Time to start talking at St Patrick Visitor Centre

Time to start talking at St Patrick Visitor Centre

17 July 2024

THE Saint Patrick Centre in Downpatrick has started a new project aimed at getting visitors talking.

As well as being the only exhibition in the world dedicated to the patron saint, the Centre is a community hub for the local area which has a garden cafe which now provides a number of sop-called ‘talking tables’.

The ordinary tables have a symbol that identifies they are open for anyone to sit at with the understanding they may or may not be joined by others.

To get things started, the Centre has come up with the idea of ‘Chatty Wednesdays’.

Centre director, Tim Campbell, said a proper chat, although often overlooked, is crucial to our wellbeing.

“It’s also a digital detox in the age of technology,” he suggested.

“Whether our visitors are regularly on their own, new to the area, or just want to say ‘hello’ to others from different backgrounds – including the thousands of international tourists we welcome every year – it can be difficult to start up a conversation.”

The first Chatty Wednesdays event started last week and runs each Wednesday from 10am to 11.30am.

The Saint Patrick Centre will also be running a pop-up Gaeltacht in the garden café every Monday morning from 11am to 12pm.