Did you know? St. Patrick’s Day is so famous in Ireland that it’s celebrated all over the world! Firstly, because there’s a strong Irish community living abroad and they love to celebrate their origins, but also because countries around the world like to give Ireland a friendly wink! That’s why, every year in March, the world’s major cities join forces to pay tribute to the green Erin! And guess how? Using the color green, of course, a true symbol of the Irish nation!
Sacré Coeur in green for Saint Patrick’s Day
A rather cool phenomenon has been going on for over a decade: every St. Patrick’s Day, major international cities like Paris, Madrid, Sydney and New York light up one of their most beautiful monuments in green! It’s a great way to say hello to the Irish and their national holiday!
There’s something for everyone: the Moulin Rouge and Sacré-Coeur in Paris light up in a powerful green, the London Eye Ferris Wheel in London, La Puerta de Alcala in Madrid, and the Burj Al Arab hotel in Dubai is decked out in its finest colors, with a pretty shamrock at its center!
Not to mention the city of Chicago, which is even more impressive! The American city has a tradition of coloring its river (the Chicago River) an almost fluorescent shade of green every St. Patrick’s Day! (The dye is environmentally friendly, not harmful to fish, and disappears after several hours). A fitting tribute to the city’s strong Irish community!
And since St. Patrick’s Day doesn’t end there, it’s a good idea to celebrate the event in the pubs of every town! A way to feel Irish for a day… with the help of green power!
Parades are also organized all over the world (including New York). So it’s only natural to dress in green to pay homage to Ireland, its culture and its history! That’s why so many people dress up as leprechauns, the little 30cm creatures from Irish fairy tales! He’s a symbol of St. Patrick’s Day in his own right!
Many of them wear leprechaun hats, green shirts and carry a cauldron of gold… In short, a lovely reference to the Emerald Lands!
