Dublin - The Craic!

Dublin's Fair City....

It's not often one returns from a hectic two day exhibition feeling exhilerated - usually the feelings are tired, worn out, weary and looking forward to a few days of catch up - yet after our trips to Ireland we always seem to be invigorated and ready to face the world again.

I suppose one could put this down to Guinness, perhaps the sea air from the crossing or the change being in another country brings. I think that we put it down to our friends from Ireland who always appear to be so pleased to see us, our acquaintances and fans who unfailingly make us feel welcome - and of course the Craic.

To borrow from Wiki:

"Craic" (/ʔkræk/ krak), or "crack", is a term for news, gossip, fun, entertainment, and enjoyable conversation, particularly prominent in Ireland.^[1][2][3] It is often used with the definite article – the craic.^[1] The word has an unusual history; the English crack was borrowed into Irish as craic in the mid-20th century and the Irish spelling was then reborrowed into English.^[1] Under either spelling, the term has great cultural currency and significance in Ireland.

I'm not at all sure about the word 'reborrowed' but that's Wikipedia for you.  Anyway, the sentiment is about right, it doesn't actually cover any one thing - it's about the whole deal, the entire package of friendship, company, food, drink, entertainment, ambiance (a mix of cultures, languages and etimology never did any harm - honest!) and atmosphere - or - the craic.

It's great that one word can cover a whole range of actions, feelings and environments but that's exactly what happened on our first evening back in Dublin after two years away. We met up with our friends at the Lemon Tree and immediately we were comfortable, deep in conversation with great drink and food instantly at hand and with a room full of friendly people, any one of whom we felt might interact with us at any time and in an equally friendly manner. It was an amazingly comfortable feeling. 

Only in Ireland though. I can rarely recall feeling that at ease in mixed company anywhere else; and even during the exhibition people would treat us as long list friends or family - even complete strangers. The Irish attitude is that we probably are all related anyway and with a surname like mine it's a given. I'm the Plastic Paddy though - an appellation I treasure, given to me years ago by some very dear friends. "Plastic" in this instance also means many things, a wannabe Irishman, a long, lost ancestor, third generation, English sounding, not really Irish, Kerryman. That's me - all of the above - but not the reason that Ireland is a wonderful country to visit. 

It's a beautiful place: flat rolling fields, heather covered mountains, water everywhere and a heritage that could take several lifetimes to explore. All this and wonderful bars where you're made to feel instantly at home, locals who make your welfare their concern and food delivered to the bar if you can't stagger to the restaurant. 

Directions that start with "Well.... You can't get there from here...", a stone that needs kissing if you're going to want the charm, a beer as black as night with a white foam head - yet a music culture second to none, art and dance as intriguing as any, a love of horses and horse racing and of all sport that is spoken of in hushed tones in pubs all over the country. 

We always look forward to our trips to Ireland, they're always different, yet always with the same result - a relaxed feeling of satisfaction and time well spent in good company, a feeling that you're liked - treasured even - and a longing to return.

I urge you all to try a trip to Ireland - by sea, or by air - for a weekend - for a fortnight; I promise you'll feel welcomed, loved, comfortable and relaxed - it's a beautiful, friendly place and it doesn't rain half as much as the Irish tell you it does - and when it does you don't notice because the bars are so welcoming.

For Travel Insurance for Europe and Worldwide, check our website HERE

Rugby World Cup 2015

For those wishing to travel to see the next World Cup in the UK starting September 2015 can now buy their tickets as a package deal.

At the moment it's the only way to guarantee a ticket for the matches in Manchester and Twickenham and the packages are available through England Rugby Travel (www.englandrugbytravel.com) for a few matches over the tournament at those venues.

More tickets will go on sale over the coming weeks. The Tournament takes place from September 18th through to October 31st but ticket only sales don't start until September this year. If you're desperate to get on board, then a package deal may be a great way to guarantee seeing some of the action.

For Travel Insurance, including cover in the UK, call Holsure or visit our website.

Happy Birthday To The Channel Tunnel

Having lived in the South East from about the age of 12, I am very aware of the impact that the Channel Tunnel had on the local economy - thousands were employed during its creation - the local attitude and the mindset in the Dover and Folkestone area.

Many of my friends and family were employed in its construction and I remember the day the two tunnels - one from France and one from England - met. 

Now, of course it offers a cheap and exceptionally fast crossing to the continent - 35 minutes or so. It also offers a viable alternative for those who don't like ferries or sea crossings of any kind - and in the early days, a quick crossing to Cite Europe for duty free goods was a blessing around Christmas time.

Yet it is still not as cheap as some ferry crossings, with a car full of passengers, some ferry companies are still offering trips from as little as £60 return for all and with air flights ever more competitive the Tunnel has struggled to maintain its place as the most preferred channel hopping system.

But for speed and the avoidance of anything wet (other than the unpredictable English weather) it's still the best way to pop across the channel and many frequent travellers love its speed, its lack of long queueing and loading times. True you have to sit in your car on a train with no comforts other than a cramped toilet, true there are no views to be observed, no wild, windswept decks to stagger across and no bars full of drunk holiday revellers - in fact, no bars at all - yet the prospect of being in a foreign country in 35 minutes or so is an attraction in itself to many. Kids too, are less easily bored, less likely to wander and so, for families the tunnel remains a great alternative to airports and ferry ports.

Happy Birthday Tunnel - from the many who swear by you - not at you.

If you are thinking of popping over, check Holsure's web site for quotes for day trips or longer holidays HERE

The Rising Cost Of Term Time Holidays

Parents are under more and more pressure to take holidays while the children should still be at school in an attempt to mitigate the high cost of school holiday breaks. However, the rise in fines by almost 70% in the last year has highlighted the danger to parents in doing so.

Parents in England and Wales have a legal responsibility to ensure their child attends school, unless they have opted to home-educate them. If they fail to do so, they are committing an offence under Section 444 of the Education Act 1996. It is because of this that the Government toughened these laws last year and in the Autumn term alone, almost 5300 fines were imposed in England.

In the attempt to save money by taking term time holidays, parents risk fines that will completely wipe out any savings made and run the risk of damaging the child's education. 

Schools have been given more power to tackle poor attendance, allowing them to intervene much earlier, but they have also been given the autonomy to set their own term dates in order that more parents can ask schools to consider changes to term and holiday dates that will work for pupils and their families.

As the summer holidays and Easter breaks loom closer, we are likely to see more and more press coverage surrounding the escalating costs of holiday breaks for families, but the Government look unlikely to change their stance. 

We, at Holsure have previously considered the high cost of school holiday vacations HERE and you can take a look at our website HERE or continue to explore this blog for further information regarding your holidays and affordable travel insurance. 

Passport Renewal

Having recently had to renew my passport, I thought it might prove useful to revisit the system in the UK for doing so.

The new passport is biometric and it contains an electronic chip which holds the encrypted information held within the document - including the photograph. These details can be read at any HMPO customer services centre around the UK - should you wish to do so.

At a cost of £72.50, it appears to be an expensive renewal - yet this equates to £7.25 per year - a passport lasts ten - not much in itself.

The renewal form itself can be a little daunting, but for another £8.75 you can go along to most Post Offices and have a check completed on your application which is then stamped and sent off for you. This can be useful if only to ensure the form and documents don't get returned due to some misinterpretation, error or omission. I then received a text from the HMPO advising it had been received.

Of course, a photograph is needed and this set me back a further eight pounds for four! I only needed one - but at least the photographer knew what he was doing and ensured that the background, lack of smile and attire were correct. Photograph booths will also set you back something similar, but you'll have to play for hours with a twisty stool, curtains and passing schoolboys sniggering.

So, now the cost of renewal has risen to £89.75, but still less than £9 per year overall. 

It can be stressful - especially if you leave it until last minute. Don't! Mine took three weeks but the advice is usually 5 - 6 weeks. Also don't forget that some countries will want to see 6 months passport date remaining when you enter their country. As always, check before you go.

Holsure's website is HERE for Travel Insurance and other information.