GOING IT ALONE ON THE EMERALD ISLE
Emily Baillie moved to Ireland with no job and no plan — and she never looked back. She spoke with Nicola Brown about it
Name: Emily Baillie Occupation: Social Media instructor, Humber College, and Principal, Compass Content Marketing Number of countries visited: 31 and counting
Tell me about your most lifechanging experience as a solo female traveller.
They say life begins at the edge of your comfort zone. That’s why at age 25, I quit a 9-to-5 government job and moved to Dublin, Ireland for a year. Alone. I had never even been outside North America. What did I know about living abroad? None of my family or friends had done it. I grew up in a rural Ontario town — no, village — of 900 people called Ailsa Craig. It wasn’t as if I had someone in my life encouraging me to go overseas. I didn’t know anyone in Ireland. I didn’t have a job there. I didn’t have much money. My parents and even some of my friends were confused by my unexpected desire to pick up and move so far away. I went for it anyway.
What did you gain from living in another country alone for a year? What did you learn about travelling, people, cultures, yourself?
Taking a leap into the unknown was quite scary at the time. But there was a tiny voice inside me telling me to do it anyway: You’ll find a job. You’ll find a place to live. You’ll make friends. You’ll travel across Europe. You’ll make memories to last a lifetime. You’ll be happy. That inner voice turned out to be right. Living in Ireland for a year opened up a whole new world to me. I travelled through 15 awe-inspiring European countries while I was based in Dublin. I took an unforgettable three-week train journey through Germany, Hungary, Austria, Croatia, Italy and Slovakia with a new friend from Newfoundland. I met a friend from Sardinia, Italy, and spent a magical week on the Italian island with her amazing friends and family as hosts. On Irish bank holiday weekends (there were many), I’d grab a few friends, catch a quick Ryanair flight and hang out in places like Barcelona, Amsterdam or Edinburgh. I travelled to other parts of Ireland, such as Galway, Cork and Belfast on weekends and toured the endless pubs (there are reportedly 10,000 pubs in Ireland). Some Dubliners thought I was nuts to travel three to four hours each way for just a couple of days away. Their country is so small (less than 300 km at its widest points) that such distance seemed unreasonable to them. For me, it was always worth it, and I’d tell them that, as a Canadian, I’m used to long drives. Since living abroad in 2007, I’ve travelled through more than 30 countries on four continents and I’ve started a Toronto-based business that’s dedicated to inspiring other people to travel. Compass Content Marketing helps travel and tourism brands create compelling content for their social media and blogs. I also teach social media at Humber College. I love inspiring people and helping them reach their potential.
What was the hardest part of moving to Dublin? What did you miss most?
The beginning was the hardest part. Though it was thrilling to step off the plane into a charming new place that was buzzing with prosperity, the honeymoon period was followed with weeks of searching for a place to live in a saturated rental market, learning to politely converse with incomprehensibly thick accents, navigating confusing city streets, setting up an Irish bank account (you needed a job to open a bank account and you needed a bank account to get paid from your job) . . . you get the picture. There were times when I doubted that I’d made the right decision. I missed the familiarity and ease of being at home sometimes. I even missed the snow at times! Ireland’s winter can be pretty dark and rainy, but there was always good craic (fun) in the pubs.
How did you find a job? Did you prepare before leaving or figure it out when you got there?
I didn’t have a job before I got on the plane. When I arrived, I contacted a few recruitment firms and had a job lined up very quickly. At the time, Dublin was in the midst of the Celtic Tiger — a huge economic boom — that was bringing a lot of prosperity and jobs to the Emerald Isle. I landed a job at the Irish Human Rights Commission, where I learned a lot about the legacy of Ireland’s political struggle, and observed how the tumultuous history of the country inspired a commitment to the protection of autonomy and human rights across the island. I noticed that Ireland’s rich and complicated history presents itself everywhere — from its battle-worn castles to its elegant Georgian architecture and towering political monuments. Many Irish people seem quite proud of regaining political power after it was historically wrested from their hands, and though they often feel misunderstood, they still feel very connected to this complicated history.
What advice would you give to those thinking about moving abroad for work?
Don’t put off moving abroad if you don’t have anyone to go with. You’ll meet people along the way. If you’re a novice traveller, choose a destination like Ireland that’s safe and accessible. Do some research before going and find out which qualifications are needed for the type of job you are looking to get. Try to network online and explore opportunities before leaving. This can accelerate your job search when you arrive. Be open to new possibilities but don’t lose sight of the reason you decided to go abroad in the first place. Venture forward and take a chance. As Mark Twain once said: “Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do.”