When I first arrived in Ireland, what I found most comforting was the welcoming friendliness showered not just on me, but on the many students and others from abroad who had already settled here. Everybody was helpful, genuine and generous. I’ve spent so many Sundays, Easters and especially Christmasses with so many different families... now that’s an experience.
Though there were some of us who had a very poor command of the English language – especially among economic migrants, mostly from Asia, and also some Italians in the catering sector – they nevertheless managed to communicate as the ‘locals’ were patient enough to try to understand. Mind you, when some of the locals spoke with a thick Dublin accent, one really had to concentrate! At the same time, I was often asked to slow down, as apparently I spoke too fast, and I was often accused of having a dictionary for breakfast due to my bombastic language.
Where it came to more practical matters, such as pursuing my accountancy career, things proved more difficult for me. What I found was that not every college in Ireland offered full-time professional accountancy courses. One might have had to attend different colleges a part-time basis, or do evening classes or intensive weekend courses across different counties. It was awkward for me, to say the least.
But I was among foreign friends. Many Malaysians were studying medicine at the Royal College of Surgeons, with others also doing aircraft maintenance with Aer Lingus alongside students from the Middle East. There were also South African Indians, Nigerians and others studying here.
When it came to social life, it was pubs and nightclubs. Apart from the actual places (those Leeson Street late night wine bars were something), nothing’s much changed. The clubs seems to be where most of us – foreign students and locals alike – met our partners or future spouses. There was also some noticeable competition from the local lads when the girls turned their attentions to the ‘foreigners’ on the dance floor. It provoked more than a few fights over the years!
And that wasn’t the only place where friends from abroad received such attention! Once, a Malaysian Chinese friend of mine was admitted to hospital for an appendectomy. He became a star overnight as not many nurses had been so close to a Chinese man. Practically every nurse in the ward wanted to look after him!
Socialising also involved the many friendship and cultural clubs started by students and their peers, which had great Irish participation too, so as to encourage integration. Three months after my arrival, I got very involved with the Malaysian Students Association in Ireland; I became president for about five years, and was a very active student leader in the 1980s. One of our highlights was the annual black tie ball, which was often graced by the presence of the Lord Mayor of Dublin, the Malaysian ambassador and other dignitaries.
Despite such enjoyable times, it was a decade of economic problems much like we have now. Foreign students competed with Irish for jobs, and many natives left for the US, Europe or Australia for summer work, or more.
To be continued...
Logan Raju is a Malaysian-Indian entrepreneur living in Ireland for 30 years.
