Green Beer, Parades, and Shamrocks

Post written by Lucille, a United Planet Team member.

As a French girl, I had never heard about St Patrick’s Day before last week. I had no idea that I was going to celebrate an Irish holiday during my stay in Boston…

But there I was, last Sunday, in the South of Boston, wearing a green sweatshirt in the middle of the crowd. And believe it or not, it was quite an experience for me! American parades are so different from their French counterparts. At the beginning of the parade, the procession was made up of policemen on foot, in cars, on horseback… so far, so good. Parades also start with policemen in France, even if they are far fewer in number. (I’m getting used to the fact that many things are bigger in the United States.) And then, there were firemen, army and navy troops, tanks, and veterans of World War Two and the Vietnam War. The only other time I have seen this many soldiers all in one place is in Paris on French Bastille Day (July 14).

There were also beauty queens, like Miss South Boston, parading in convertibles! It’s so funny for me, because it was exactly how I imagined American parades, like what I have seen in the movies!

Another thing you would never see in France is all the politicians who take advantage of this day to participate in the parade to promote themselves! I couldn’t believe there were so many of them.

But I was not completely lost; I could find lots of similarities to French parades. The thing I love about this kind of celebration is that wherever you are, you can find people dressed up in any kind of costume you could imagine, like green shamrock glasses, and all kinds of hats or necklaces. It was an Irish celebration through and through, from the bands playing Irish music with bagpipes to the marchers in traditional Irish dress. To top it off, I spotted someone dressed up as a giant Guinness glass!

It was a great day and a good glimpse into Irish/American culture! My only regret is that I didn’t find a place to buy Shamrock glasses!