Preparing for Departure by Yun Liau

Deadline: Friday 10PM

Preparing for Departure 

I remember accepting my offer and the excitement and nervousness that descended upon me. What have I gotten into? Moving halfway across the world to study full time? How do I pack my life into two suitcases. 

Packing

#1: The weather in Ireland is very unpredictable, one minute the sun is shining and the next it might drizzle. 

Clothing

To help you stay warm throughout your academic year, we advise you to wear around

2-3 layers of clothing when you are outdoors. 

Tip: there is no need to bring too much clothes as Ireland is a great place to shop and online shopping is so easy with free delivery and returns available in many stores. 

• Inner wear – heat-tech or long-john
  • Put them on whenever you feel that the weather is too cold for you. Everyone has different cold tolerance, so you might want to check the weather forecast before deciding if you will need them for the day. 
  • You could get them from Malaysia at stores like UNIQLO, WinterTime and NorthFace.
  • Tip 1: If you’re using Apple Weather App, always scroll all the way down to what the temperature feels like – it is a more accurate depiction of the temperature outside as it gets so windy in Ireland. 
  • Tip 2: In my first year, I made the mistake of wearing an extra layer everytime I feel a little bit cold. And by December, I’m wearing almost four layers of clothing. HAHA and it is actually only the coldest in January and February. So I would recommend trying to acclimatise before layering up! 
  • Tip 3: On layering: 
    • Start off with checking the weather app, is it cold for you? If yes, you can always put on thermals as your first layer, or else, a long sleeve shirt or a t-shirt will do as well and you can layer these on top of your thermals 
    • Next you can put on a thinner jacket/hoodie – something easy to remove so you can take them off when you get into heated buildings
    • Lastly, the outer layer, you should ideally put on a water resistant layer and depending on the temperature, I personally rotate between a windbreaker and a fur lined jacket and a down jacket. 
• Middle wear 
  • Any clothes you are currently wearing in Malaysia are all considered “middle wear”.
  • We also consider Jackets, hoodie and sweater as “middle wear”. If the
  • weather is still unbearably cold. You can put on a jacket or sweater over your t-shirt.
• Outer wear
  • Get a good water resistant jacket, you can bring one from Malaysia if you already have one but if not, you can always get them in Ireland, they have so many designs and are very reasonably priced and often go on sale 
  • You can get them in various thickness for the various temperatures e.g. a windbreaker for windier days and for hiking, one with fur lining for the colder days, one with down lining for the really cold days. 
  • Some stores you can check out for winter coats include Zara, H&M, Hollister, Penneys etc. 
• Accessories
  • Gloves
    • Tip: get ones that allows you to use your phone with
  • Scarfs
  • Beanies
  • Can always get in Ireland if lack of space. Really cheap in Penneys. 

Shoes

• Sneakers / casual walking shoes – even better if they are waterproof/water resistant 
  • I still remember walking to classes in a pair of sneakers and getting caught in the drain. Attending lecture with wet socks is not fun. HAHA. 
  • Personally, I love Adidas Superstars and Stan Smiths, they always keep my feet dry and has never failed me. And they often go on sale in Ireland so you could always get them here. 
• Slippers
  • To wear indoors
  • You can bring several pairs especially if you are staying in halls: one for the bedroom and one for the shared kitchen outside 
• Formal shoes (for clinicals and OSCE exams) 
  • These are your typical office shoes
  • Due to Covid, most schools are getting their clinical students to wear scrubs with sneakers now so this might not apply anymore
  • In TCD we did our final year clinical exam in scrubs and sneakers! 
• Boots

Miscellaneous

• Basic necessities
  • Sanitary pads
    • The ones available in Ireland sucks, bring your own from Malaysia especially if you have a favourite brand/types
  • Contact lens and contact lens solution 
    • Difficult to avail of contact lens as you will need to go to the optician for an eye check up and a prescription (need to pay) prior to purchasing contact lenses every single time you want to purchase them
    • Solution is expensive
  • Spare spectacles 
  • Other things you can bring if there is still space:
    • Toothpaste & Toothbrush
    • Shampoo
    • Dental floss
    • Shaver
• Skincare/makeup products
  • Due to the climate here in Ireland and the indoor heating, we are prone to dry skin and chapped lips.
  • Bring your favourite skincare/makeup products with you, some Asian brands are difficult to purchase in Ireland but Western brands are widely available and easy to purchase online. 
• Stationery 
  • Limited choices in Ireland so bring your favourites 
• Medications 

Food

• Tip: learn to cook your favourite homemade meals/Malaysian meals prior to leaving 
• Things to bring especially if you like these as it is expensive/not available to purchase in Ireland:
  • Milo
  • Food paste e.g. curry paste, chicken rice paste, bak kut teh etc
  • Snacks
• Rice cooker 
  • No matter how little luggage space you are given by your airline, please do not leave out a rice cooker. We recommend you to get a multi-functional one like the ones from ELBA or TEFAL. From our own experience, multi-functional rice cookers are more versatile and may come in handy during exams.
  • Tip: Having a good rice cooker is imperative. It is best that you get from trusted brands in Malaysia. You could also get them in Ireland, but they are more expensive and have less design variety.

Books

• If you have extra luggage space, you can purchase textbooks from Kamal bookstores as it is cheaper. However, you can always buy books off seniors or borrow it from the library. 
• Tip: Ask your seniors which textbooks are most useful
• In TCD, you can keep renewing your library book loan. 

Flights

• I would recommend getting a student ticket from the travel agent as you get extra baggage (40kg) and a flexible ticket (but now with covid, most airlines offer flexible ticket.