The month of March is finally upon us, and we all know what that means! Time to search your closet for all the green you can find, splurge on a case of Guinness from Costco, and bring out that inner Irish in ya! Wondering where want to go this year to celebrate St. Patty's day though? Well, here is a list of just a few places around the world that know how to throw down when it comes to one of the craziest holidays of the year!
1. Dublin, Ireland (duh)
Given that it’s an Irish holiday, of course, the capital of Ireland is the place to go if you want the most authentic experience. Besides just drinking Guinness, holiday celebrations include a four-day celebration full of traditional music, dance, and folklore, paying homage to Ireland's history.
2. Chicago, Illinois
Put on by the city each year on the Saturday closest to March 17th, the Chicago St. Patrick’s Day parade is nothing short of exciting. Due to the city’s large Irish-American population, the city likes to go all out with its celebrations and even dyes the entire Chicago River with the color green!
3. Buenos Aires, Argentina
Surprisingly enough, Buenos Aires actually has the fifth largest Irish population in the world! The main reason though is because of the English invasion in the 1800's that involved mostly all Irish soldiers. Nevertheless, the city still parties hard for the holiday with dancing, singing, drinking, and a parade in the Retiro district.
4. New York, New York
Home to one of the largest Irish populations in the country, New Yorkers pay tribute to their Irish roots with a big ol' parade that lasts nearly six whole hours! Just imagine playing the bagpipe for that long...
5. Auckland, New Zealand
Why is St. Patty’s day celebrated all the way down under you might ask? Well during the great famine, many Irish immigrants moved to Australia and New Zealand! Now they continue to celebrate their original heritage with a parade, as well as a dance and music festival! And you know what the best part is? It’s in the middle of summer! There’s nothing like celebrating with ice cold beers in the warm sun am I right?
6. Birmingham, England
Despite what some might think, the largest St. Patrick's Day parade in Britain is not in London, the capital city. It's in Birmingham! With a parade route is nearly two miles long that struts right through the heart of the city, it is claimed to be the third largest parade in the world after just Dublin and New York. Birmingham is also known to be England's second largest city and has a fairly large Irish population, as made evident in the celebrations!
7. Hot Springs, Arkansas
Declared "The Quirkiest St. Patricks Day Parade on Earth" by Smithsonian magazine, this St. Patty's Day parade is known as the world's shortest. It takes place on Bridge Street, which was named the shortest street in the world in the 1940's. In the past, the parade has featured a dancing dinosaur, marching dachshunds, Irish belly dancers, Dallas Cowboy Cheerleaders, Elvis impersonators and so much more. Sounds like an interesting parade, to say the least!
8. Tokyo, Japan
Also known as the "I Love Ireland" celebrations, Tokyo has hosted St. Patrick's Day festivities in Yoyogi Park since only March of 2014. Despite its only recent beginnings, the event is actually very popular and has a great turnout every year so far. The festivities are a celebration of the friendly diplomatic relationship between Ireland and Japan and feature marching bands, cheerleaders, Irish dance lessons, and a whole bunch of other "craic" (an Irish word for "fun") things!
9. Montserrat, West Indies
Once a safe haven in the 1600's for Irish Catholics that were persecuted on other Caribbean islands, Montserrat's holds quite a bit of Irish heritage, and it can be seen with the shamrock shaped stamp you receive on your passport as you enter the airport. The island celebrates the holiday of St. Patrick's Day with an entire week of festivities, recognizing both it's African and Irish heritage. Events such as the freedom run and masquerade dancing are put in place to observe Montserrat's history of slavery, and in fact, this year marks the 250th anniversary of the uprising that took place on St. Patrick's day.
