A story of how I ended up in Dublin and felt instantly welcomed

I arrived in Dublin almost randomly. The whole decision making and chain of actions leading me to the Irish capital started at an airport in Brittany, France.

It was a day before New Year's Eve and my parents had dropped me at the local airport, direction London, where my job and my life were. My flight ended up being canceled, as there was snow for the first time in years in Brittany, so I waited for the next one, which would have been taking off seven hours later.

While in the waiting room, after killing time scrolling down social media and news sites, daydreaming, and visiting the two shops of the airport, I decided to talk to my neighbour, which in itself is a sign of how bored I was.

The guy was looking lovely, probably in his early to mid-twenties like me then, and willing to chat as well. He explained to me that he was living in Dublin and working as a bartender on the side of his studies, and he more or less described Dublin as this friendly, down to earth city with a lot of music, from the pubs to the streets.

I was always intrigued by Ireland, its landscapes and mysteries, its Celtic culture. I remember a little book we had at home when I was a child showing beautiful pictures of the Irish coasts and forests, full of fogs and dreamy colours. As for Dublin, I had never really thought of the city in itself before that but something in the way my fellow stranded passenger described it to me triggered my attention. The second flight ended up being canceled, and after one taxi, one bus, and two trains to join back my city, my mind was set on discovering it.

At that time I was going through a bit of questioning with regards to my relationship with London. I did like my job very much, liked my friends there but I found it increasingly lonely and too big. So the idea of a friendly city sounded like the right thing to me. I was also looking to pursue a master's in Peace studies. I just then googled Dublin + Peace studies, and that is how I ended up applying very spontaneously to the program offered by Trinity College, Dublin.

I had never filled up an application so fast and wrote a cover letter in about an hour. I just felt inspired and like it was the right thing. A few months later, in April, I got the email confirming I got into the program. In September, I moved in. And the sunset you see at the top of this article was the sunset on the first day I arrived, which to this day is a very emotional and pretty memory.

I was in awe at the strength of its hues, the bright pink with a hint of orange, all over the sky and over my now favourite bridge in the world. Something was so heartwarming about it. Like the whole almost two years I ended up staying in this beloved city.

More articles will come with my love of Irish sunsets, and the Emerald isle herself.