Chicago to New Orleans by Luxury Train
Filmed on September 13, 2013
Kieron Keady of TravelMole USA interviews Reno Gazzola, Director of Travel Industry Sales for the venerable Pullman Sleeping Car Company. Pullman has a new luxury train service now operating from Chicago to New Orleans return.
St. Patrick's Day Parade in Belfast, Northern Ireland
There are specific celebrations all around the world which are famously known for being held for a long period of time and at the same time for the different meaning it might be carrying or the different purposes it might be standing for; St. Patrick's Day and the celebrations held for it in Ireland is one of those different festivals that are widely known all around the world (
St. Patrick's Day - which is also known as the feast of Saint Patrick or which might be called St. Paddy's - is a cultural and religious celebration that is held on the 17th of March every year and which marks the traditional death date of Saint Patrick, the foremost patron saint of Ireland. This day actually commemorates Saint Patrick and the arrival of Christianity in general and it also celebrates the heritage and culture of the Irish in general.
Those Irish people, those who have attended any of these celebrations before, or those who are just interested about the Irish culture, will know that celebrating this day usually happens in the form of public parades and festivals, Ceilidhs, and wearing green attire or shamrocks; if you are visiting Ireland during this time of the year, you will definitely get the chance to see these celebrations and experience that different kind of atmosphere.
Even though the celebrations are changing every single year with different additions that make them more modernized, it is important that people know that Saint Patrick's Day was made an official Christian feast back in the 17th century and since then, people started making all these different celebrations - it is even observed by the Catholic Church, the Anglican Communion, the Eastern Orthodox Church, and the Lutheran Church.
St. Patrick's Day is known to be an Irish celebration but it is important to say that it is also celebrated in other countries as well and which include the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador, and the British Overseas Territory of Montserrat. This day is also widely celebrated by the Irish diaspora around the world, especially those in the United Kingdom, Canada, United States, Brazil, Argentina, Australia, and New Zealand - so you might stumble upon any of these different celebrations anywhere in the world.
The interesting - and funny - fact about these celebrations is that they are more commonly held by the Irish diaspora more than they are held in Ireland and it actually entered Ireland in the 20th century, which is after it was celebrated in other countries. The parades, the wearing of green clothes and shamrocks, and those music festivals which are also held usually combine different participants such as the marching bands, the military, fire brigades, cultural organisations, charitable organisations, voluntary associations, youth groups, fraternities, and more of these different examples.
There are actually lots of different things attached to this day, such as wearing green and even lighting the streets in green, wearing shamrocks, speaking Irish during that week, and banning alcohol and eating during that day. The wearing of green comes from the 11th century pseudo-historical book Labor Gabala Erenn when Goidel Glas, the son of Scota and Niul, was bitten by a snack and was saved by Moses placing his staff on the snakebite and as a reminder, he would retain a green mark to stay with him and take his people to the land that would be free of snakes. On the other hand, using the shamrock goes back to the belief that Saint Patrick used the shamrock, which is a three-leaved plant, to explain the Holy Trinity to the pagan Irish, and that is why it is considered good luck for people during that day - or even generally in Ireland.
This year, we attended one of these different parades that is held in Northern Ireland in order to celebrate St. Patrick's Day and bring these celebrations back to you. This carnival or festival was at Custom House Square where there were different characters to be seen and different things and shows that people would enjoy watching while celebrating that day. (
Being Irish, we have actually seen such celebrations before but for those who are visiting the place for the first time and managed to do that during St. Patrick's Day time then they should attend such festival and at the same time visit some of the most famous attractions that would happen to be placed in the same area. In this year's case, people could visit the Cathedral Quarter which is not far ( check Albert Clock ( and get to see the big fish sculpture that is known to be found in Belfast, Northern Ireland (
Happy Saint Patrick's Day from us =))!
The best locations around Ireland / Northern Ireland and further afield. A travel blog/vlog of the hidden treasures that are on our doorstep.