St Patricks Day! A day where everything Irish is celebrated. Shamrocks, Leprechauns and Guinness.
The day celebrates St Patrick, who was not called Patrick at all and wasn’t even Irish. St Patrick was born Maewyn Succat in Britain and having been captured, taken to Ireland as a prisoner, escaping and then returning to Ireland as a Missionary he changed his name to Patricius which comes from the Latin word meaning Father Figure.
St Patricks Day is perhaps best known for the parades. These parades started in the United States in New York City in late 1762 when the Irish Soldiers serving in the English army decided to celebrate the day by marching through the streets. The tradition has since grown and now the St. Patrick’s Day parade in New York alone has over 150,000 participants.
St Patrick’s Day celebrates a man who wasn’t called Patrick and the parades are not even Irish in origin and to top it all Green was not the colour of St Patrick. Historians believe the actual colour associated with St Patrick was originally blue. Green only became the colour in 1768 during the Irish Rebellion when the Shamrock or Clover Leaf became the symbol of nationalism along with green lapels. The green soon spread to the entire uniform and soon spread further to be recognised as the national colour of Ireland.
All these things that aren’t quite what they first appear nevertheless make for a fun day that is celebrated by millions. The drinking and eating have formed a large part of the celebrations, and St. Patrick’s Day has become synonymous with overindulgence. If you don’t have a full tummy and haven’t had one too many of the Irish Whiskeys or Pints of Guinness some will say you have not celebrated the day. For those that have done this, they need to end the day in style and relax to feel great the next day.
What better way to do this than to take that little bottle of foam bath your hotel has kindly provided, run a hot bath with bubbles and steam that will allow you to relax and soak up the memories of the day. But don’t take your eye off the bath, it is St Patrick’s day after all and those cheeky Leprechauns love a hot bath as much as anyone and if you are not careful they will hop in and you will lose out.