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For Irish lovers, five ways to celebrate St. Patrick's Day from home

2020-03-17T22:17:31.902Z


In this period of confinement, Le Figaro gives you the keys to honor Ireland and its popular celebration from your sofa.


Each year on March 17, a public holiday in Ireland, the "Irish" loudly proclaim their membership of the nation on the occasion of St. Patrick's Day. They dance, sing and drink on the streets and in pubs. This moment of popular jubilation is now celebrated all over the world with more or less extravagant demonstrations, like Chicago (United States) whose river is tinted in green that day since 1962.

Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, parades and parades celebrating St. Patrick's Day were all canceled this year. Here are five ways to spend some time with your (very) close entourage in the colors of Ireland.

Study the history of Saint Patrick

Although Saint Patrick is the patron saint of Ireland, he was not Irish. As a teenager, he was reportedly taken from Wales or Scotland to Slemish Mountain in Northern Ireland. Used as a slave, he would have kept sheep on this peaceful hill before escaping. But a vision then told him to return to the Emerald Isle to spread the word of Christianity. During his sermon at the Rock de Cashel, he would have declared, showing a leaf of clover: "Here is the figure of the Holy Trinity" . The clover has thus become the symbol of the country, but not its official emblem which is the Celtic harp.

Saint Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland, was not Irish. Wikimedia

Read also: Ireland: to Skellig Michael, in the footsteps of the last Jedi

Wear green

Ireland's lush landscapes have earned it the nickname "Emerald Isle" and made green its national color. Thus, on St. Patrick's Day, the locals dress and grime green in all its nuances to celebrate their patron saint. Clovers are also pinned to their sweaters, scarves or lapels. If the wearing of this color is now widespread around the world to celebrate March 17 (Saint Patrick's day of death, in 461), this only became a tradition in the 19th century. Until then, the color associated with it was blue.

Read also: Ireland from Connemara to Donegal: green for the road

Listening to Irish hits

U2, Rory Gallagher, Sinéad O'Connor, Enya, The Cranberries, The Dubliners, Christy Moore, Van Morrison…: music lovers are spoiled for choice when it comes to Irish music. For centuries, Ireland has created its own identity, mixing traditional chords with more modern tones. A new wave of groups and artists, including Hozier, The Strypes and Two Door Cinema Club, brings together fans from around the world. Rather traditional or pop / rock / indie music? Here and there you will find playlists for the animation of your evening at home.

Read also: Northern Ireland for Game of Thrones dives

Cooking a local specialty

Comfortable and invigorating, Irish cuisine is the ultimate ally of a successful quarantine. Specialties include Shepherd's Pie (Irish version of the mince pie), Guinness Pie (meat and beer pie) or smoked salmon pie. But with containment, it's not always easy to have the right ingredients for this kind of recipe. Simpler and requiring less material, Brown soda bread or Apple crumble cake will do the trick for St. Patrick's dinner. All the recipes, blown by restaurants on the island, can be found on the website of the Tourist Office of Ireland.

Read also: Ireland: part of countryside in Kerry

Toast with Irish Coffee

This cocktail of coffee, sugar and whipped cream would have been created for the refrigerated soldiers who landed in Ireland during the Second World War. Adobe stock

As famous as Irish beers, this beverage made with black coffee, whiskey, sugar and whipped cream can be enjoyed as a digestif in Ireland. This cocktail would have been created by a certain Joseph Sheridan, in the late 1930s, in the town of Foynes. During the Second World War, transatlantic seaplane flights landed in this city in the south of the country. The passengers, mostly soldiers, disembarked refrigerated and anxious and went to eat in the nearest pub. His owner would have had the idea of ​​mixing whiskey and coffee to bring warmth and energy to those arriving. In the early 1950s, the recipe was picked up by a San Francisco pub and contributed to the popularity of Irish Coffee.

Read also: Kinsale, the Saint-Tropez of the Irish Sea

Source: lefigaro

All news articles on 2020-03-17

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