Passport Application

This morning was certainly busy! 

After discovering yesterday I needed a new passport, I set about applying for one. 

I filled in a Passport Application form and took it to my local Garda Station to get it signed.

Before calling to the Police Station, I went to the Swan Centre to use a passport photo machine.

I prefer to use a photo machine rather than getting photos done in the chemist.

These were the first photos that I took and I was happy with them so immediately printed them and set off to the Garda Station.

My form and photo were stamped and signed promptly in the station by a friendly Guard.

And then it was off to the Post Office to send my application off via the Passport Express Service.  

Passport Express is the best way to apply they aim to get your passport returned to you in 10 days.  Fingers crossed there are no delays and my new passport is in my hands very soon!!

Holiday Prep - Passport Woes

So all was going well with my holiday prep which basically consisted of applying lotion to keep my legs moisturized in anticipation of a tan!

Fortunately, as I was browsing Facebook, this popped up on my feed....

It was a notification from the US Embassy in Dublin that from the 1st of April you must have an electronic passport in order to travel to the USA on the Visa Waiver Scheme (which most people from Ireland use when travelling on holidays to the States).

The directive advised that there would be an icon (see above) on the front of your passport if it was suitable to use.

When I got home, I immediately checked my passport. Bad news.

This is my passport on the left. The one with no icon on the bottom.

So this means I need to apply for a new passport and send it in by passport express and hopefully get it back in time for my holidays in 30 days!!  Eeek!

I will also need to apply for a new ESTA Visa Waiver even though my current one is in date - an ESTA can not be transferred from one passport to another.

Easter Monday in Dublin City - Celebrating the Rising

Our bank holiday here started out with a Tabata Workout that Ciaran had done up for me in order to get somewhat in shape for Key West. I had to search for my runners......they hadn't seen the light of day for some time :-( 

I skipped for the warm up which was tough and let's say it got me very warm!!

But all in all I felt good getting the workout in and am going to stick with it until my holiday in Florida.

After breakfast, we walked in to town to see all the 1916 Celebrations. We went through Stephens Green where there was lots going on and was very busy. We then made our way down to the GPO on O'Connell Street. I posed for a pic beside this letter box which has been painted red to promote the opening of a new museum in the General Post Office (GPO). Post boxes in Ireland are green usually (the red would have been painted over as soon as we became a free State) - click here to see my pics in a past blog. 

After taking in all of the atmosphere in the city we dropped the dog home and drove down to Starbucks in Waterloo Road where we read and chilled for a few hours.

Later I cooked a dinner of burgers (no bun for me) with sweet potato wedges which was extremely tasty!

Easter Eats & Easter Treats

We've had a lovely Easter weekend here in Dublin.  On Saturday night we went to Delahunt on Camden Street with friends. The ambiance and decor is really nice but I was a little disappointed with the food - I was expecting to be wowed but was a little underwhelmed. I don't know if I would be bothered to return as there are so many other excellent restaurants in Dublin.

This morning we made quick visits to both our parents as we had a lunch time reservation in Brioche at 2pm. We got caught up in traffic jams due to the 1916 Commemorations Parade and other events so it ended up being a flying visit. 
We dropped off a few Easter treats and then got back on the road back to Dublin 6.

I rang Brioche restaurant on the way back from our parents as once again we got caught in traffic and had to make a big detour. The restaurant were fine about us being 15 mins late which was a big relief.

We left the dog in the house at 2pm and then walked up the road to Brioche getting there before 2.15pm. 

At the end of our meal I declared that Brioche is the best restaurant in Ranelagh! Have a look at the photos of our plates from the Tasting Menu and I am sure you will agree too!

As I said we chose the Tasting Menu but decided not to pair wines but instead had a bottle of Australian Shiraz which was good, full bodied and very fruity.

A delicious Amuse Bouche - a lovely start to a fantastic meal

Kohlrabi - I've never had it before but certainly enjoyed it in this presentation.

Trout with beetroot - a new dish. I thought it was ridiculously good! 

Beef Cheek - yum!

A very interesting pumpkin dessert - I loved it.....Ciaran was a little undecided!

There was a also a Parsnip Veloute with a little blue cheese, I forgot to take a photo - it tasted divine.

Last year for Easter we ate in Locks Brasserie. I preferred this years Easter lunch. The food was superior and the atmosphere was better. Although Locks has a lovely dining room facing on to the canal there was a more vibrant buzz in Brioche. Locks was a little sedate for our taste. 

Gap Haul - Double Discounts!

On Good Friday, Amy and  I took a trip to the Blanchardstown Centre. On passing the Gap we saw there was a 40% off sale so we popped in for a look.

I saw a few pairs of trousers that would be perfect for work once the weather got nice. I then chose a pair of shorts for my upcoming Key West trip, some t-shirts and a pink light jumper.

Amy was only buying a t-shirt that was about 11 euro or so before the 40% off. 

In order to maximise the discounts. Amy went and bought the t-shirt which was the cheapest item. She reckoned she would then be invited to do a survey on her phone which would give a further 20% off future purchases which I could use against my purchases.

She indeed did get the survey, so I went to the til with my 7 items. The total cost was about €160 which went down to about 90 euro with the 40% off. I then showed the 20% off voucher on my phone and the total cost went down to €72.  What a bargain!  I love doubling up on discounts!!

Weekend in Amy's

I spent the last two nights in Amy's which was very nice. She really looked after me with lovely food on her new plates! 

I felt very spoiled being served nice stuff all day including drinks in her fun tropical pineapple glasses and delicious smoked salmon and poached egg.

Look how perfect this poached egg is!!

The weather was good on Friday so we got out for a walk down to Clonsilla and also the Blanchardstown Centre (where they had some interesting 1916 Centenary deorations up!) and we even sat out in her garden and listened to records!

I think we were very lucky with the weather as today it is gone back to the more usual grey affair that is Ireland in the month of March.

Starbucks in Smyths in Swords

I normally visit the Starbucks in the Wright Venue (in Airside) on the way to work. When I was in their the other day I saw on their notice board that there was another Starbucks close by at the Smyths Toy Store. 

The morning I stopped by the Smyths Starbucks.

It was easy to spot and I liked the look of it from the outside. The Starbucks sign is very attractive I think!

As well as entering through the front door, you can also enter directly from Smyths Toy Store - perfect for thirsty parents after visiting the toy shop!!

It's very large with lots of comfortable seating.

I was looking for some quiet time with a book before I went to work so I was concerned that it would be full of noisy families due to its location. I needn't have worried. It is so spacious it was very quiet. 

I had a lovely cup of coffee and then got back in the car for work. 

I will definitely return here!

A Spode is a Spode!

At lunch time today my twin sister texted me a picture of a bargain that she had spotted.

Spode plateware for......less than a few euro!!

My sister bought 8 plates and side plates and I decided to stop in the city on the way home from work and buy some of the plates for myself (I was afraid to wait until Saturday in case they were all gone!).

I bought the plain large plate in the Delamere pattern which were on sale for only €1.50.  You can click here to see how much they normally sell for!!

The shop we bought the plates in is Michael Guineys which is a Dublin institution since 1971. It is a discount store so I think we can presume that these Spode plates are seconds!

I bought side plates with an additional bird print (pheasants and grouse) which were €1.99 each.

Look at the total price for 6 dinner plates and 6 side plates!! €20.94!

I think there is something very retro looking about these plates and I just love the brown colour! Also, seconds or not, they feel great - a nice substantial plate. All in all a really good buy I think!

Easter Egg time is nearly upon us!

What a fun evening yesterday!  Laura was up from Galway to stay with Amy for the night.  They went to a few spots in Dublin during the day and then got the train out to me at work. We then drove home where I had some little nibblies in the fridge for the girls.

I had bought nice hummus and sundried tomatoes to go with flat bread crackers. There was also a selection of meats. Unfortunately I had under estimated how much food I should have got (I should have bought cheese) so I also popped a pepperoni pizza in the oven which helped stretch out the food! For with the little nibblies I opened a bottle of wine which was very enjoyable.

After our food and a great catch up we hopped in to the hot tub which was super! We spent so long in the tub, enjoying the chat and the out doors.

Later on I walked Amy & Laura to the Luas station. We passed by the old Nightowls building (now Supervalu) where we misspent our youth - that gave us a good laugh!

It was a lovely evening and to top it off I got my first Easter Egg from Laura. Look at this gorgeous big Thorntons chocolate specimen!!

Bunting - makes every event a celebration!

I have a pile of spare fabric and ribbon so am making a concerted effort to use it all up by making bunting.

Bunting is so easy to make. Here are the steps to make it:

1. Cut fabric in to a triangle shape and then sew together leaving the top of the triangle unsewn (sew inside out then flip the right way out).
2. Iron the sewn triangles flat
3. Sew the triangles on to a ribbon trim

It's that easy!

I use a knitting needle to poke the fabric in to a point when turning it in the correct way out.

 

Here is one of the bunting garlands I made before I packaged it up in cellophane.

Lots of nice bunting packaged up to give to friends.

I love hanging bunting at parties, I think it makes it an event and a celebration.

Do you like to hang bunting, readers?!

A Dublin St Patrick's Day

We had a lovely St Patrick's Day celebration yesterday. It started with a full Irish fry up for breakfast. It consisted of eggs, beans, rashers and of course our favourite Clonakilty black pudding (putog dhubh!).

We then set off for town, stopping in for a takeaway coffee in Starbucks on Leeson Street. 

It was a lovely mild day as we walked through Stephen's Green and down to College Green. The parade had yet to start and it was beginning to get very busy. 

We walked back up Nassau Street and then on to Dawson Street. After we passed the Shelbourne we went to Toners Pub. Before we sat down I asked was it ok if we brought the dog in. A nice barman said no problem!

Bones sat on high stool beside us while we watched the parade on the television in the pub.

I couldn't resist getting a picture of Bones with these tourists!

After the parade was over, we set off back home with Bones. We left him in the house while we went and got food in Kinara Kitchen. We then ended the day by watching a few House of Cards episodes and were in bed by 9.30pm.

I hope you enjoyed St Patrick's Day as much as I did!

Easter Bunting!

Easter is coming shortly so I decided to make some Easter bunting for my mother.

I went to the local fabric store to buy some material.  I was hoping for something with bunnies or chicks but unfortunately they don't stock Easter fabric(?!!). 

I found this fabric in the reduced section for €10 a metre rather than €16. It's got a bird print and is in rather Easter like colours - do you think?

For the ribbon I went to Tiger and bought this yellow gingham ribbon.

I cut the fabric in to triangles. There was some wastage with this fabric due to the print having to be positioned so the birds are not upside down!

After facing the triangles together I sewed them and then turned them in the correct way facing out. I ironed them flat (it's easier to sew on the ribbon trim when they are ironed smooth).

I packaged the bunting up in cellophane with an gift tag. A really easy sewing project and a perfect Easter present made in barely any time at all!