Whew, one big check off my ever-growing to-do list! Aside from waking up at 5:30am, it was a painless process.
The INIS, where I registered with the Garda National Immigration Bureau (GNIB).
Anticipating cold weather at 6am, I went to Dunne's last night and bought a thermos so I could keep hot chocolate in it (they call it a flask here). I woke up nice and early, filled my flask with hot chocolate, packed a book, a granola bar and of course the required documents I needed to present to the Garda (Irish bank account statement, Trinity statement of fees paid in full), layered up with the clothing, and made my merry way to the INIS.
In America: Thermos
In Ireland: Flask (also "Vacuum Flask")
Compare:
In America: Flask or Pocket Flask
In Ireland: Hip Flask
When I got there around 6am, I was the 26th person in line (the queue). Within the next hour, the line grew to over 100 people. It was rainy but not unbearably cold. I had plenty of layers on and I was actually warm! The wait was not too bad, aside from the girl in front of me who was chain smoking and blowing smoke in my direction the entire time. Yuck. Oh, and the guy next to me didn't appreciate the concept of personal space, so that was a bit annoying, but all in all it was fine.
Oh yes, I almost forgot. I learned that my flask really works quite well at keeping the liquids hot... I scalded my chin when I tried unsuccessfully to take a sip of the hot chocolate (I also learned that the "flask" here does not operate in the same manner as our "thermos" in the States). Ouch. It was scalding hot. I now have a red stripe of burned skin down the middle of my chin. It's really cute.
The Garda began moving the queue about 7:45 (they open at 8am), first checking that everyone had the required documents for whatever they were in line for, then distributing printed numbers to those that passed this initial document check. A man in front of me had apparently tried his luck on the prior day, as the Garda recognized him and kindly yet forcibly told him to leave. The man pleaded with the Garda, showed him his paperwork, but was told again (this time not so gently) that he did not have the correct documents. It made me curious how many people are turned away, how many people try to scam the system, etc.
I was the 26th person in the queue, but the Garda gave me #121. I had heard that the people who were turned away the prior day had priority the next morning, so perhaps that explains part of the #121. Also, although the INIS opens at 8am, the GNIB does not begin registering students until 9am.
I had also done my homework and researched this task online to see if I could find other students' stories, good and bad, about the registration process. I knew that it was sometimes a long wait, and I had read that if the Garda tells you to come back at a certain time, it's usually a conservative estimate and you might end up waiting 3 more hours. Then again, if you're not there when your number is called, that's probably not so good.
The Garda told me to come back around 10:30am. This was perfect, as I could now go back home and do laundry and still have plenty of time to make it back before 10:30am. When I got back to the INIS around 10:15, they were not even at #60, so I went for a walk down the Liffey and explored some new streets toward the Docklands.
Returned at 11:45, not even at #90, so I went next door for breakfast to P. McCormack & Sons restaurant (aka The White Horse Inn). This was perfect - from the windows of the restaurant, I could see into the INIS and could watch the # screens. It was much more comfortable to sit in a quiet restaurant and enjoy my tea instead of sitting in the cold, uncomfortable, crowded INIS with unhappy crying children around. (Lexi, this is reason # what?)
Breakfast spot on the left, where I could see right into the INIS to monitor for my #. Nicely convenient.
I was finished by around 1:15pm, not too bad. I then met up with Juliette, where we proceeded to a meeting on campus. We then went to Olesya's Wine Bar to relax with a glass of wine.
After Olesya's, I decided to meet up with some friends for the weekly movie sponsored by the International Students Society. This week's movie was Michael Collins, a film about some of the most important and controversial figures in Ireland's quest for independence from British rule. I thought this was a fantastic film, with great performances by Liam Neeson (Michael Collins) and one of my faves, Alan Rickman (Eamon de Valera).
If you haven't seen it, I recommend it.
If you have seen it, what are your thoughts?
After the film ended, a few of us sat around debating various points of the film. There is still debate over de Valera's political motives, whether he really set up Michael Collins' death, whether Michael Collins was depicted accurately, etc. I think the majority agrees that Michael Collins was a hero in winning Irish independence, yet others argue his tactics caused too much violence.
Heart-skipping moment of the month:
We watched the film from the last row in the lecture theatre. Because we debated the film for a bit, the 3 of us were the last students to leave the theatre. As we stood up to leave, the security guard walked into the theatre - we presumed he was telling us that it's time to leave. Not so! He was speaking to a homeless woman who had tried to hide in a wall alcove directly behind our seats. Holy hell, that was freaky. He said to her, "Ma'am, if I catch you in here one more time, I'm going to have to call the Garda to arrest you." She sheepishly emerged from the alcove and walked out. It was a bit disconcerting to know that we were sitting there in a darkened lecture theatre with a strange woman hiding out less than 3ft away from us. Spooky. It's also a gentle reminder that our university is in a city centre and you always need to be conscious of your surroundings and belongings.
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