March 17, 2018 - St. Patrick's Day in Dublin and The World's Biggest St. Patrick's Celebrations!

Tanya's Daily Scoop
Covering the West Coast & the World
CURRENTLY TRAVELING IN: DUBLIN, IRELAND

From the first city in Ireland to the biggest city in Ireland

HELLO HELLO!

First off GREETINGS from DUBLIN, IRELAND 

ú Shona Patricks lae (Happy St. Patrick's Day)

How very exciting it is to be spending yet another St. Patrick's Day here in Ireland.

DO YOU REALIZE: That today is pretty much THE biggest and most celebrated day of the year over here!

I just love how important this day is for the Irish people.
I wish people is the USA would take holidays serious.

It really saddens me that life just goes on like any other ordinary day on holidays back in the USA.

That is freakin' WEAK!  

As a nation - the USA can be so out of touch.
        Sorry. Not sorry, it's the truth.  

Anyhow, I'm obviously venting just thinking about it.
But alas, my vent is now over and I'll get on with giving you the SCOOP instead of the VENT.  LMBO

While we go out and celebrate this fabulously GREEN holiday (find out why we where GREEN on St. Patrick's Day in Elisa's column), I'll be sharing our lovely time in Waterford and in Kilkenny with you.

DID YOU KNOW: That Waterford was founded by Vikings in 914 A.D. and is the Ireland’s oldest city!

While in Waterford we had opted to stay at the Dooley's Hotel.
Which I soon found out had a bit of it's own local history... 3 Genertions of Hospitality - 

Started on the quayside in Waterford City, it was purchased by Rita Nolan in 1947. It had a mere 8 bedrooms, a range that burnt turf and 8 cups with no handles.

Over the following years the reputation of Dooley’s Hotel grew, and by the mid 1960’s it had grown organically to 34 bedrooms.
June Darrer joined her mother in running the Hotel, having completed her training at the college of Catering in Cathal Brugha Street, Dublin.
In 1994, Tina Darrer joined her mother at the helm, and in doing so became the 3rd generation of the family to be involved in the running of the hotel.
Her sister Margaret has now joined Tina, thus completing the unique family management team.

In 1994 the family co-purchased the Granary building with Waterford Corporation. In the winter of 1996 Dooley’s Hotel closed with 34 bedrooms and development commenced. It subsequently re-opened in the summer of 1997 with 112 bedrooms.


​More to come...

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Elisa's Daily Scoop
Covering Long Island & NYC Boroughs
​CURRENTLY ON LONG ISLAND

What a gorgeous day for St. Patrick's Day here in New York!!!

I know things are getting crazy in Manhattan for the annual St. Patrick's Day parade!!  If you've ever attended this parade, you know what an amazing celebration it its!! Everyone is Irish on St. Pat's Day.

To make things more exciting here at Travelin' Cousins, my dear cuz and her kiddos are IN DUBLIN for the Dublin St. Patrick's Day parade!!  More about that in a moment!

Going to get right into it folks - here are some interesting facts about this wonderful holiday:

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According to Ireland.com here are 
9 Facts about St. Patrick's Day: 

(photo credit: history.com)

​And while we're talking about St. Patrick's Day celebrations, why not have a re-cap of our feature from a year ago...

The World's Biggest St. Patrick's Day Celebrations
(according to  Fodor's Travel)

#1 NEW YORK
New York hosts the country’s (and the world's) largest St. Patrick’s Day celebration, with more than two million people gathering for the city’s grand parade on March 17. There are no floats or cars allowed in the parade, which features bands, bagpipes, and dancers, and typically between 150,000 to 250,000 participants.
The tradition itself dates back to 1762, making the NYC St. Patrick’s Day Parade older than the U.S. itself. The parade starts at 11 am and lasts about six hours!

#2 DUBLIN
Of course, Dublin hosts one of the biggest St. Patrick’s Day celebrations, five days filled with boat races, the Irish Beer & Whiskey Festival, music and street performances, and a spectacular parade. 

#3 SYDNEY
The Sydney Opera House turns green for St. Patrick’s Day and so does the rest of the city. With a huge themed parade (dating back more than 200 years) on the Sunday before St. Patrick’s Day, there’s also pre- and post- parade entertainment along the streets of Sydney. The parade itself is one of the largest in the world, and the only one organized and sponsored by the Irish Community and Government.

#4 CHICAGO
The city of Chicago truly commits to St. Patrick’s Day by dyeing the Chicago River green every season. The tradition dates back to 1961, when the chairman of the annual parade saw green dye in the river (which at the time was used to identify a sewage problem) and got the idea to use it for the upcoming holiday. On the Saturday before St. Patrick’s Day, this year falling on March 12, more than 400,000 people gather along the Chicago River to watch 45 pounds of environmentally-safe vegetable dye turn the murky river a bright shade of green.

#5 MONTREAL
Since its inauguration in 1824, the Montreal St. Patrick’s Day Parade has never been cancelled, regardless of poor weather in past years. The festivities take place on the Sunday before St. Patrick’s Day and includes floats, bands, and plenty of costumes. The three-hour parade features a massive replica of St. Patrick, which announces the beginning of the celebration.

​#6 LONDON
#7 MONTSERRAT
#8 SAVANNAH
#9 MUNICH
#10 BUENOS AIRES

I'm off to enjoy the day with my little trio (Gianna, Kelsey and Punkin) - please check Tanya's blog for all the excitement happening in Dublin!!

-E
xoxo