3 Cultural Shocks I’ve Had Since I Moved to Ireland
PART TWO
“…Cultural shocks happen when the cultural and personal exposure you’ve had in your whole life in a certain place and the way you were taught about what living life is, are shown to you in a completely different way. It’s when you see that nothing you’ve been taught and exposed to in your whole life is what works in this other new land”- Gabriel Morse
And here we are for Part Two. If you read the first article which I started sharing some of the biggest cultural shocks I’ve had since moving to Ireland and now you’re here for part two, I would like to thank you for joining me in this series.
Though I have to say that now, things are going to start getting a little bit more controversial and maybe uncomfortable if you’re Irish, as I start talking about some deeper stuff.
Some cultural differences are minor and very easy to put up with. Others are disturbing and annoying because as I said in the other article, when we move to a new country, everything is portrayed in a completely different way to the one you’re used to.
But then again, the whole point of this series is not to say anything negative about this incredible country and culture. Who am I to judge? Plus, at the end of the day, my opinion is just my opinion. It’s just how I see everything.
When I face a cultural shock, I know that the fact I come from a different country and have experienced being foreign in so many others around the world is always taken into account. It does not mean that the new culture I’m exposed to is wrong or that I am wrong. It just means we’re different.
So, allow me to share other few cultural shocks I’ve had since moving to Ireland.
3- Dublin is so dirty
I know that most major cities in the world are dirty. But Dublin seems to be a little more. But it’s not just dirty because there’s litter on the streets. It’s a disgusting type of dirty.
A) Dog poop everywhere
What is wrong with the Irish that they can’t clean up after their dogs?
I come from Brazil, where, unfortunately, there are hundreds of street dogs everywhere because so many mean people will just abandon them on the streets. But not even that makes Brazilian streets dirtier than Irish streets. Irish people won’t simply pick up dog poop here. And it’s not only in Dublin, where it’s a big city, but it’s also in small towns.
I work and study in Dublin, but I live in a small town 1 hour away from Dublin. And even there, I have to mind my steps because if I’m not watching the ground, I might step on dog poop. This is so annoying.
B) Broken glasses on the street
Another thing that makes the city dirty is broken glasses. Omg. There are hundreds of thousands of broken glasses all over the city.
Drunk people will leave the pubs during the night and just throw their beer bottles on the streets.
When I go to work early in the morning, I have to be careful as well because I can easily step on a piece of broken glass.
If they don’t break these beer bottles, they might end up leaving them at bus stops, or even inside public transportation. I’ve seen so many beer bottles on the floor of the buses here.
C) People will do “number one” and “number two” in public
Another thing that makes the city dirty is the people who will pee and poop in public. Yes, you heard that right.
To give you an example, I’m going to share with you what happened to me last weekend. I was walking down the street at 7 am on my way to work, and there were 3 very drunk men walking near me. It was a freaking Sunday morning, there were other people walking down this street nearby Stephen Greens Park, and all of a sudden, two of these men simply pull down their pants and start peeing on the street. Like that. Right in front of everybody. I know they were Irish because I could tell by the accent. They didn’t give a damn about what they were doing.
This seems to be “normal” for them here. They will do that everywhere. Behind restaurants, pubs, in front of your house. I’m telling you. It’s disgusting.
Certain areas smell so terrible because you know what people just did there.
D) Most establishments are dirty
Most restaurants and pubs are dirty. Coffee shops are extremely dirty. Starbucks, Cafe Nero, Insomnia. All these coffee shops are nowhere near clean.
Why don’t managers seem to care that their establishments are so dirty?
If you’re not in a fancier restaurant or area, the place you’re eating is most likely to be dirty. Restaurants near the Spire are terribly disgusting.
Fast food places? Forget about them. They are going to look gross.
2- Pedestrians’ right of way
What’s up with every driver here that they won’t stop for pedestrians?
Pedestrians won’t have the right of way here in Ireland, and that is so freaking annoying. Maybe the law says that drivers have to stop, but the reality is different.
When people have to cross the street, most drivers in most countries will stop so that these people can cross. Well, most countries, but Ireland.
Drivers here are so rude and they won’t care if you’re trying to cross the street.
And not only that, but when you’re already crossing the street on a red light for them but green light for you, and it suddenly goes green for them, they will NOT wait until you finish crossing. They will start driving right away as if there’s no one there.
I’ve seen rude drivers in so many countries, but Irish drivers seem to win the prize for Most Annoying And Rude Drivers Of All Time.
1- Kids and teenagers go out alone without their parents (and they do crazy things too)
Warning: Sensitive Content
Last but not least, this is one of the biggest cultural shocks I’ve had since I’ve been here.
Kids and teenagers in Ireland seem to be very “independent” as you see them walking on the busy streets of the city center by themselves.
In the U.S., as well as in Brazil, this isn’t very common. And we all know why. It’s because it’s not safe, and parents are super overprotective. But here in Ireland, kids and teenagers will literally go out without their parents as this seems to be a very acceptable and common thing for them.
However, what seems to be such a revolutionary and cool lifestyle for kids and a very laid-back parenting style, I see as a very negative thing.
Why?
It has nothing to do with me disagreeing with parents who let their kids go out alone. I clearly have nothing to do with how parents raise their kids. It’s none of my business.
But because these same kids and teenagers (Or most of them), when left unattended, are the ones who will do crazy, stupid, and dangerous shit in the city, and they just behave in a way that is so threatening for so many people.
These kids will smoke on the streets (I’ve seen so many kids smoke here). Once, two teen girls who were 13 years old asked me if I could buy them a cigarette at the shop. Of course, I said no.
And these kids will be going out in groups. Huge groups. They will attack people on the streets, steal other people’s bicycles, and rob people.
The result is simple: Everyone is afraid of them. If adults ever see a group of kids and teenagers, most of them wearing tracksuits, they know that there’s trouble.
They will go into restaurants, eat and leave without paying, they will steal from the homeless. They are a complete disgrace.
And I refuse to believe that their parents don’t know what they’re doing. Of course, they do. It’s that they don’t care. These kids are too spoiled and they think they can do whatever the fuck they want.
The other day, my best friend was walking down the street and a group of teens tried to steal her. She was on the phone, then they started mocking her and barking as if they were dogs. Yes, they started BARKING at her. Then, they approached her violently and tried to snatch her phone out of her hands.
The worst thing is that this was NOT an incident. This is everyday life here.
Adults fear kids and teenagers in Dublin.
If you say anything back to them, they will come after you. It doesn’t matter if you’re a grown-ass adult. It will be 10 teenagers against one adult.
They will attack Deliveroo riders, and do so many things that make me wonder why their parents let them be alone on the streets and why the police won’t do anything.
If you think I’m exaggerating, well, here are the news. Alert: Sensitive Content
Thank you for reading my article today! I really appreciate it!
If you haven’t checked my first article on Cultural Shocks in Ireland, don’t forget to click on this link below.
Stay tuned for PART THREE.
