Hi! My name is Karley Chamblee - I am studying abroad in Ireland next spring (extremely excited) and I'm currently taking a Pre-Departure Course to prepare me for the experience. I am in the middle of completing an assignment due Monday which is about the understandings of time in our future host country and their relations to American understandings of time. We can use external sources to identify the differences, and it has been very difficult to find websites pertaining to my specific questions. I was wondering if you could help me out by identifying, from an Irish cultural lens, the age requirement or age range to be considered as the following:
baby, preschooler, child, early adolescent, teenager, legal adult, young adult, middle adult, older adult, and senior citizen.
For example, the American age requirement to officially be considered a senior citizen is 65. This may vary in Irish culture. These ages and age ranges may be similar to America as well as relative to individual views, but perhaps you have some information that could help!
We are also discussing cultural rhythms and seasons. Could you help answer these questions?
What are the wet and dry seasons in Ireland?
What is considered profane or sacred?
When is typically the busiest time of the week? Least busy?
What is an example of a formal/informal occasion?
For the last set of questions, I am supposed to research time contexts in Ireland, specifically what the normal waiting time is for places like restaurants, banks, clothing stores, etc.
Where can you expect to wait five minutes, 20 minutes, an hour? When are moments when you want time to stand still and time to move fast? (Again, these answers may be similar to America or relative, but anything helps)
These are many questions, and of course please don't feel obligated at all to answer each one specifically, but if you have any insight, it would definitely help for my assignment. Thank you!
Baby.. probably up to 2 or 3 or 40 if your their mammy.. Preschool .. 3 or 4 Junior infants 4 or 5 Senior Infants 7 or 8 Junior 12 Teenager 13-19 Legal Adult.. voting/drinking age 18 Adult probably considered over 20 for life Middle aged.. probably Retirement age.. death or before, pension age 65. (neighbour is over 80 and still working the farm..)
Wet season all year but mainly October to April Dry Season, when it doesn't rain, possibly driest June-September Ireland gets "relief rainfall" off the Atlantic, the clouds hit land rise in the atmosphere and drop rain,, temperate climate,
Profane, mentioning Rick Steves, other than that you will hear mild profanities on the radio. Sacred, Family. local GAA teams.. life. possibly in that order
Busiest time any time from breakfast before 1pm and after 2pm (lunch time) until bed time.. have something for sale in the free ads? expect a phone call any time up till about 11pm Quietest time, Sunday or meal time.
Formal,, Church (wedding, christening, funeral) Informal anything else.
Waiting times vary.. Banks, if there is no one in front of you 5 minutes, if there is a queue up to 15 minutes. same for shops, restaurants its no harm if it takes 10 minutes before someone gives you a menu or takes you order, you will be told if you have to wait more than 20 minutes after that to get your meal (generally)
Ireland (outside Dublin) doesn't work to a time scale, things take as long as they take and whilst some things always start on time there is no saying how late they may be at the end.. Closing time is generally closing time unless its a country pub,
Where might you wait 2 hours.. The Doctors.. unless on an appointment rota.. turning up at the surgery 10.30 in the morning you could be leaving at 1pm, appointments are in the afternoons.
That's the view of a country local, living 12 miles from the nearest regular bus stop, supermarket, etc. City folk will have a different take but still not as rushed as an ATypical tourist..
You might just experience culture shock in your 1st week over here but it won't take long to settle into the routine.
-- Edited by tony2phones on Thursday 9th of October 2014 06:13:58 PM
__________________
Two rules for Ireland, Take your time & bring a sense of humour
An observation I made some years ago: Virtually every Anglo-Irish / Ascendancy / Protestant structure in some way, shape or form, displays the very English Preoccupation with time. Church of Ireland church steeples, in particular, very often include a clock in their tower. The most common 'English' disparagement of the Irish is to refer to them as "Feckless" -- something I usually interpret as caused by impatience and frustration with an Irish tendency to decline the rigidity of Time Constraints that the English seem inordinately preoccupied by.
The majority of Irish people that I have been privileged to come to know consider time as a much more fluid and slightly vague concept -- subject to the whims of the moment in question.
The frustrated inability of the English to enforce their rigid time sense upon the Irish is what undoubtedly led them to relinquish control over the 26 counties. Ulster, with its vast population of Scots (with a native rigidity that sometimes makes the English seem feckless, in comparison ) were apparently more amenable.
That's a lay-person's (slightly Tongue and Cheek) opinion and observation, however . . .
__________________
Bob
Help Us to Help You. The more you tell us about your plans (dates, interests, budget), the better we can tailor our advice to suit!
) were apparently more amenable.
