An all green t-shirt with optional Irish-related sayings, for example, “Kiss me, I’m Irish!” Note that no real Irish person over the age of ten would be caught dead in one of these. T-shirts with Irish beer monikers such as Harp or Guinness are more acceptable For those who are feeling particularly festive, try buying or making a leprechaun costume, replete with white stockings, green top hat and fake (or real!) red beard. If you’re working on March 17th, you can still get into the festive spirit by incorporating a little green into your work attire. Try a green-striped polo or collared shirt, a green or shamrock-dotted tie, or green socks and undies for the closet St. Paddy’s Day fans.
It is a tradition in Ireland for all attending parades and generally celebrating to wear a small collection of Shamrock fastened by a clothespin to your top (in the same place as a badge would be worn). Dying your hair or your pet’s fur bright green is also a great way to stand out. Be sure to use a non-toxic dye. It’s also common to see kids (and sometimes adults) with their faces painted on St. Patrick’s Day, particularly if they’re attending the parade. Cute shamrocks on the cheeks are a popular option, along with full-faced Irish flags of green, white and orange.
What’s the craic? This phrase can be interpreted as either “How’s it going?” or “What’s going on?” or “What’s up?” and is used in non-formal settings. Craic is a very important word in Ireland and can be used to describe your enjoyment of an event or activity, e. g “How was the party?” “Ah sure, it was great craic altogether!” Use “craic” in the correct context and you’ll earn major points with the Irish. Grand. Grand is another multi-purpose word in Hiberno-English. It doesn’t mean large or impressive, but rather translates as “fine” or “great” depending on the context. “I’m grand” is a perfectly acceptable reply to the question “How are you?” and means the person is doing just fine. If you ask an Irish person “How did the exam go?” and they reply “It was grand” that means it went okay, it wasn’t amazing, but it wasn’t a disaster either. Eejit. Eejit is basically the Irish word for idiot. If someone does something silly or stupid, you can comment “Ah ya big eejit!” It’s not meant to be offensive, rather it’s used to make fun of someone in a playful way.
Get some friends together and learn how to céili (kay-lee) dance - a form of Irish social dancing that can be done with as few as two and as many as sixteen people. If you get good enough you can compete in the many feiseanna or Irish dancing competitions that take place all over the world. Even better, you can volunteer to perform in the next St. Patrick’s Day parade!
Most sources agree that St. Patrick’s actual name was Maewyn Succat. They also agree that Maewyn was kidnapped and sold into slavery at age 16 and, to help him endure his enslavement, he turned to God. [2] X Research source Six years after his captivity began, St. Patrick escaped from slavery to France, where he became a priest, and then the second Bishop to Ireland. He spent the next 30 years establishing schools, churches, and monasteries across the country. He brought Christianity widespread acceptance amongst the pagan indigenous peoples. [3] X Research source It is thought that St. Patrick used a shamrock as a metaphor for the Trinity (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit), showing how three individual units could be part of the same body. His parishioners began wearing shamrocks to his church services. Today, “the wearing of the green” on St. Patrick’s Day represents spring, shamrocks, and Ireland. [3] X Research source
Alternatively, you can take a trip down the country to escape from the tourist-ridden streets of Dublin and experience a somewhat quieter, but more authentic version of the holiday. Most towns will have some semblance of a parade - the quality varying from decent to poor - but the real reason to go is for the vibrant pub-scene, where you can enjoy high-quality traditional and contemporary Irish music surrounded by an authentic Irish crowd! As mentioned above, thousands of tourists flock to Ireland every March so it’s advisable to book flights and accommodation well in advance, to avoid soaring prices and possible disappointment.
Traditional Irish foods include bangers and mash, colcannon, bacon (boiled ham) and cabbage, stew, boxty, Shepherd’s Pie, potato bread and black pudding. In Ireland, the day is usually celebrated by eating food such as pink bacon or savory roast chicken. Note that corned beef and cabbage is more of an Irish-American tradition than an authentically Irish one. [4] X Research source
Find a compilation CD of traditional Irish songs or download some individual songs online. You should easily be able to find traditional Irish music by artists such as The Chieftains, The Dubliners, Planxty and Clannad, for example. If traditional music isn’t your thing, don’t forget about the many contributions Irish musicians have made to the world of rock and pop. Think U2, Van Morrison, Thin Lizzy and The Cranberries. Alternatively, you can try your hand at some traditional Irish instruments, such as the tin whistle, the bodhrán, the harp, the fiddle or the uilleann pipes. However, you’re not likely to produce anything very melodic sounding if it’s your first time!
There are many ways to participate in your local parade. You can get dressed up and march in the parade yourself, help design costumes or floats or help out with the organization of the parade. St. Patrick’s day is a festive, communal holiday - so get involved! Though small towns aren’t likely to have parades, many large cities such as New York City, Boston, St. Louis, San Francisco, Chicago, London, Montreal and Sydney have great celebrations. Savannah, GA boasts the second largest parade in the United States, while out of any US state, Boston has the highest number of Irish descendants by percentage of population, and its South Boston St. Patrick’s Day parade is the first recorded anywhere in the world. [5] X Research source
A pub crawl can be a great way to get some friends together and explore the local pub scene, especially if there are a lot of Irish bars in your area. Make a list of the pubs you want to visit in advance (if you are ambitious you could aim for 17 pubs in honor of March 17th!), then make a rule that everyone needs to have a pint in each pub you visit. 17 US pints (8,000 ml) of Guinness anyone? It would be a shame to drink Budweiser on St. Patrick’s Day, regardless of where in the world you are. If Guinness isn’t your thing, try a pint of Bulmers (also called Magners) cider, Smithwick’s ale, Jameson Irish whiskey or some Bailey’s Irish cream. Whatever you drink, avoid any green beer.
Consider starting a tradition, such as watching a movie, “The Quiet Man” with John Wayne and Maureen O’Hara is a fun choice; serve corned beef and cabbage or Irish stew with colcannon (mashed potatoes and cabbage). Make green beer and green chocolate chip cookies for your party. In Ireland it is common to get together with family for St. Patrick’s Day, so perhaps you’d like to do this too.
