Phase 3 of Reopening in Ireland

Helllloo! How is everyone? Well, I hope! This is going to be a bit of a random post but that’s just what happened here and I am not sorry about it. *Picture that shrugging girl emoji here*

In case you haven’t noticed, I haven’t been in a blogging mood really. I’m not sure if it is lockdown (probably) but I just haven’t had the heart for it. Add in I was disgusted (maybe a bit harsh) with my website and I think we have a not so winning combo for caring about blogging. 

Well, I finally did something about the website. Lockdown is out of my hands so I’ll just roll with the punches there. When I originally started this blog, I did a lot of research on what platform I would use and I have always been happy with my choice. Well, that was 3 years ago and some things have changed. I was over the layout but couldn’t move my site to a new template I fell in love with because it was on a new, updated version of Squarespace than I had. Long story short, this is my new site and I LOVE it. I had to manually move my posts over but I am so much happier. Enough of this thrilling topic that I know you all care so much about. 

Now – onto the phases of re-opening. Today Ireland begins Phase 3 of the Roadmap for Reopening Society & Business. I am not going to bore you with all the details when they can be found here but in general this is what is happening: 

·      Travel anywhere in Ireland is permitted

·      Face coverings are recommended but still not mandatory 

·      Education and childcare facilities may reopen

·      Anyone who can work from home should continue to do so where possible

·      Businesses can reopen – for example, driving schools, hairdressers, etc.

·      Indoor gatherings of 50 people are permissible

·      Pubs, cafes, hotels, and restaurants can reopen 

Also, let’s ignore that I totally didn’t acknowledge Phase 2. The timeline of the phases of reopening in Ireland are slightly irrelevant now anyway seeing as they have been accelerated. The phases were able to accelerate because of the effort, and sacrifices, that (most) everyone made to flatten the curve. 

Looking back to my post on Phase 1 of Reopening in Ireland it is insane to me that we have gone from being allowed to meet with 4 people outdoors while socially distancing to being allowed to have indoor gatherings of up to 50 people. It really shows you that when everyone works together, and looks out for more than just themselves, positive changes can happen. 

I am so impressed and thankful with the way Ireland handled Covid-19. I can safely say that I am happy to have been in Ireland during all of this instead of back home…where I think we can all generally agree that it is a hot mess.  I am still being cautious but I am looking forward to a week where things are returning to a new normal. A new normal that includes getting a haircut and celebrating the 4th of July Irish style.

Phase 4, which is Ireland’s last phase, will begin on 20 July so I’ll be back with an update then – promise! 

Chat soon,

Alexandra x