After a weekend of excessive amounts of Guinness consumed, green clothing worn, and the song Galway Girl being played in every pub and bar (being a huge P.S. I Love You Fan, this was surreal) I can successfully say that I did St. Paddy’s day in Dublin.
Arriving in Ireland on a Thursday gave me time to scope out the land and walk around like a complete tourist. I saw Trinity College, St. Patrick’s Cathedral, completed the Guinness Factory tour, and walked around Grafton Street where all of the shops are. I even got the opportunity to go to my first Irish pub with live music… so cool.
That following Friday I was even able to fit in a day trip to the famed Cliffs of Moher. This was definitely the highlight of my tourist activities. I even ended up dangling my feet over the cliffs, which is still unreal to me.
While all of these excursions were great, nothing compared to what I experienced on Friday night and all day Saturday. I never expected to run into so many friends from Wisconsin, random friends I have made abroad and childhood friends. Initially, I anticipated my St. Paddy’s night and daytime plans to be more Irish, even thinking I may have a P.S. I Love You moment (hey, a girl can fantasize). However, what I experienced was totally different and yet amazingly awesome.
Although I was in a foreign country, I definitely got vibes of being back at home in America. Similar to Abroadfest in Barcelona, many Big Ten scholars (a ton from Wisconsin) ventured to Dublin for the weekend festivities before St. Paddy’s. Almost everyone I saw on Saturday was American.
The entire day was very similar to that of a game day. Picture it on steroids though, with everyone decked out in ridiculous amounts of green instead of the typical game day red. Instead of running around on State Street towards Camp Randall, everyone was running around the Temple Bar area. Between finding pubs to hang out in, searching for more outrageous St. Paddy’s day clothing, and scouting out the best Irish food, Dublin proved to be an amazing time.
Regardless of whether you were celebrating the luck of the Irish in America, Ireland, or some other foreign country, I hope your St. Patrick’s day was one you won’t forget- I know mine was.