|
19 -Time
differences
Since 1996, Irish time is
one hour behind France all the year round.
20 -
Telecommunications
Telephone:
To phone Ireland from France
: dial 00 + 353 + the town code (without the zero)
and the number
The same from elsewhere in Europe.
From Canada, you have to dial 011 for the
international line
To phone France from Ireland
: Dial 00-33 and the number
To phone Belgium 00-32,
To phone Switzerland 00-41,
To phone Canada 00-1.
Radio/Television
:
Radio France Internationale
(RFI).
Dublin, 102.7 Mhz câble Intergan
(English).
Postal services
:
A stamp for a normal letter
to Europe costs 32 p. and 28 p. for a
postcard.
You can send a poste restante
letter to any of the main post offices, to do so
address the envelope as follows : Mr X, Poste
Restante, Main Post Office, Town, County. To
retrieve a poste restante letter you need to show
proof of identity at the post office.
21 -
Airports
Dublin airport is 8 kms
out of town. From the airport to the centre a taxi
costs from between 120 and 150 FF.
Hotels
& restaurants
Hotels :
Manor Houses :
Guesthouses :
Bed and breakfast:
Aparthotels
Dublin Hotels Residence
24 - Your
suitcase
Take sporty comfortable
clothes, with a big sweater (you can buy a
beautiful Aran sweater there),and good walking
shoes - don't forget your raincoat.
For business meetings you will need a suit and
tie.
Here are some size equivalents if you are shopping
in Ireland :
Clothes:
Country - Size
Ireland ...32 34 36 38 36 38 40 42
France ...38 40 42 44 46 48 50 52
Men's shirts :
Country - Size
Ireland ...14 14 ½ 15 15 ½
France ...36 ..37 ...38 .39
Shoes:
Country - Size
Ireland ... 4 ...5 ..6 ..7 ..8 ..9 .10
France ....37 38 39 40 41 42 43
25 -
Information
It is totally forbidden
to bring into Ireland meat or milk products
(including cheese) in you car or with you when you
arrive in the country.
Opening times
:
Shops are open from Monday to
Friday from 9am to 5.30 or 6pm. In the smaller
towns the shops usually close at 1pm on Wednesdays.
In the shopping malls the shops stay open on
Thursdays and Fridays until 9pm.
Pubs are open from 10.30am
till 11.30pm from Monday to Saturday. They are also
open on Sundays from 12.30 to 2pm and from 4pm to
9pm. In winter the pubs close 30 minutes
earlier.
Tipping :
You never give a tip in a
theatre or a cinema.
On the other hand it is customary to leave a tip in
restaurants which is equivalent to 10% of the
bill.
Public holidays
:
1st January : New Year's
Day
17th March : St Patrick's Day
April : Good Friday
April : Easter Monday
1st May : Labour Day
The first Monday in June : bank holiday
12th July : Orangemen Day
First Monday in August : bank holiday
30th August : bank holiday
The last Monday in October : bank holiday
25th and 26th December : Christmas
28th December : public holiday
Driving in Ireland
:
In Ireland driving is on the
left. The speed limit is 30 mph (50 km/h) in town
and built up areas, and 60mph (100 kms/h) on main
roads, 70 mph (110 km/h) on highways.
It is obligatory to wear a
seat belt.
Road signs in the countryside
are often written in English and Gaelic, (in some
parts of the country only in Gaelic!). The
distances are marked in miles or in kilometers (it
is often not specified!). The older signposts are
usually in miles, they are written in black on a
white background. The new panels are white on a
green background and are in kilometers.
Signposting is often dreadful, it is a good idea to
have a good map with you if you leave the central
road networks.
In the countryside cattle,
sheep, donkies and geese have priority everywhere
and in the west you will often have quite a wait
while enormous herds of sheep cross the roads.
26 -
Banks
Banks are generally open
from 10am to 12.30 and from 1.30 to 3 pm from
Monday to Friday. They stay open till 5 pm on
Thursdays.
At Dublin airport the bank agencies are open from
6am to 9pm every day.
During the tourist season the banks in all the
airports stay open late.
In Cork they are open from 9am to 5pam from Monday
to Friday.
In Shannon they are open from 7.30am to
5.30pm.
27 -
Guides
- Guide Bleu, Ireland,
edited by Hachette ;
- Guides Flodor and Nagel, edited by Vilo ;
- Ireland, Michel Bagot ;
- Ireland, Baedecker, edited by Hachette ;
- Heritage Island
- Ireland today, edited by Jaguar ;
- Ireland, edited by Gallimar ;
- Irish Walk Guides.
27 -
Observations
The economy is really booming, but the
infrastructures have not managed to keep pace.
It is a nightmare driving through Dublin and public
transport is not very efficient, there is no
underground and buses don't keep to their
timetables.
The bay in Dublin is one of the most polluted in
Europe.
Cost of
living:
Cost of living is high and
salaries are generally still quite low. They tend
to be about 20% less than in France and there is no
legal minimum.
Income tax : 24% for a
bachelor earning under 116 000 FF,under 233 000 FF
for a couple.
46% above this ceiling. There is no rebate for
families.
Accomodation is expensive, a
bedsit costs at least 3,500 FF a month. On top of
that the tenant is not protected, the rent is very
often asked illegally in cash and it is nearly
impossible to recuperate the month's guarantee that
you had to pay. In Dublin the price of housing has
gone up by 33% in a year and flats by 36%!
A car which costs 130 000 FF
in France, costs about 180 000 FF in
Ireland.
Fuel costs approx 60 p for a
liter of super, diesel costs 53.3 p a liter.
Leadless super costs 59.2p and leadless normal
costs 56.8p.
Taxis :
Dublin airport to town centre : approx. £
10.00.
Shannon airport to Limerick : approx.
£16.00.
Cork airport to town centre : approx. £
7.00.
Approx costs for a stay
:
- a inclusive rate for 3 days/2 nights in B&B
with a return flight from Paris costs about 2000
FF
- a return flight from Paris costs about 1200 FF,
and a return ferry crossing in a double cabin costs
950 FF
- a meal in a pub, with a beer costs about 50
FF
- a night in a bed and breakfast costs about 160 Ff
per person
- to rent a car for a week costs from 700 FF
Customs duties
:
Allowances are the same all
over Europe :
- 200 cigarettes or 100 cigarillos or 50 cigars or
250g of tobacco ;
- 1 litre of alcohol and 2 litres of wine;
- 250 cl of eau de toilette or 50 cl of
parfume.
Trade Fairs, congresses or
conferences :
Congress Centres
:
In Dublin :
National Concert Hall.
Earlsfort Terrace / Dublin 2
Tel : 1-711 888. Fax : 1-783 797
There are 4 meeting rooms, the theatre can hold
from 100 to 125 people, the other rooms from 75 to
100 people and from 150 - 400 people for a
cocktail
Royal Dublin Society
Ballsbridge / Dublin 4
Tel : 1-680 103
Can hold up to 6,500 people.
Trinity College
Dublin 2
Tel : 1-772 941. Fax : 1-711 267
There are 6 meeting rooms which can hold from 190
to 400 people and 25 subcommittee rooms.
University College
Dublin
Roebuck, Belfield / Dublin 4
Tel : 1-706 87 97.Fax : 1-706 11 50
It can hold up to 1000 people in its 29 modular
meeting rooms.
Cork :
University College
Cork
College Rd, Cork.
Tel : 21-276 871. Fax : 21-275 948
It is 15 kms from Cork airport and has 8 meeting
rooms which can hold from 127 to 392
people.
Limerick :
University of
Limerick
Limerick
Tel : 61-333 644. Fax : 61-330 316
It is 20 kms from Shannon airport and can hold up
to 350 people in the 5 meeting rooms.
Galway :
University College
University Rd, New-castle / Galway
Tel : 91-750 394. Fax : 91-750 512
It is 10 kms from Galway airport.
There are 8 meeting rooms which can hold from 88 to
361 people, with 25 subcommittee rooms with from 20
to 100 seats.
|
