First St Patty's Day in Ireland

Jeff and I have had many firsts since we've arrived in Ireland, but the most inspiring one of them all was being here on St Patrick's Day! Although, I will mention I was here in Dublin, but Jeff was in Amsterdam at an important work meeting, so I won't hold it against him.

Before I begin to talk about the parade I witnessed, I will let you know there is an entire website dedicated to the festivities that occur all weekend and you guessed it, I was browsing it on a daily basis to make sure I didn't miss anything during the 5 days of celebration. In addition, Jeff and I did some research on the origin of why we celebrate St Patrick's Day. I won't bore you with the details, only because it's not as significant as you think, but because it's a long story!

So, I've included a picture what I saw in the parade and I was a little nervous throughout the entire 2 1/2 hours of what I was going to see next. Check out my facebook page for all of the pictures and you will be very alarmed. I learned after watching the parade that it was based off an Irish tale called "Brilliant". I am looking out for this at all of the bookstores now! In addition to the bizarre figures in the parade, I also waited for 2 hours to make sure I was in the front to see everything. I was freezing and hurting by the end, so I know if I've seen it once, I've seen it enough.

Next year I will be sure not to watch the parade, make sure Jeff is in town, wear something green (I didn't pack anything green!), and run the 5k race that I wasn't aware of until it was the day of.