John Dand (36) did not move to Ireland because of a lack of opportunities in his native South Africa. After graduating from the University of Cape Town, Dand moved back home to Durban and completed a three-year training contract with PwC to qualify as an accountant. He had settled into a comfortable life and says, “I could just as easily have stayed and I think I probably would have been very happy”.
So why then did he decide to completely uproot and move half way across the world?
During his training contract Dand got the chance to live and work in Chicago for six months. He spent most of his spare time exploring new places and travelling. This experience opened his eyes to how easy and enjoyable travelling could be. Dand contrasted the ease with which he could just take off for a weekend in Mexico with the time, costs and complications of travelling from South Africa.
His time in the US left him with a desire to explore more new cultures. “I wanted to try something different and I thought, I’d love to give Europe a bit of a crack.”
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PwC gave him the opportunity to interview for different roles in their Dublin and London offices. In the end Dand’s decision to move to Ireland was based on how much he enjoyed his interviews with PWC’s Dublin office.
“The whole dynamic of the interview was really comforting and enjoyable. They told me what I should expect coming to Ireland. Whereas the interview for the London office was quite intense; they were very focused on the job and what hours I would be expected to work and all of this kind of stuff.”
Initially Dand signed a two-year contract in Ireland. He told himself that if “it doesn’t work out or wasn’t what I was expecting, that nothing is permanent. I knew that I could have gone back to the types of jobs in South Africa that would have been similar enough to ones I could have got had I stayed.”
He arrived in Dublin in early 2017. “My managers knew my interests and put me in touch with people they knew were involved with rugby clubs and stuff like that.”
Joining a gym and rugby club were his key to making friends. “Both the gym and rugby club had such a good focus on community. They held events on the weekend outside of training, which made it easier to break the ice.
“This made me feel like less of an outsider because I realised that even the Irish people in these clubs might not be from Dublin and might also be looking for new friends.”
My mother-in-law is what I understand to be the traditional Irish mum, who is always making sure that everyone is fed
He sees many similarities between South Africans and Irish people. “I think Irish people are very similar culturally to South Africans. Once they kind of get to know you, and know you have come to these events to meet people, they are very welcoming and inclusionary, which is great.”
An early act of kindness sticks out to him. “At the end of my first year here I could not go back to South Africa for Christmas. An Irish friend of mine found out that I was going to be spending Christmas alone in my flat and invited me to come spend it with him and his family. I stayed with them for three days and they made every effort to make me feel like I was a part of their family.
“I think that’s probably something that my family or friends’ families back home would have been willing to do for people as well.”
The pandemic made him question his decision whether he should continue living in Ireland. “After the first year of Covid, when you could barely leave the house, I was 50-50 about staying in Dublin. I thought: what’s the point of being away from family if I’m not actually able to experience the upside of living abroad in terms of travel and stuff like that? There were moments where I felt that it made sense for me to move back.”
“However, fortunately my family gave me really good advice and told me that they were happy with me carrying on and staying here. I’m really glad I did, as eight months into the pandemic I met my partner.”
Dand met Rebecca, who is now his wife, in what he calls “the quite traditional modern-day way of dating apps”. After matching online, the pair would go for long walks as at the time you couldn’t socialise inside with someone outside your household. “We spent lots of time trying different coffees and takeaway pizzas.”
“The pandemic allowed us to spend lots of time together having face-to-face chats. I think we got to know each other at an accelerated rate.”
[ ‘I was finished with South African rugby. Playing for Ireland felt natural’Opens in new window ]
Rebecca is Irish and works for Google. “Whenever my mum asks me what Rebecca does, I tell her that she is the one who responds to your questions when you type something into Google. My mum started to panic that Rebecca could see everything she was looking up but Rebecca’s actually a project manager on the Google Maps team.”
She’s from Wexford, where her parents are dairy farmers. “I love going to visit her family because it feels like you are getting a real break from the city. My mother-in-law is what I understand to be the traditional Irish mum, who is always making sure that everyone is fed, and there’s always an amazing array of desserts and treats on the table.”
Dand fondly recalls the Christmas his mother, sister and her family came over. “My in-laws hosted them all down on the farm. We had a big Christmas dinner and everything. I know it was really special for my family to get the chance to see that.
“I definitely feel that I am now part of another family over here.”
In 2023 Dand was, “proud to naturalise as a citizen. I feel incredibly fortunate to have built a life here”.
When it came time for Rebecca and John to get married, her father had one stipulation. “He’s a very diligent farmer: his only rule for the wedding was that it had to be in driving distance of the farm – in case he needed to get back to the cows.” The pair married in April 2024.
Dand is now on parental leave, having welcomed a son, Arthur, with his wife earlier this year.
“There is always a chance that one of us might have to move for work but our plan is to raise Arthur here in Ireland. It very much feels like home.
“That being said, things do get a bit complicated whenever Ireland plays South Africa, but I do my best to remain diplomatic during those moments.”
We would like to hear from people who have moved to Ireland. To get involved, email newtotheparish@irishtimes.com or tweet @newtotheparish
