I think a lot of people wonder if St Patrick’s day is really “a thing”, celebrated in rural Ireland or just the major cities . The answer most definitely is YES. St Patrick is after all our very own patron saint. In fact in some towns in Ireland the celebrations can go on for days.
Global Greening
There is no better day than on March 17th, St Patrick’s Day to be Irish or to celebrate your Irish heritage or even just to pretend you are Irish for the day. The whole world seems to turn Green & Celebrate (the Colosseum, the Leaning Tower of Pisa, Niagara Falls, the ‘Welcome’ sign in Las Vegas, the Sydney Opera House, Christ the Redeemer statue, the London Eye and many others). #LoveIreland
St Patrick’s Day Festival
So I thought I would share a little of my own experience of growing up in rural Ireland on St Patrick’s Day, in my home town of Kells Co Meath. First and foremost St Patrick’s Day was a holy day which meant it was a day off school. My mother would get everyone up and into their Sunday clothes (even though it wasn’t always necessarily a Sunday) .We had to put our St Patrick’s Day badges on and our Dad insisted on pinning clumps of fresh shamrock on the lapels of our clothes. I can still picture my father with a clump of shamrock hanging from his sweater attached with a safety pin stolen from our mothers sewing box. (Shamrocks and badges are still worn these days except they have gotten far more creative with neon lights and glitter). We wore these St Patrick’s Day Badges with great pride. My sister shared with me recently that she remembers living in the UK and getting a package from home on St Patrick’s day with a clump of fresh shamrock (clay intact) carefully wrapped in kitchen roll that our father had sent her.
National Holiday
It is a public holiday so the Post Office and the Banks in town close but the pubs were open all day. After mass we would watch some of the parade in Dublin on RTE news channel which was always home to the biggest parade in Ireland and still is today. The parade was always so impressive and it continues to grow more and more every year.
Contrary to popular belief, dinner was not bacon and cabbage (in our home in any case) but roast beef. Dinner was served before we all headed into the town to see our own local Parade.
Kells Town Parade
The town was alive on Saint Patrick’s Day. Irish Flags, green wigs, kids all covered in face painting lined the streets eagerly awaiting the big parade. Kells Town Parade consisted of all the local clubs and some novelty floats. Our Swimming club, tennis club & handball club walked with pride and all the local football teams had a place too.
There were lots of tractors and big trucks all giving the big beeps to the kids watching with excitement and if you were lucky you would get sweets thrown at you from some of them. The parade would start from the Fair green and would do a lap of the town. Everyone would have a spring in their step as it was almost always absolutely freezing. We were glad to be honest when it was over and everyone would head with their families to different pubs or to our local hotel , the Headfort Arms.
Fond Memories
Saint Patrick’s Day usually fell on lent but we were always allowed to break lent -just for the day mind! We got a few pounds to spend in the local sweet shop and you couldn’t spend it fast enough or eat the fruits of your labour. Our parents went to the local, (a county bar names Mickey Brays, a great traditional family run Irish pub in the countryside that is still there today) -and had a few and the kids were given a bottle of TK red lemonade and packets of tayto crisps to enjoy much to our delight. It was a day that everyone was in good form and there was a friendly and welcoming atmosphere everywhere. Eventually the music would start and the sing song was in full swing. You could always be guaranteed of making a few pound on the 17 March as the merrier people got the more generous they got.
Every Day is a Great Day to visit Ireland -there is just something extra special about being there on St Patrick’s Day!!
