Coffee & Other things.

Zambia

Very quick points to make.

After three weeks in Ireland.

1) The new 131-D,etc reg plates are ridiculous why make a good system crap.

2) Service levels have greatly increased in pubs and restaurants.

3) If you like your Melbourne (Australian) morning coffee ,dont order one in Ireland tastes like phish. Tried several places in the end had a Guinness in the morning as that at least had care taken in its preparation.

4) If you think 22 hours on a plane is long try it with a kid.

5) Price of goods is really competitive dont bring clothes to Ireland buy them there.

6) It was cold and miserable most of the trip. It would rain and snow at the same time.

7) Irish politics is still a joke (albeit I missed some odd stuff here) , this was on the radio.
http://www.rte.ie/news/2013/0313/376402-flanagan-roscommon-council/

Batgurl

Agree about the coffee. It's like they purposely TRY to burn the beans in Ireland...

Service is greatly improved but only because there is less customers around vying for attention unfortunately

Also agree about clothes

Weather - to be honest I kinda miss the bitter cold sometimes. Was running around Sydney last night at 1am (don't ask - big night) in a work dress, no jacket, and I was kinda reminiscing with a girl from the UK about the big winter jackets we used to love wearing!!!

And Ming may be a bit of a character but he is better than half the personalities on RTE these days. Great craic watching his interviews

Can't help with the kid thing unless you are going home at Xmas and want a hand? :P

Zambia

It was scary how empty some pubs were in the suburbs but the city was still pretty busy on most nights I was out.

Xavi6

Great OP, I concur with pretty much everything (I hate coffee though so it all tastes like pish to me :pac:).

Clothes was the big one when I was home in January, I brought back a whole winter wardrobe plus lots of work clothes. The likes of Marks have such better quality gear compared to what's over here and it works out being cheaper. I sent back 18kgs in addition to my luggage, well worth it as I'm stocked for ages now.

The weather was nice for a change BUT I knew it was only temporary, 11 and a half months of that would kill me at this stage.

Overall it's still a great place and the craic is a million times better. Also, a lot the recession stories that filter over are myths from what I saw.

Zambia

I did think that one night walking through Dublin that I never considered how pretty a city it was when I lived and worked there. If you overlook the homeless and stuff.

Agree 100% about the Craic, maybe you have to be broke to have a good laugh.

Pugins

Xavi6 wrote: »

Clothes was the big one when I was home in January, I brought back a whole winter wardrobe plus lots of work clothes. The likes of Marks have such better quality gear compared to what's over here and it works out being cheaper.

Think quality, range and cost of clothes in Australia is pretty bad. I miss Marks & Spencer and Next. But Marks are currently offering free shipping worldwide so can at least stock up online!

catbear

I arrived with the bag on my back the last time I went back and went straight to TKmaxx. I miss the bustle but don't miss the weather. I agree about the service having improved although the concept completely bypassed a few outlets in Limerick.
To be honest, even in the depths of recession/depression there was more buzz in your average country town on a damp tuesday night than you'd get in Perth CBD anytime!

Zambia

Batgurl wrote: »

And Ming may be a bit of a character but he is better than half the personalities on RTE these days. Great craic watching his interviews

I just found it laughable when he claimed he got his points quashed in a secret bid to highlight corruption.

Batgurl wrote: »

Can't help with the kid thing unless you are going home at Xmas and want a hand? :P

Believe me I will keep the offer in mind.

There is First class
There is Business class
There is Economy
Then there is Economy with a wriggling 14kgs on your lap for a 8 hour flight.:eek:

statina

Great post. Sympathies with the flight and child!! was that your first time back with the child?

I found Ireland very cheap compared to Sydney- great value to be found.

I never buy clothes now in Oz, just stock up when I go home. Brought back as much as I could and got my family to post over a box of clothes, Penneys is amazing!!

Agree with the weather, it's feckin cat! When I was home in the summer, it pissed rain for the entire 3 wks!

And the less said about Ming, the better!

The Aussie

statina wrote: »

I found Ireland very cheap compared to Australia- great value to be found.

Food, Clothing, Cars, you can go on with that list
If you ignore all the new taxes that the Blue Shirts make up along they way that is :rolleyes:

As for Coffee, here in Cork its trial and error, but I would kill for a nice early morning coffee on a sunny warm .day

Peregrinus

statina wrote: »

And the less said about Ming, the better!

I'll see your Ming Flanagan, and raise you an Eddy Obeid. I don't think the Aussies necessarily have the edge in this particular contest!

Tigerandahalf

Coffee here can be hit and miss but the standard of cafes have definitely improved. Less tea and scone cafes and more niche cafes serving great food. My local is excellent. It is a bit more expensive but great food and coffee.
Weather is still crap although the last month before yesterday was quite nice, able to get in a lot of walks. The country hss taken off in creating walks and trails.

catbear

Tigerandahalf wrote: »

The country hss taken off in creating walks and trails.

Delighted to hear that, the outdoors (despite the weather) was greatly overlooked during the housing bubble.

danotroy

Pugins wrote: »

Think quality, range and cost of clothes in Australia is pretty bad. I miss Marks & Spencer and Next. But Marks are currently offering free shipping worldwide so can at least stock up online!

I feel the quality and range in australia is great but there is no pennys range market which is sorely missed. However marks doing free shipping worldwide is a case of globalization gone mad! made in china shipped to Ireland and shipped back to australia for all for a shirt at a cost of 40 euros!
where is the logic?

woolymammoth

danotroy wrote:

I feel the quality and range in australia is great

danotroy wrote:

there is no pennys range market which is sorely missed.

agreed.. H&M was good too last time i was home. I think Cotton On aren't too bad here though.

danotroy wrote:

However marks doing free shipping worldwide

:eek: **runs off to find debit card**

marks & sparks was the only place i ever found that sold pants with a 29" inside leg (yes, i'm an average short-ass). I hate trying to find any kind of jeans or trousers here.. even kids clothes are like 2" too long.. :mad: what the fuck to they feed them?

anyway, it's a shame that it takes a recession, with job insecurity, to raise the bar on service levels & competitive pricing in general. Politics in general will never not be a joke, except perhaps to politicians themselves. And irish weather is rarely anything other than cold and miserable most of the time :P we all know that Feb is one of the worst months!

Slidey

One thing I noticed when I was home in Feburary was the radio. I know you can stream Radio 1 on yer phone here but its not the same. Australian radio is dire.

Clothes is a big difference, I was a little under dressed one day and just went into Jack&Jones and bought a hoodie to keep me warm til I got back to the house, you wouldn't do that here!

I also noted a lot more people have taken up running since I was living there. I never met people when I was out running then but met a lot at it and that was in the height of winter, it was dry for 9/10 days I was back though so may have skewed things a little!

Zambia

First Coffee this morning ... awesome.

One would ask why a coffee shop does not operate in Ireland using the name.

"Melbourne coffee house"

Ex - WHV's would come in droves

danotroy

woolymammoth wrote: »

I honestly think my wardrobe is 1000% better than when i lived at home. for example working in a bar at home i was getting 10euro an hour, if i was to buy a pair of top quality wrangler jeans it would of cost me 120 euros. i earn $25 here an hour doing the same work and the jeans cost $130. Along with op shops vintage stores, general pants, top shop and with h&m coming soon i think the range is far superior to home. Brown Thomas me arse!

Pugins

danotroy wrote: »

I feel the quality and range in australia is great but there is no pennys range market which is sorely missed. However marks doing free shipping worldwide is a case of globalization gone mad! made in china shipped to Ireland and shipped back to australia for all for a shirt at a cost of 40 euros!
where is the logic?

Well Marks & Spencer do have shops in Singapore, Hong Kong etc so perhaps they would ship to Australia from those?

Zambia

In other news

A pint of Heineken was 4.80 euro the night before I left.

In Young and Jacksons today a mate of mine paid 9.50 Aud for a pint thats 7.64 EURO.

Tigerandahalf

The price of the pint is still too dear. Nobody should be paying over 4 eur. The pubs doing well in Ire are the ones selling food. Cafes have sprung up and are doing well as people switch from beer to eating out.
I sat in last night and watched the match with a beer. I bought a box of Bud 300ml bottles, under a euro a bottle. Great value 20 bottles for 20 quid.

Btw I paid 5 eur for a pint in a hotel in Limerick. Madness.

karl bracken

Was home at xmas as well and some of the sales were great 5Euro for Jack and Jones T-Shirts and other good bargains about....
I seen a pair of crosshatch Jeans today in oxford street for $130, crazy money youl get them in paddys market for $70 or 50Euro at home

Was it just me or did anyone see Dublin in a different light with amount of Junkies and general wasters floating around the streets?
Mayb it was just Xmas time.

catbear

Zambia wrote: »

In other news

A pint of Heineken was 4.80 euro the night before I left.

In Young and Jacksons today a mate of mine paid 9.50 Aud for a pint thats 5.97 EURO.

The current exchange rate would make $9.50/€7.64.

Zambia

catbear wrote: »

The current exchange rate would make $9.50/€7.64.

100% Correct my bad

catbear

http://www.google.com/finance?chdnp=0&chdd=1&chds=1&chdv=1&chvs=Linear&chdeh=0&chfdeh=0&chdet=1364047618123&chddm=3107250&q=CURRENCY:AUDEUR&ntsp=0&ei=97ZNUaDxOIaLkgWO4AE
It's hard to want to spend dollars when they can buy so many Euros!

danotroy

crosshatch...... sorry if this comes across as snobbery but i think only people on remand wear crosshatch. its been done to death but the exchange rate comparison is not anywhere reality in my opinion. I earn more than twice what i used to earn at home doing a low skilled job, if i go to temple bar i expect to pay 5 euros a pint, 50% of my wages. how ever if i go to any bar in melb cbd its 9-10 for a pint still 50% of my wages. if i had a real job paying $40 and hour how cheap does going out become for me? i think cheaper than home! maybe im wrong i quiet possible am.

statina

Karl- I thought the same about Dublin when I was home last summer. There were so many junkies wandering around the place! Also I thought it had got very dirty, there was litter everywhere! Had spent 5 years in Dublin prior to moving to Oz and had never really noticed that before. Don't know if it has got worse or maybe living in a clean city has made me extra aware of stuff like that.

woolymammoth

statina wrote: »

.. I thought it had got very dirty, there was litter everywhere! Had spent 5 years in Dublin prior to moving to Oz and had never really noticed that before. Don't know if it has got worse or maybe living in a clean city has made me extra aware of stuff like that.

i think australia, generally speaking, is so much cleaner it's easy to become sensitised to any litter. Dublin was always dirty. Just that some places were less dirty than others..

woolymammoth

hey pugins, thanks for the m&s tip off, i just ordered some jeans yesterday that will probably actually fit me for the first time in 2 years!

danotroy wrote: »

I honestly think my wardrobe is 1000% better than when i lived at home. for example working in a bar at home i was getting 10euro an hour, if i was to buy a pair of top quality wrangler jeans it would of cost me 120 euros. i earn $25 here an hour doing the same work and the jeans cost $130. Along with op shops vintage stores, general pants, top shop and with h&m coming soon i think the range is far superior to home. Brown Thomas me arse!

now, just because you can better afford clothes, doesn't mean the range is any better. Personally, my wardrobe is fairly light anyway, and i always got what i needed quite cheap from Dunnes, pennys, Marks & sparks, or H&M.. maybe some other places when i had the cash! In Aus, even when i'm prepared to spend more money, i can't always easily find something i'd like to be seen in.. and that's just speaking as a dude. my [australian] partner always maintains that, for the ladies, clothes shopping in Dublin had much more to offer as well as being cheaper than Aus. for the record, i'm comparing Dub with Adelaide, i got no idea what any of the cities have to offer in this regard..

danotroy

woolymammoth wrote: »

hey pugins, thanks for the m&s tip off, i just ordered some jeans yesterday that will probably actually fit me for the first time in 2 years!



now, just because you can better afford clothes, doesn't mean the range is any better.

It does! this is exactly my point. On a wage in ireland I couldn't afford clothes that i wanted, on a wage in australia that is my no means great i can afford the clothes i want.

karl bracken

Dano not to go all Zoolander on you but if you think style over here is better than home your nuts, skinny jeans, flip flops, vintage stuff from your granda's days. Remand was grand sure you get Crosshatch uniforms now a days lol

Statina - have to agree iv DJ'd in Dublin for years and left pubs late at night without drinking so you would notice whats going on around you but some a the heads i seen round at Xmas would make you watch your back!

It was still great to be home tho....

universe777

karl bracken wrote: »

Dano not to go all Zoolander on you but if you think style over here is better than home your nuts, skinny jeans, flip flops, vintage stuff from your granda's days..

Skinny jeans on guys here is ridiculous, i'd say some of them starve themselves for a month to fit into them too. It's not natural!!
Clothing here is quite sh!te too.

crushproof

Returned with an Aussie souvenir in tow, and the hospitality we've had driving around the country for the past 2 weeks has been sensational. While we met plenty of great people on the road in Oz nothing compares to the friendliness here, even just the general chit chat on the street or in the pub.

The hustle and bustle here makes a real difference, cities and towns feel alive, Brisbane pales in comparison to smaller cities such as Cork or even Galway. Value for money is something that has really changed, so many excellent new places opening up enticing customers in with brilliant service. Although it is a shame to see so many shutters down and boarded up shops.

The savings, the savings!!! The other half has already fallen out of love with me and has run amok in Pennys, can't get enough of it! Heading into Dunnes and getting groceries is oddly a wonderful experience, the bill is nowhere near the Coles $200 mark!

The choice on radio, in Dublin anyway, is fantastic. No more absolute f**king Aussie muck, great stations such as Phantom, Radio na LIfe, Nova etc. and great discussion on Newstalk etc. as well a decent choice on TV (with a trillion less ads!).

Find going out a lot more fun, I'm not sure if it's just different than Oz or perhaps being politically incorrect here but perhaps Perth has taken the majority of toerags out of the equation and town feels alot more safer and good natured. Course you still got to watch your back but don't feel as threatened as 2 - 3 years ago.

Of course there are negatives, the weather, the junkies around town, the pockets of litter that make you truly ashamed to be Irish and the doom and terror of the news.

The plan for us was to stay a 6 weeks here and head back to Oz but I enjoy being back and she enjoys it even more so it looks like we may just give it a real go and see what happens. And if we need some sun the Med is only a couple of hours away

crushproof

How on earth did I forget to mention e1.50 chicken fillet rolls?!

Batgurl

universe777 wrote: »

Skinny jeans on guys here is ridiculous, i'd say some of them starve themselves for a month to fit into them too. It's not natural!!
Clothing here is quite sh!te too.

Well from a females perspective, the baggy jeans Irish guys wear with the ripped bottoms are cringey. There is a reason ye don't get into nice clubs wearing them lads.

I'm not saying men need to wear the skinny skinny jeans but a nice pair of fitted jeans (not teamed with runners) is very smart. Nothing wrong with putting a bit of care into your appearance. Although please don't adopt the low cut wife beaters. They belong only in the Shire.

statina

For me, I think the general chit chat you can have with strangers is a strong element of what makes Ireland such a fantastic country.

Oh and the chicken fillet rolls- delicious!!

universe777

statina wrote: »

For me, I think the general chit chat you can have with strangers is a strong element of what makes Ireland such a fantastic country.

Couldn't agree more!

danotroy

Batgurl wrote: »

Well from a females perspective, the baggy jeans Irish guys wear with the ripped bottoms are cringey. There is a reason ye don't get into nice clubs wearing them lads.

Batgurl i have to agree here. Working in a bar in the cbd its actually so easy to spot the irish man. Even the aussies i work with can now spot them out. 90% of the time baggy jeans dress shoes/desert boots jack and jones/crosshatch t shirt or for the more sophistictaed irish man loose jeans dress shoes ralph lauren polo shirt.

Irish mens style is a joke!

if anyone is in melbourne get your jeans from here! australia denim tailored for you in 30 minutes for 50 dollars! where in ireland could you get a pair of jeans tailored for 2 hours pay?

http://www.broadsheet.com.au/melbourne/fashion/directory/shop/dejour-jeans

Slidey

Well I would rather be picked out as a paddy than dress like an Aussie.

Jeans hanging around their arses, canvas runners and v necked tshirts 2 sizes too big to show off their waxed chests.

No thanks!

danotroy

Slidey wrote: »

Jeans hanging around their arses, canvas runners and v necked tshirts 2 sizes too big to show off their waxed chests.

No thanks!

agreed!

i feel that there is more diversity in the clothing available in australia. However the way I described the dress of the regualr irish man may be a reflection on the demoographic of people that are here. Much like the demographic that have shaved chests and v necks!

Lucifer-0

I'm a bit surprised with some of the comments regarding clothes here.
I find broadway shopping centre in Sydney has decent stuff reasonably priced.

buffalo909

danotroy wrote: »

Batgurl i have to agree here. Working in a bar in the cbd its actually so easy to spot the irish man. Even the aussies i work with can now spot them out. 90% of the time baggy jeans dress shoes/desert boots jack and jones/crosshatch t shirt or for the more sophistictaed irish man loose jeans dress shoes ralph lauren polo shirt.

Irish mens style is a joke!

if anyone is in melbourne get your jeans from here! australia denim tailored for you in 30 minutes for 50 dollars! where in ireland could you get a pair of jeans tailored for 2 hours pay?

http://www.broadsheet.com.au/melbourne/fashion/directory/shop/dejour-jeans

Back home you don't need a tailor, because jeans and pants are sold in different lengths, also whats the story with the new car number plates mentioned in the op?

Zambia

buffalo909 wrote: »

Back home you don't need a tailor, because jeans and pants are sold in different lengths, also whats the story with the new car number plates mentioned in the op?

http://www.mediacontact.ie/mediahq/simi/45080/new-131-registration-plate-rolls-out-today.html

woolymammoth

i still don't understand why! who's bright idea it was to pointlessly spend money changing a perfectly good system for the worse.

The Aussie

They brought it in to try and boost sales of new cars. :rolleyes:
I think they missed the memo that the place is poverty stricken. :pac:

melonstar

Can King crisps be bought in Melbourne?

danotroy

buffalo909 wrote: »

Back home you don't need a tailor, because jeans and pants are sold in different lengths, also whats the story with the new car number plates mentioned in the op?

I dont know where your shopping but even if i dont get my jeans from here i can get them at differing waist and lenghts at various locations.

buffalo909

Maybe its different in Melbourne but just about anywhere mainstream in Sydney only seem to sell standard length jeans etc., so annoying, pay for new pants, straight away have to pay more to them sorted.

The new number plates seem a bit odd, how is it an incentive for people to buy a new car?

Testament1

buffalo909 wrote: »

The new number plates seem a bit odd, how is it an incentive for people to buy a new car?

Because the government thought people would be fucking stupid enough to be put off buying a new car by the number 13. Also they hope that it will boost sales in the second half of the year now that people can tell what half of the year you bought it in. The whole concept is pretty ridiculous really.

http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/2013-number-plates-to-be-changed-to-avoid-unlucky-13-26890349.html

The Aussie

buffalo909 wrote: »

The new number plates seem a bit odd stupid, how is it an incentive for people to buy a new car?

Because the biggest word in Irish marketing is NEW.
Even with the previous system the first thing people looked at was the number plate, that was ridiculous.the new system is even more FCUKING RIDICULOUS.
I'm glad it's fallen flat and is now a laughing stock.

markymark21

buffalo909 wrote: »

Maybe its different in Melbourne but just about anywhere mainstream in Sydney only seem to sell standard length jeans etc., so annoying, pay for new pants, straight away have to pay more to them sorted.

The new number plates seem a bit odd, how is it an incentive for people to buy a new car?

Nah in Melbourne most shops will only have standard lengths, e.g 32 inch waist will only come with a 32 inch leg. Pain in the hole If your a short arse like me. Although Topman do different lengths, there's only so many skinny chinos you can own