Happy St. Patrick’s Day everyone! Today I’m writing from about a block away from the largest and oldest celebration in the world, the one and only New York City St. Patty’s Parade. The NYC parade began in 1762, and has been held annually ever since. Today, over 2 million spectators lined the streets just outside this very office to watch the precession of close to 250,000 march up Fifth Avenue from 44th St. to 86th St., past the historic St. Patrick’s Cathedral at 50th and the American Irish Historic Society 83rd. Though the parade in New York is the biggest and oldest in the world, it is far from the only celebration going on around the world. Of course Ireland – the country that brought us this great holiday – is hosting its fair share of celebrations today, as the day has been an official public holiday since 1903. The biggest of these is taking place in the capital city, Dublin. The parade and festivities in Dublin attracts about 1 million people, and the city also hosts a five day festival each year. In the UK, Birmingham is the place to be for the celebrations, as they put on the third largest event in the world behind NYC and Dublin. London also hosts a parade on the weekend before or after the 17th in its famous Trafalgar Square, complete with dyed green fountains.
Surprisingly to many, large scale St. Patty’s Day celebrations don’t take place in just Ireland, the UK, and the US. There are also many events throughout Australia, culminating in a large parade in Sydney this coming Sunday. New Zealand is also known for its widespread celebration because of the large number of Irish emigrants in the 19th century.
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| The famous "green river" in Chicago. |
So no matter where you are in the world, have fun this St. Patrick’s Day. And if you want to call home and talk to family and friends to see how they’re spending the holiday, be sure to use StanaCard for our low rates and SmartDial technology!
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