St. Patrick’s Day is synonymous with the color green, leprechauns and lots of green beer, and of course Ireland. What originally started as a religious holiday that recognized St. Patrick has become a huge yearly celebration on March 17. Each country celebrates St. Patrick’s Day in their own way.
Ireland
By far Ireland has the biggest St. Patrick’s Day celebration throughout the world. In fact, it usually doesn’t last just one day, but goes an entire week. Pretty much all of Ireland celebrates St. Patrick’s Day, but the larger cities like Dublin tend to have large parades. Irish Dancers perform in the streets as well. Almost every pub has some sort of activity going on and there’s plenty of green Guinness to go around.
Japan
For the Japanese their main St. Patrick’s Day celebration takes place in Ise. The Ise Shrine is the starting point of their parade. Children wear leprechaun costumes while adults dress up to look like St. Patrick. Some people play bagpipes while others wave both the Irish and Japanese flags.
Australia
The larger cities in Australia like Brisbane and Sydney hold parades and large celebrations. It’s not uncommon to see people that are wearing green wigs and dressed up as a leprechaun. The historical societies in Australia make this a time to hold events where individuals can learn about how some of the Irish immigrated to Australia. Many of the local restaurants get into the St. Patrick’s Day fun and serve green food and have bands play Irish music throughout the evening. On St. Patrick’s Day the Sydney Opera House is lit up with green lights as well.
New Zealand
New Zealand residents love St. Patrick’s Day. In Auckland there’s a social event called The Emerald Ball. This event allows residents to get all dolled up and enjoy Irish inspired food. There are also elaborate parades and events that take place throughout both the large and small cities in the country. St. Patrick’s Day is not complete without a game of Gaelic football.
Argentina
Did you know that in the early part of the 1800s, the British invaded Argentina? Today there is still a very large Irish community there. Actually, it is the fifth largest Irish community outside of Ireland. In the city of Buenos Aires over 10 blocks of the heart of the city turn into a street party with tons of dancing, food and of course many people dressed in green.
The United States
If you’re in the United States, don’t worry there’s plenty to do in just about every city. Chicago tends to have large celebrations and even dies the Chicago River green using a vegetable based dye. The town known as O’Neill, Nebraska, which has made the claim of being Nebraska’s Irish capital, paints a very large shamrock at the main intersection of the town and has a variety of activities from races to parades. Hot Springs, Arkansas prides itself in having a very short St. Patrick’s Day parade which is only 98 feet long. Celebrities often visit this town just to see the parade, serve as a Grand Marshal and even kiss a Blarney Stone.
