Last week, I went to Dublin for 5 days in order to try and get all the government papers completed and hopefully to find a place to stay. I’m supposed to be arriving there the first week of August, and starting in the office on August 3rd. As you are well aware, time is of the essence, and getting everything packed when you don’t know where you’re moving yet is a bit of a challenge.

On Monday, I made it to the office and picked up a bunch of paperwork. I then proceeded to go to the office that was nearby to try and get a tax (PPS) number. Luckily, I didn’t stand in line – because this particular office didn’t do the tax number that I needed. So, I headed down to the Bell for dinner, and then back to where I was staying for a relaxing evening.

Tuesday, I slept in a bit, went into the office to check emails, and then headed to the city center. I started to sign up for the tax number, only I didn’t have everything they needed. This involved returning to the place I was staying, asking a friend to go with me back to the office, and then waiting an hour and a half before finally getting the request for the tax number in. But, they said, it could take up to 5 days before I got the letter in the mail with the actual number.

For dinner, I decided to do something touristy, and headed to the Guinness Storehouse. In the summer, the storehouse is open until 7pm, and being that I left that tax office at 5pm, it was a nice little fun diversion. Unfortunately, however, on the way there, I wound up with a migraine that started. I fought through it – and actually did have a good time seeing the storehouse. I even learned how to “pull a perfect pint” and got a certificate. Go Me!

Wednesday dawned and I went to the office to start hunting down apartments to look at on Thursday. I also popped into the bank to see if the account could be opened. Unfortunately, it wasn’t possible without having a PPS number or a utility bill. Um… I can’t get a utility bill without a place to live – and I can’t get a place to live without a bank account. So, I asked them how to get around the catch-22. They said that once I got a PPS, come back and they would see if they could figure something out. Hum…

Thursday, I was up early and by 9am started looking at houses and apartments. Let me just say that this was a crazy thing – seeing 10 houses/apartments in 6 hours – but by the end, I had figured out that 3 might be suitable for where I would want to live. In the end, I decided on one not very far from the office – a bottom floor apartment for 930 euros a month. It’s got 2 bedrooms – and I wasn’t sure I would be able to get it, but the application got turned in.

Friday morning, I was woken up by my cell phone ringing. I was leaving at 6pm – and today was the last day – no bank account, no tax numbers, no home as yet. I was wondering if my final day would result in any progress other than sheer stress at the result of it all. Upon answering the cell phone, I was told that I needed to go to the apartment I wanted and be there by 11 am. The landlord wanted to meet me – and see if he liked me well enough to let me the flat. I quickly got dressed, and on the way out the door, I checked the mail – Yes!! the PPS number had come — now could I get a bank account and an apartment between noon and 4pm when I had to meet my flight?

The answer? Yes!

By 14:30, I was informed that I had gotten the apartment from the landlord I’d met earlier. From that, I was able to take the PPS number to the bank and open a temporary account – pending a copy of the lease and the first month’s utility bill.

Ah! I love it when a plan comes together — 5 days in Ireland and in less than 4 hours on the final day I suddenly had the PPS number, the Bank account and best of all — a place to live.