Childhood Photo of Santana aged 17, in Dublin
My journey to school
I left Lithuania and came to Ireland when I was seventeen years old. I didn’t plan it really, at least not in any formal sense, it was just my best friend and I seeking a new adventure, a new chapter in our lives.
Arriving in Dublin in 2010 we realised within days that Ireland was in the middle of a major recession. There were no jobs – especially not for unqualified, underage girls who had made a rash decision to leave their loving parents and cozy homes.
We enrolled in Rossmini community school once we realised that, other than return home, there was nothing else we could do. This, at last, was a good decision for us to make! New to the country we both struggled with Irish accents and also we were not that confident in our spoken English. Accepted into 6th year, the leaving cert year, It turned out to be hard work but also great fun. We learned to understand Irish accents, slang and about Irish culture. The teachers were so nice and patient with us – helping with everything we needed. I found it much more pleasant to study in Ireland than in Lithuania as our teachers were extremely nice and very helpful. They were happy for our achievements, knowing how hard we were working, especially considering we had just landed in Dublin that summer.
Me best friend and I rented out a room in Summerhill in Dublin 1. We were on our own but we had lovely neighbours who almost replaced our families. There were two older ladies and one man in particular who we considered our grandmothers and uncle. They were very supportive in every way.
We walked to school every morning – it was a fifteen to twenty minute walk from home and usually longer coming back as we socialised! It was a really nice, pleasant walk on sunny and dry days but it was pretty awful when it was raining. Our families very kindly supported us for that first year of life in Ireland ( especially my mom and my grandmother). On the walk to school and home again I met, or got to know better, wonderful people who became my friends and still are today. The girls were from Ireland and from different countries, spoke different languages, and they all taught me so much: Irish slang, other languages, school rules, how to cook, how to make friends, how to act, and we practiced yoga together. The walk to school and home therefore was a very formative part of my experience in being at home in Ireland, being comfortable in myself, and of belonging.
Some differences that I noticed – In Ireland there was detention in place after school if you were late – we never had that in Lithuania. Also the fact that you had to wear a uniform, including special shoes. In time I realised that this was actually a good thing as you didn’t have to plan what to wear each day which saved so much time! (In Lithuania we had only to wear green blazers over our ordinary clothes.) A funny story – I was watching a football match here for the first time on my way home from school, and I started giving out about the lads touching the ball with their hands. All my classmates laughed at me, until they explained that actually this is the rule for Gaelic football. I’ve loved the game and followed GAA ever since!
I really am so thankful to my adopted country for the warmest of welcomes – such lovely people, so nice and genuine, who taught me how to smile, be humble and belong.
Santana Petrenaite
Santana holds a degree in advanced management and entrepreneurship from Ulster university, and worked for many years in management. During Covid, to achieve a good work/life balance she studied yoga teaching. Discovering she liked the spiritual aspect of it, she went on to study astrology, Ayurveda and nutrition. She became vegetarian, attends Hindu temple and continues to study Vedic philosophy.
She also realised one of her dreams of helping people. As an interpreter in hospitals her communications skills and knowledge of languages helps her support people attending medical appointments, especially interpreting for Ukrainian people since Russia’s war in Ukraine began.
Santana works as the manager of a wellness salon and as a therapist, constantly learning and mastering new skills.
On behalf of the Museum of Childhood Ireland and Robert Burns, we would like to extend our heartfelt gratitude to all of our wonderful participants for their time and their stories. You can see more on our When We Were Kings and Queens of the Road project at the links below: