Monday morning and we started off in our usual way--breakfast out. We went to The Bay Cafe for the first time. The owner (yet another Dave) was super talkative and of course asked the question that all Irish ask "So what do you think of Donald Trump?" The answer is we don't think, we moved to Ireland not to think.
Another Irish-ism: I asked Dave where the Waterford bus stop was. "Oh out there in the street." I asked whether there was a sign for the bus stop. "Oh, no sign, this is Dunmore East you know." By which I assume he meant that everyone just knows where the bus stops. I did find out later that the bus stop is directly across from the cafe so I will learn to flag it down I guess.
We then went to the Post Office to get an Irish passport application. On reading it, I realized I need to have a PSC (Public Services Card) before I can apply for my passport. Well that fits with what we were planning to do because the same office that issues PSC cards also issues PPS (Personal Public Service Number) and Richard needs a PPS number in order to get a Senior Travel Pass to get free rail and bus travel. I get it too as his spouse. Have I confused you about cards yet? Anyway we get these by going through the SAFE (Standard Authentication Framework Environment) process at an INTREO Centre. I think that the Irish government consulted the U.S. Department of Homeland Security when it was coming up with some of these acronyms.
So off we went to the INTREO Centre in Waterford. The SAFE process is two-step. We obtained the forms today and an appointment was set up for us on Thursday morning to return and have our paperwork verified. And then it will take a week for them to mail out the letters that have the numbers on them and then we will go online and apply for cards. Or something like that. My eyes were crossing at that point so we smiled weakly, took our paperwork and headed for Waterford City Centre. Had lunch at--wait for it--Burger King!! We are on a food budget at this point (don't know how long that will last) and after eating out for breakfast, Burger King was the most economical. And it was also pretty good--as good as the Burger King in Sierra Vista.
After our usual return-and-replace expedition into Dunne's, and Richard's finally finding a bathing suit in Penney's, we went into The Cathedral of the Most Holy Trinity & St. Patrick's, which is the oldest Catholic cathedral in Ireland, built in 1793:
There is a Latin Mass with Gregorian chanting this Sunday at 10:00 a.m. Would love to go but our own church service is at 11:00 across town so will have to miss it.
Another Irish-ism: I asked Dave where the Waterford bus stop was. "Oh out there in the street." I asked whether there was a sign for the bus stop. "Oh, no sign, this is Dunmore East you know." By which I assume he meant that everyone just knows where the bus stops. I did find out later that the bus stop is directly across from the cafe so I will learn to flag it down I guess.
We then went to the Post Office to get an Irish passport application. On reading it, I realized I need to have a PSC (Public Services Card) before I can apply for my passport. Well that fits with what we were planning to do because the same office that issues PSC cards also issues PPS (Personal Public Service Number) and Richard needs a PPS number in order to get a Senior Travel Pass to get free rail and bus travel. I get it too as his spouse. Have I confused you about cards yet? Anyway we get these by going through the SAFE (Standard Authentication Framework Environment) process at an INTREO Centre. I think that the Irish government consulted the U.S. Department of Homeland Security when it was coming up with some of these acronyms.
So off we went to the INTREO Centre in Waterford. The SAFE process is two-step. We obtained the forms today and an appointment was set up for us on Thursday morning to return and have our paperwork verified. And then it will take a week for them to mail out the letters that have the numbers on them and then we will go online and apply for cards. Or something like that. My eyes were crossing at that point so we smiled weakly, took our paperwork and headed for Waterford City Centre. Had lunch at--wait for it--Burger King!! We are on a food budget at this point (don't know how long that will last) and after eating out for breakfast, Burger King was the most economical. And it was also pretty good--as good as the Burger King in Sierra Vista.
After our usual return-and-replace expedition into Dunne's, and Richard's finally finding a bathing suit in Penney's, we went into The Cathedral of the Most Holy Trinity & St. Patrick's, which is the oldest Catholic cathedral in Ireland, built in 1793:
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| The chandeliers were a gift from Waterford crystal--they aren't 220 years old :) |
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| Waterford Crystal also presented this beautiful sculpture to the Cathedral |
I truly enjoyed Waterford City Centre with its shops housed in old buildings and feeling of life. In a way it reminded me of when I used to shop on Ste. Catherine St. in Montreal with my mother. Richard is not a city mouse as I am but even he managed to enjoy himself:
We were feeling quite tired but content as we headed home and then, when we arrived home, the "cable guys" arrived. They both spoke with a broad Irish accent--well one I could "just" understand, the other I was totally confused by. I mentally named them Merry & Pippin, reminiscing about the two hobbits from Lord of the Rings in both their manner and their appearance. Merry they were not though. They shook their head over the wiring. I suggested that if they couldn't do it, I might call another supplier for a second opinion. Well that got their pride going and they were determined to persevere. They were finally successful at getting the phone line in (three hours later) but they left with the ominous words "we will have to run a line to an outlet for the broadband" ringing in my ears. Which ringing might actually be a death knell for my hopes of broadband because I can't authorize any nail holes in the walls. Oh well, I will worry about that tomorrow when I call the broadband company.
My final Irish-ism from Wayne-the-cable-guy: "Come here, you will enjoy it." So I dutifully got up and walked over to where he was on the floor installing the phone box. He laughed "Oh, come here doesn't mean come over here. It's just my way of saying that you will enjoy Dunmore East." Oh, yeah. And then he laughed and said that the other hobbit, I mean cable guy, had called me a girl as he was leaving. And Wayne chided him that as an American I might be insulted at being called a girl. I told him it was fine, I hadn't understood what he was saying anyway.
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