St. Patrick’s Day is normally a day where tens of thousands of people descend upon our little Emerald Isle. Whether you’re enjoying the spectacle of the city parades or the charming oddity of local parades, it’s a day of celebration and different cultures coming together. We’re all familiar with how it’s celebrated in Ireland, but what about further afield? And how will our second COVID-19 Paddy’s Day be marked?
Going Green
As part of a Tourism Ireland initiative, 670 sites in 66 different countries will be lighting up green in honour of our national holiday. Well-known landmarks around the world like the Eiffel Tower in Paris, Sydney Opera House and Colosseum in Rome light up green every year, but this year there are some unusual landmarks joining in on the celebrations. Some of the most interesting are:
- A Smurf Statue in central Brussels
- ‘Mac the Moose’, a 32 ft tall sculpture of a moose, in the city of Moose Jaw, in Saskatchewan, Canada
- The Big Fiddle of the Ceilidh, the world’s largest fiddle, on Cape Breton Island in Canada
- The Tilted (or ‘Drunken’) Sauna on Tampaja Lake in Finland
- A postbox in Norway, roughly 350 kilometres above the Arctic Circle
Going Virtual
This year, the theme for St. Patrick’s Day is Dúisigh Éire! or Awaken Ireland! and hopes to help people embrace the brighter days ahead. RTÉ will be broadcasting a virtual parade where you and your bubble are encouraged to put some green on, create their own costumes and have their own personal parade at home. You can catch amazing artists, comedians, talks and stories on the dedicated online channel for St. Patricks Day 2021.
Reminisce on Parades Past
Outside of Ireland, New York is home to the biggest and oldest St. Patrick’s Day parade. This year in New York, they’ll be doing a virtual parade with a composite of past parades where you can see how the parades have changed and evolved over the years. They will also be streaming a special St. Patrick’s Day mass live from St. Patrick’s Cathedral.
