unsubscribe at any time, and we encourage you to read more about our Privacy Policy<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"By Brittany Rutledge My journey from a suburban town just outside New York City to the rural west…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":138569,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[8012,58654,232,9,24,55,54,56,1577,956],"class_list":{"0":"post-138568","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-new-york-city","8":"tag-cost-of-living","9":"tag-latest-updates","10":"tag-lifestyle","11":"tag-new-york","12":"tag-new-york-city","13":"tag-new-york-city-headlines","14":"tag-new-york-city-news","15":"tag-ny","16":"tag-retirement","17":"tag-travel"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/138568","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=138568"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/138568\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/138569"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=138568"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=138568"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=138568"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"Newsletter](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/02\/1771494367_792_.jpeg\"\/)
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