Moving to Ireland - Best and Worst Things 

My dad Irish and I'm from Australia I moved to Ireland with my parents in 2011 it best thing i ever did i live in middle of nowhere and the adventures I have with my two dogs is amazing and the people are amazing so lovely always there to help so yes I'm happy

This dog... What a character. Most loyal companion. ♥️

I grew up in the highlands, we have a saying , that midgies Don't bite you, they put on tackety boots and kick you to death. One year with my Partner we decided to go camping for a few days, on leaving early in the morning mum said "see you tomorrow" , we said " oh but we are staying a few days mum", she replied " ok see you tomorrow" which annoyed us ! We found a beautiful spot near a lake, set up our tent began to make food and then THEY arrived ! millions or billions of them in dark clouds. We spent the evening until early morning wearing all out clothes plus hats Under our sleeping bags but despite that we were badly bitten. When we went out there was not one single midgie then we dismantled the tent and Under the top layer they had taken refuge, a large black mass of them. Needless to say we went home to mum on the doorstep telling us that soup was on the cooker ! She KNEW what we didn't ! Evil wee bastards !

You should hang lots of bat boxes, they will help you with your midge problem. I have lots of bats where I live and the midge are far less then at a place of friends of mine that live a few kilometers away.

Those tunnels might come in handy if/when the Irish Tax Office come a calling.

The melancholy and beauty of Ireland, it's history, it really is a jewel. I believe the Irish say that in Ireland you won't get a tan from the sun but rather brown of the rust.

2 years ago during our visit to Ireland me and my ex were happy to experience 3 things of your list which I think is not bad result for just a two weeks of being there😅 We were making our way from Ballinskelligs to Portmagee by bikes but the famous Irish humidity made the asphalt extremely wet which result was a bicycle crush not without some bloody injuries. These midges you've mentioned attacked us immediately and I have no idea what would we do if not for that gentleman with 4 dogs who saw us, then quickly made his way back home to leave dogs and make space for bikes, and after that delivered our useless bones to Ballinskelligs. After about 1000 "thank you" he said something like "nevermind, it's just normal thing to do". Humane and understanding they are and soooo talkative ❤️

Man's best friend! There is no doubt your dog loves you :).

I'm from Ireland...you summed it up well ! Such a nice manner you have.🙂

My dad is from Ireland and I lived there in the 90's. Want to move back, the states are absolutely mad now.

i moved from Dublin 16 years ago to live in west Donegal , have no regrets . Also a happy new year to you .

Just came across your channel, it’s shook me learning of your exploits and got me thinking. I was born and raised in the West of Ireland and for over 40 years I’ve worked in England doing the rat race currently I live in Wales. I’ve bought a stone cottage here that I’m doing up. I’ve not been back home for many years and watching your vids is bringing back lots of memories. It also makes me think I need to stop the rat race for a much simpler life but as you say being younger does help, big time I feel. I watch with interest how you get on, all the best!

IRELAND is the best moss ridden rock in the world. Happy Christmas Bosco.

As an Irish person..I love this;!!!! You are a credit to this country with your honesty!!!!

Excellent video Mossy, I live in rural Limerick. A workmate of mine who is an inner city boy decided he would camp out for a few nights under the trees in Killarney national park last summer, I told him he would certainly make thousands of new friends!. Anyway he returned a few days later after his camping adventure a little wiser and a few liters of blood lighter. He had worn shorts and a t shirt!. I carry a head net and cover every square inch of skin from the airborne piranha.

How can we be friends?! I almost want to move to a cottage next to yours just to be your friend!!! What a good man.

Don't let doggy go into the tunnels alone , the fairies will take him :(

You have such peace and serenity and a dog that adores you, what a lucky man you are.

Co.Cavan(where i live)has 365 lakes,1 for every day of the year

The best thing about living in Ireland is being able to breathe in fresh clean air everyday in a beautiful place🌳🌱🍀🌿🌾🌲☘

Your a legend man. Merry chrimbo to you and moss. You're genuine, that's why people are tuning in

Theres an app called Gallivanter which is about to be released which shows all of Irelands historic sites, including the remaining c. 40,000 ringforts. About 60,000 have been removed by farmers over the last few hundred years(the govt. incentivised this by giving farmers extra grants for every square meter of tillable land, so farmers knocked down the ringforts for the extra few hundred square meters)(my uncle on my mom's side knocked a few as did my granddad on my dad's side) (thankfully, many farmers refused to do so because they had supersticious beliefs about the forts). The dún/lios/rath/ forts themselves would have been villages but also small kingdoms (tuath) basically where the walls protected people and livestock from raiding parties and wolves, the chief (taoiseach) of the petty kingdom would have lived in the centre and his relatives and clansmen would have lived around him, interestingly there would also have been what was a family tree in the ringfort, this tree would have been grown by their ancestor who built the fort and the tree symbolized the family's power( When Brian Boru was vying with the O'Neill kings for the position of Ard-Rí, The O'Neill king went to his family fort in Clare and personally cut down his family tree as an insult c.990 AD). After the normans came people began to move into towns and these circular forts were abandoned. In later years many of these forts would have been used as burial grounds for babies who died before being baptized, as it was forbidden for a stillborn child/ unbaptized child to be buried in the local graveyard, and people felt that if the catholic god would not take the baby then the old gods would take them and these ringforts would have had an old spiritual connection with the people. There are about 2 historic sites in Ireland per square kilometer with the greatest concentration being anywhere outside of the Pale (historic term for the greater Dublin area) and the mountain blanket bog areas. The Gallivanter app is supposed to have mapped around 150,000 sites on the island when it comes out next month, at the moment its in testing stage.

What a wonderful, wonderful dog!!! My ancestors came from Ireland, but if you got your dog in Ireland, that'd be what would get me to move to Ireland! Love that dog!

Very helpful information for anyone thinking of moving to Ireland. I was born and raised here but lived in Spain for almost eight years as an adult and when we returned to Ireland I saw it through fresh eyes. The richness of foliage and friendliness of people was very obvious. For me, Spain was great in winter but too hot in summer and I really missed the culture of Ireland, so I can relate to what you say in your video. Hope 2020 is a good and fruitful year for you. Thanks for sharing your thoughts and experience.

Great video good on you been in Australia 25 years thinking of going home I didn’t appreciate the great history and scenery when I was a child now I am older and my children are grown and I feel I need to go back there ☘️

Try a repellent called Smidge (we got it on Amazon), best thing we've found so far to stop the things - happy 2020 from West Donegal!

I hope you and Moss had a good Christmas Daniel and all the best for 2020!

I've been thinking about moving as of late. The US is going down hill fast. I was in Ireland 20 yrs ago, and I must say it's the only place I ever felt home. As soon as I got off the plane I had goosebumps. It was eerie. Anyhoo, with every passing day I'm thinking it may be time to go.( If the Irish will have me. ) My father's side is Irish. Not sure if I could get dual citizenship or not. Living the channel. Wishing you well! 🙂

ive been looking at plots of land around Ireland (Im Irish) and I think this is what Im going to do. Derelict building on a plot of land and live out of my camper until I get it fixed up.

I live in the southern part of the United States. We had literally the best most productive summer ever because we began making our own mosquito repellent. Get a blended mix of Eucalyptus, peppermint, basil, tea tree, and rosemary essential oil. Add 10 drops to 2oz of rubbing alcohol, pour it into a small spray bottle, shake it, spray it on yourself. Not only you will smell nice, but it will repel and mask you from those nasty blood suckers. It's also a great antibacterial for freshening your sweaty shoes and feet, which it was first intended for. I don't know what's available in Ireland, but I hope you can find something similar to these ingredients in a pharmacy shop. Wishing you better seasons!

Merry Christmas from the west coast of Canada. Always enjoy your vids and your buddy Moss

Hi Dan. I really admire you; the way you've decided to live your live and your strong convictions. It almost reminds me myself a few years ago when I moved from the big city into Devon, completely worn out and with my two cats recued fron the streets of London. Then I experienced all the challenges and encounteedr all the beauty you talk about in your videos. I couldn't find a place to rent for me and the cats so I ended up living in a static caravan in a farm in the middle of nowhere. My cats and I suffered a complete transformation. something that only the contact with nature can do.Unfortunately, it didn't go well for us and one evening after returning from my work( in an animal welfare charity), I found the caravan had burnt and my cats had died trallically in it, such a day as today the 30th Dec. After this cathartic experience, I wandered around Europe for a couple of years. I saw wonderful places and met very nice people. Now I'm back to Devon. Iit's the kind of place somehow I belong to, in the same way you feel that connection with Ireland. I've decided to live off grid in a caravan and move around. there are so many beautiful places to explore around here and Corwall. I couldn't settle and live confined in one place at this moment. I see myself almost as a migrant in spirit. I hope I haven't upset you with my story and as I said I really admire you, in the same way I feel reflected in many of the things you talk; some others make me feel jealouse as I haven't experienced them myself yet. I wish you and your beautiful dog a very bright and happy new year! J

I remember when The currency changed to Euros, our average shopping bill went up half again - literally overnight.

I'm amazed at the wonderful ring fort near you. It's quite a fabulous specimen. They don't often remain in that condition as farmers used the stones in constructing farm walls. Is it a protected area? I'm sure you're aware that many Irish place names come from a variety of words for such forts such as Dún or Rath.

Happy Christmas, it was a lovely surprise to get an update. 💕

So good to see your smiling face and Moss the boss looking well and happy. Great video! Thanks for sharing the best and worst of the emerald isle. Merry Christmas to you and hope many more blessings fill your new year😊

That dog of yours - how sweet❤️ Merry Christmas to the two of you and keep up the good, and very entertaining videos through 2020 🎄

God Bless your amazing neighbor!!! Such a Blessing!!!

Thanks so much for returning to us with this video. We waited patiently in hopes. I know you are busy. Happy Christmas and the best in the new year.

Thank you, Daniel! A ring fort! What a treasure.

Good to hear from you. Blessings on this Yule morn

Happy Christmas Daniel bro😉 Love your videos and your views of my country. I'm moving to the countryside soon after nearly 50 years in Dublin, hopefully I'll enjoy it as much as you 🙂

Excellent video Daniel. Having been with my Irish wife for 8 years now, and experienced the things you mention, from Dublin to Clare, the Wild Atlantic Way to the Giant's Causeway, and much time spent with my late father-in-law in Co Meath and brother-in-law just over the border in Co Cavan, your choices are pretty much spot on. If I had to swap anything, while the island of Ireland itself is wonderful, I might put the people of Ireland, a midge's whisker ahead 😊

Thanks for the well thought out informational video.

Even with the worst things, Ireland is still such a treasure. I love the Ring Fort. So many places to explore. Good luck with your restoration project.

Merry Christmas to you and Moss, and all the very best for the New Year from the green isle of New Zealand 🎅🌲🍒🥂🎄🎈🎁🌏

Happy Christmas and happy new year Mossy bottom. Home alone is also my favourite Christmas film. Wishing you the very best of luck with the cottage restorations for 2020.

This is a beautiful, interesting and very well narrated video, a real pleasure to watch. We hope to move to Ireland next year. Thank you very much for advising of the joys and other considerations in making such a move. May you enjoy many more happy years in the beautiful Emerald Isle.

What a lovely little summary of the good and bad in Ireland. I appreciate the way you handled the negative side which the visitor doesn't always grasp. I think you are a lucky fellow to have made your choice to move to Ireland. May you be strengthened by both the joys and the challenges you will experience.

Merry Christmas from Idaho, USA

Love watching your videos and seeing the progress that you have made. Keep up the great work. Really like when you show us your animals. Merry Christmas from Manitoba, Canada.

Very best wishes for 2020. Looking forward to continuing to follow your progress :) x

Watching from Kenya! Looove your channel. You tempt me to build and settle on my father's farm❤❤

A thousand welcomes to Ireland friend, you have a beautiful home. Hope you have a great life here.

Loved this video ...thank you so much -a breath of fresh air ( literally).

Moss is the sweetest dog! I really enjoyed the video, I love Ireland, I've been there twice and certainly will come back (one of my dreams is to have a cottage in the middle of nowhere). And I didn't know about midges, that sounds like a nightmare! But luckily the beauty of nature compensates that! Happy new year to you and Moss!

I'll trade you the bushfires and higher heat and drought for the rain and storms.

We live in the Southwest Scotland and we use Smidge repellent to keep the midges away when we are working in the forests.

Mossy was having a right good time throwing his stick around, lol, so cute! Great video, very informative love the ring fort also love the fairy kingdom! Cheers and Happy Christmas from Oregon, USA.

What a wonderful Christmas surprise -- a new video from you and Moss! Happy New Year!

Wow, I didn’t realize you were in Ireland for some reason! Lucky you! It’s on my bucket list. I’m hoping next year. ☺️

We have many problems and things could be better but we are very very fortunate to live in Ireland ....hope your made to feel welcome....Irish people have travelled to the 4 corners of the world and I hope we always make people feel welcome here no matter where they are from......good luck for 2020 hope it's a great year for you

Merry Christmas!! Looking forward to see your progress in the new year :)

Happy Holiday Season and all the best with your restoration project!

Hello Mossy, I have been watching you for a while and you are truly brave man and inspiration to me. Keep following you dream, enjoy. I wish you a fantastic achievements in 2020! Keep well

Sadly, the entire motor industry and motor insurance industry in Ireland (as well as as numerous senior government people, self-evidently) have developed as an extortion racket. Hence the ridiculous ever increasing insurance rates for older cars, second hand car import taxes (taxes illegal under EU rules, but Ireland just opts to pay the annual fine to the EU, with more taxpayer's money.) and the year of manufacture posted on the number plates, another anti-social rule outlawed elsewhere. Sadly, this is very unlikely to change until the press really shout in unison, and that is almost impossible as the few journalists left in the country live in mortal fear of interfering in this multi-billion Euro pan-industry manipulation.

Well done on your perseverance. That looks like a tough existence you've chosen. Always enjoy your videos. Wishing you both all the best over Christmas and beyond.

It's amazing to see the structure built ~1000 years ago. Nice video and take care of your animals so so well! 😀 God bless you! 😀

Enjoyed it immensely, as always. Would brave the fierce midges to experience the glorius greens... i live in southeastern ohio, usa, with many, many overcast dull gray winter days. Of course we do have quite lovely fall colors. 🍁🍂! Happy new year. May God crown 2020 with peace and progress in your precious land hold in ireland. Love your life stories.

Such a lovely video, I feel so glad that you feel at home in Ireland 🇮🇪, we take the beauty of Ireland for granted..your videos have a very relaxing effect..your love for Ireland shines through..it seems like you’ve found your little heaven..Best wishes to you for the new year ☘️.

Merry Christmas to you both. Thank you for sharing. Am thinking of living in Ireland. Some ancestors came from there.

Thanks for the video, I really look forward to watching the next one

I’ve been introduced to midges when me and my girlfriend were carcamping in Wales, at the edge of Snowdonia (for me personally the greenest and most beautiful place I have ever seen). After 5 nights of horror they drove us to an Airbnb 😂

Can't think of a better Christmas pressie than a lovely video from Daniel and Moss! I was beginning to worry about you. Being that close to a ring fort would make all the rest bearable for me. xxx Murf

Love your videos mate. Merry Christmas, good health and great gardening in the new year.Glad to hear from you once again.

Nice video. I'm glad my country is appreciated like you have shown.

Beautiful. I don't know that I'll ever be able to travel from the US to Ireland (or Scotland), but it is a dream vacation of mine. The most beautiful green place I know of here in the US is the Appalachian Mountains, my favorite retreat place of all and the land of my Scot-Irish ancestors (an old homestead is still there and it's fun to visit). I think the Scots and Irish found a little bit of home there, maybe? Thank you for this video and Happy New Year to you and Moss!!

That's the thing about stone walls, They last forever. I'm thinking about making my garden bed borders from stone.

Merry Christmas to you and the rest of the family!

Just absolutely lovely video! Hope your holidays are awesome!

If you apply lavender oil in a carrier oil to your skin then mosquitos hate it. It might work for midges too. Merry Xmas!!

Thank you for sharing your beautiful adventure with us, Daniel. I can only imagine how rewarding all the hard work is. I can sense that you have a deep and ancient connection with the land. It must be very peaceful. Blessings of the Season to you and Moss!

Nice and very informative vlog. I was born in Ireland and concur with all of these

Merry Christmas ! Very warmest wishes to Mossy Bottom your beautiful pup, ducks & chickens! And a wonderful New Year to you all :) from Toronto .

Greetings. An interesting video. (:> On the midges: If you get a small portable BBQ and burn a turf briquette in it. This will certainly help with keeping them away and don't worry you don't have to be physically close to it and suffering from smoke inhalation yourself. LOL Car Insurance - One of those "don't get people started on that" topic. Groceries - We are definitely more expensive than our neighbours, but I would add that the wages are higher here for similar jobs elsewhere. Not that helps in reality as the groceries are more or less the same price nationwide, but the pay regimes are not... We just put up with it. (:< Damp / humidity / rain : I know we have moss and algae going constantly now in our area, used to be just a winter thing, but either there is just a small respite from it or it has landed for good in spots around where I am. There are chemical solutions, but no doubt you would not want to use them near your livestock or plot where you grow you own food etc. Related : As you mention the ground appears to be perpetually soggy in many areas. A topic raised in recent years is the fact that the River Shannon & associated lakes are silted up. The Shannon is the longest river in Ireland and traditionally would have drained the landscape around it. The river has not been maintained since 1922 and so is in it's current state as a result. The topic comes and goes, along with the regular flooding episodes (ironically costing millions each year, wouldn't it be an idea to put that money to better use in maintaining the Shannon & other river systems instead).... Basically no one Govt Institution, local or national, will take responsibility for the mammoth task involved. And of course there is the elephant in the room that we have water shortages when there are any 'shortish' dry spells in the summer. Rant over LOL... Have a good one. Season's Greetings & Kind regards, BG

I live in London and I get midges in my back garden and on my allotment. (I don't remember them so much years ago, so maybe it's a result of global warming). However I've discovered that if I put baby oil on my skin before going out, or sun cream in the Summer, it tends to keep the midges off me as they don't like munching through grease/oil. As for the fairies in Ireland...One time I was cycling down a long lane in Ireland at night time with my husband. The next day we cycled back and realised the lane was full of bad potholes most of which had the potential to throw us from our bikes, and somehow we'd missed them all. I could only put that down to the influence of the fairies.

Just popped in to wish you and Moss a belated Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. All the best.

Good to see a post. Have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

You have the happiest dog I've ever seen 😎🤗😎

I have spent a few holidays in Ireland. One was a two week tour by car with two archeologists, one potters wife and a fourth person who at that time was knitting sweaters to sell on fairs or on demand for a living. It was extremely slow going

Hi Daniel. Really enjoy watching you mate. Wishing you all the best now and for 2020. Happy holidays. Looking forward to watching more of you. 👌

Thank you for making this video. It is very informative!

Merry Christmas from Denmark

I have been here 5 years and really do believe I am at the end of stay now. I am in The far south west. The long, dark, wet winters have me beaten.

Merry Christmas from Belfast my lovely mum is from Galway most beautiful place ever. Great yo have you in this lovely island. Have a Smashing 2020!!!!!! From Marie x

Thank you for this very interesting and lovely video. The number 1 best reason is the one that attracts me the most to Ireland. Hopefully one day I will visit. Wishing you a wonderful year 2020!

Light a newspaper and walk through the midge cloud , then make a smudge fire near your work sight..

Merry Christmas from Brittany, not so bad for midgies here thankfully..

Cheers from New York State. Up Sligo! Wonderful video and presentation. What a beautiful place in Leitrim. Much success and I can’t wait to see the next one.

Happy New Year my friend and all the best to you and your pup in 2020.