There’s nothing quite like being Irish but being Irish on St. Patrick’s Day is just extra special. There’s something magical about March 17, a date when the whole world goes green to celebrate with Ireland.
Tourism Ireland, the country’s travel board, has released a new clip for St. Patrick’s Days showcasing the wonders of Ireland in the hope of enticing prospective tourists to our shores.
The 60-second clip includes wonderful footage shot around the island of Ireland, interwoven with some great images from Tourism Ireland’s Global Greening initiative – which sees hundreds of famous landmarks and iconic sites across the globe illuminated in green each year to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day.
Last month, Tourism Ireland announced details of some of the famous attractions and sites around the world which will join its Global Greening initiative this year to mark St Patrick’s Day. From Rome to Rio and from London to Las Vegas, a host of major landmarks and iconic sites around the world will be illuminated in green this week – including the Colosseum, the Leaning Tower of Pisa, the London Eye, the Great Wall of China, the Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio de Janeiro, One World Trade Center in New York, Niagara Falls, the Chain Bridge in Budapest and Matsue Castle in Japan.
The Irish have the world's highest percentage of native-born people living abroad… we do like to roam. It’s not estimated that there are 70 million people worldwide who claim Irish ancestry. We’re a very big family!
Given just how large Ireland’s diaspora is it should come as no surprise that ever March 17 St. Patrick’s Day parades are celebrated in at least 30 countries, from County Kerry to the Caribbean island of Montserrat!
So, pin on your shamrock, dress yourselves with a grin and some green and celebrate what it means to be Irish.
Lá Fhéile Pádraig Shona Duit!
(Happy St. Patrick’s Day!)
Keep up-to-date with IrishCentral's St. Patrick's Day stories here