Hi gang, I am in Newton Falls, Ohio, USA.
Barry, small world!! About 6 months ago I was in Cork! It was a once in a lifetime journey for me and was the only time I have ever been out of the states. There was so much history and it was amazing seeing a country 5 or 6 times older then my own. Ireland is amazingly beautiful! I loved it and might actually still be there had immigration not given me problems.

They were going to repatriate me!!! All because I mentioned I would be doing my work while on vacation and did not have a departure date because I aimed to stay as long as I could afford to and had yet to buy the return ticket. This made them think I was there to work illegally. I tried to explain that I was talking about my own "USA work" (yes, crypto projects among others), not "Ireland work" but, they wouldn't let me get out a sentence in my defense. When 'Garda' (a term for 'police' that, like everything else that was going on, was completely new to me) finally came to take me to Irish prison

to wait for my flight back to my original port, did I get anyone to listen. I convinced them to let me stay a month, but they were going to keep my passport.
The real heart-breaking part came after the month and I was finally forced to leave. Not 1 hour after I landed back in Cleveland, the head of immigration (someone I had been writing letters, asking for reconsideration) called me and told me the ruling was overturned. I was welcome to stay in Ireland as long as I wanted and to report to immigration and they would, finally, stamp my passport for 6 months. But I had already, unwillingly, returned to the states.

But in that month, I did make the best of it. Minus many, many trips to 'solicitors' (another new term for 'lawyers' that was completely new to me) in my attempts to find a way for me to stay longer, I did get to see the
amazing beauty of the Emerald Island. Other than the immigration officers, the people are so nice and polite! Had the people not been so helpful to me, I would still be walking the streets of Cork looking for 'lawyers' to help me. LOL
I took thousands of pictures and will never forget it. I hope some day I can return and not have such a stressful ordeal.
#BordersSuck
