Happy St Patrick’s Day!
1. Dublin boasts one pub for every 100 head of population
In fact you know what?
The Irish consume in average 131.1 liters of beer per year
the 2nd highest per-capita consumption after the Czech Republic
Famous Irish breweries include Guinness, Smithwicks or Kilkenny, and Harp Lager
2. Now what comes to mind when I say Ireland
the Celtic cross? The green Shamrock, the harp?
Apart from these three most famous symbols of Ireland
The 3rd largest island of Europe has won the Eurovision Song Contest a record seven times
more than any other country!
And every year since 1981, on the sloping grounds of the famous Slane Castle
Artists like David Bowie, Bob Dylan, Queen, The Rolling Stones, Bruce Springsteen, Guns N’ Roses, R.E.M., The Verve, Robbie Williams, Bryan Adams, U2, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Madonna and Oasis have come to perform with the Foo Fighters headlining this year’s edition
3. Gaelic football is the most popular sport in Ireland in terms of match attendance, followed by hurling, soccer and rugby
And as you can imagine, thee All-Ireland Football Final is the most watched event of the nation’s sporting year
But at the Olympics, surprisingly boxing, is Ireland’s most successful sport.
4. According to Irish birthday traditions,
people hold the birthday child upside down
and gently bump the head slightly on the floor.
The number of bumps correspond to the age of the child.
And they do this because they believe that this tradition brings good luck
So if ever you visit an Irish home and you see the dad dangling his child and bumping his head on the floor
Don’t freak out ok?
5. Remember last month when we were celebrating New Zealand’s Waitangi Day
I mentioned that there are no wild snakes in the whole of New Zealand?
The only other snake-free island, is?
You guessed it… Ireland!
So if you’re planning a trip there anytime soon
Tramping through Ireland is definitely an option you could consider
6. Talking about awesome Irish music, Irish rockers U2 have won a whopping 22 Grammy Awards before
And they remain Ireland’s most famous musical export
But since Ireland has won the Eurovision Song Contest a record seven times more than any other country
I’m sure you’ll enjoy the other Irish songs that I’ve already lined up for your listening pleasure
7. Now Ireland ranks 9th in a list of 178 countries in terms of economic, political and social stability
And when it comes to the best countries for your children to grow up in
Ireland comes in at Number 10
But when it comes to dream holidays
The Canary Islands top the list as the most popular sunshine holiday destination
So if you’re wondering where to head to for your next vacation
How about heading to the Canary Islands?
8. We’re celebrating St Patrick’s Day all this week
and here’s another interesting fact about Ireland
Apparently, there are more Irish people living outside of Ireland than in
And fact is, over 70 million people world-wide claim to have Irish heritage
Including guess who?
President Obama who says his great great great grandfather emigrated from Ireland to the US
Now if you’re Irish and you’re living and working in Singapore
I hope you have a meaningful meet up with friends and family over the week
Happy St Patrick’s Day!
9. St Patrick’s Day is just round the bend, and speaking of St Patrick
apparently he did exist and his real name is Maewyn Succat
The son of a rich Romano British family
who was allegedly kidnapped and sold as a slave to Ireland when he was 16
And there, he worked as a shepherd for 6 years
until he found God, who told him to flee to the coast where there’ll be a boat to take him home
He returned to Ireland eventually and introduced Christianity to the Irish
and that’s how he came to be Ireland’s foremost saint
Coming up I have another true story to tell you about how the word Boycott came about
So stay with me
10. All this week we’re celebrating St Patrick’s Day – Ireland’s National Day
And before I play you some more great Irish tunes
let’s have a quick English lesson or should I say Irish lesson
You know the word Boycott?
Word is, it originated from Ireland after land owner Charles Boycott
stubbornly refused to drop his rents
as you can imagine a boycott took place right after that!
Pub-trailer (Ireland)
