Saint Patrick's Day is held on the 17th day of March to celebrate the death of the patron saint of Ireland, Saint Patrick. It is a cultural and religious festival and is celebrated all over the world. In Tokyo, where I live, they have a Saint Patrick's Day parade in Omotesando. There is also an Irish food and cultural festival nearby as well.
Recently, some people have said that Saint Patrick's Day has become too commercialised. They say that it has become a big booze fest. They say that people are just out for the beer and the good times as opposed to recognising what exactly the festival is about.
It's true, Plastic Paddyness is everywhere. The reason I started writing this post is that I saw a photo of a bar in a city in New Zealand packed with people in green and drinking (probably for only the one time that year) Guinness. I quietly wondered how much about Saint Patrick's Day these people actually knew about. Probably very little.
The thing is that people will find any excuse to to "get wasted." With the world becoming smaller and smaller and with more and more information available via the Internet, people are becoming more attuned to things like Saint Patrick's Day. Another example of this is Halloween. Five years ago, Halloween was something that only foreigners did in Japan but now it is become a mini-industry in it's own right and I saw something today advertising Easter at Tokyo Disneyland. Maybe that is next.
My question today is, do we need to understand the background of these festivals and occasions or is best to make our own interpretation of it?
In the Saint Patrick's Day example, Irish people seem to be recognised as drunken louts which from my experience is far from the truth. Irish people are some of the nicest people that you will even meet and to portray them as drunken leprechauns is a disservice to them and their country.
Next time you go out, make sure there is some reason behind and also if it is special occasions try to understand what it is all about. I'm sure that you will have a better time because of it and also, if you are an introvert, remember just because everyone is doing it doesn't mean you have to as well. Know your limits in your social energy and also alcohol consumption.
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