Nelsons Birthday

It really doesn't matter where my customer comes from as long as I know where they are going. But it can often be a good opener to a conversation when you find out their nationality as well. A few weeks ago there was an African day in Farmleagh house. It was a very wet day but the African people were all dressed up to enjoy the day..We learned a little bit about all the many countries that make up the vast African continent.
If you ask a Nigerian where they are from they often become very aggressive (Perhaps its like asking what is their religion). Anyhoo the African lady who got in yesterday was from South Africa and she told me that it was Nelson Mandelas birthday on Friday if he was alive.The lady told me that she became an Irish citizen on the 4th of July which was the latest conferring ceremony. She was a lively thing laughing all the way, I think she said that she was a nurse, She should cheer up her patients for sure.
Not too many people outside Ireland know that a few workers in Dunnes stores moved apartheid to the front boiling ring of the cooker. Some workers refused to handle South African goods and were sacked, this lead to a long strike, it moved the rights violations suffered by the black majority to the front page of the papers. When Nelson Mandela came to Dublin he met with them and they were later flown to South Africa for his funeral.Take a look here
Mary Manning one of the girls involved in the strike has a street named after her in Johannesburg.

I don't know if I told you but Nelson Mandela when he went somewhere always brought his driver inside with him. "Excuse me I am not alone" and he would usher in his driver.

South African Rand, with Nelson on them all, different animals on the back.

If you keep your ears open you can learn a lot driving a taxi, many drivers do, others put money on horses.

I met a chef who had to come home for a funeral £200 sterling is what the airlines charge for a next day flight, £45 by boat and train.. He told me he went to Brussels for a weekend and went to a celebrated restaurant for a special meal..He ordered fillet steak and he got a tough rump steak.
He called the waiter to complain and was told that it was indeed fillet steak. So the chef was called out.
It almost came to the point where the steak would be brought away for an outside opinion.
It was not eaten.Yet the steak appeared on the bill which had the chef brought back in again.and it was taken off the bill.  Imagine the Irish chefs surprise when the Belgian chef gave him his business card, as if he could ever be recommended to anyone.Such a stupid man.
How to complain properly is a question I would like to know, without jumping up on the table.
I must ask Gordon Ramsey.

                                                 This was around 12 ft high


Good news the sand has arrived in the courtyard of Dublin Castle and the wonderful sand sculptures will be taking shape...well worth a visit and its free.

   The Dublin bike scheme is expanding at great speed.

 The Spire from Talbot St

    Paddy Power ready for the World cup

An interesting Italian girl here 8 years. When I asked her what she did for a living she said that she was a "Drug Addict"!  That made me sit up and take notice..No she said she really was a tourist guide.
Through the conversation she told me that she had been to Cuba and the poverty of the ordinary people is desperate.Its crawling with beggars and prostitutes, it seems like the Castro boys are a bad lot, with all his prisons through the island.