Happy St. Patrick's Day
This is the week that our little city explodes and becomes a mini Madi Gras celebration. I have lived in and around Savannah, Georgia my whole life and while we claim to be the hostess city to the south we are even more famous for St. Patrick's day. Our city of about 130,000 swells to over 700,000 to put on a huge St. Patrick's day parade and party second only to New York.
I use to love going down town, getting drunk and making a fool out of myself. Since I was 15 years old I always looked forward to the festivities. Everybody down there was there for one reason and that was to have fun. Well the times they are a changin'. Over the past 10 years the crowd has gotten younger and meaner. The thieves and thugs see a golden opportunity with all the drunks around. There were always fights but more the friendly, push a drunk down kind. There was a little flashing of the chest but only at night when the families had long been gone. Not so anymore, now anything and everything goes. People come from all over the world to have a good time but some just come to trash the city and cause problems. A few years ago they even talked about shutting the whole thing down. Of course they can't because when a few 100,000 people show up you better have somewhere they can go and something to do.
At 15 I felt totally comfortable going down there and living it up, unsupervised, but not today. Maybe I just didn't see the dangers then like I do now but it sure seems things are different. I haven't been to River Street (where the party happens) for a few years. The last time I was there the wife and I ended up in the middle of a gang knife fight that ended with a guy being stabbed right next to us, literally.
Now we just take the kids to the parade and leave all the partying to the crazy people. Since the holiday falls on a Saturday this year we will be skipping all of it. The weekend holiday means people can stay longer and drink more and a three day drunk is not a very nice guy or girl.
So if anyone is in Savannah around St. Patrick's day head on down to River Street and get your party on. You'll have plenty of company, as you can see from the picture. I think I'm the 27 guy over from the right on the 87th row, the one with the green shirt. :)
11 comments:
It is true I think, how the lure of the wild drunkeness fades as one gets older.
Like Newyear's parties are pretty much over for me, I like to stay home and watch it on T.V.
And I will only go to concerts where the crowd is mostly older people.
Much saner environment.
OOH the joy of it all.
WOW. I wouldn't have picked the South for a Saint Patrick's Day celebration!! Quite the little party you've got going down there!
We don't celebrate St. Patrick's Day in my family (in case you didnt' know, the "snakes" that Patrick drove out of Ireland were the Druids, and he did it by systematically hunting them down and killing them), so I'm constantly amazed by the parties and foolery that go on during this time of year...
I'm glad you outgrew that... it looks decidedly unsafe. :-)
A
HB: "OOH the joy of it all" is right. I do miss some of it. Back then I was much more social. I can't tell you of all the pictures we have of me with complete strangers apparently when I use to get drunk I befriended everybody I ran into.
Daughter: I don't think anybody down there cares about the snakes or St. Patrick. All they care about is... beer, beer, beer. The cops are praying for rain to hold down the crowds. I read they are going to use some California, Rose Bowl, tactics to deal with the crowds.
This was in our paper about the Saint
http://savannahnow.com/node/243483
I will never understand why freaky zealots get the sainthoods and hard-working, pious folks just get more guilt.
Or why a hometown newspaper would promulgate that injustice...
Oops, I digress again...
All I can say is:
I'm glad you're a happy drunk (though that's what I expected!!) and I wish someone had offered me some OT for your little soiree on the the 17th. Sounds like they're going to be knocking some heads. :-)
For some odd reason we don't celbrate St Patricks over here. It's quite ignorant really.
I really dont get St Paddys day! Whats the big deal about it? Especially to Americans? Lin - the reason we dont celebrate it too much is because St George is our patron saint - not St Patrick. Go to Ireland on St Patricks day and its a different story, in fact go to any cheap irish bar anywhere in the world and its a crazy atmosphere but I still dont get it!
Is it just an excuse to get drunk? Maybe thats all that Paddy was famous for? Getting plastered?
Ding Ding Ding Spiller, you nailed it. It's just a good excuse to get drunk.
Why here? Because Savannah has a huge Irish American population.
Yep... just another excuse to get drunk. Like Cinco de Mayo, Memorial Day, Mardi Gras, Take Your Child to Work Day...the list goes on.
Ahem, I think you added one to the list that shouldn't be there.
Cinco de Mayo, You get drunk on Cinco de Mayo? Shame, shame.
When is that anyway? :)
I don't get drunk on Cinco de Mayo!!!!
I mean, I'll have a couple of Tequila shots and Coronas (crap beer but what are you gonna do?) then some late night tacos and burritos... but that's all!
You're totally right about me having one in there that doesn't belong. Who gets drunk on Mardi Gras?! Pfft. Preposterous.
I believe Cinco de Mayo is on February 31. Not too sure.
(I assume you were kidding)
Kidding about what?
I am kidding, I knew it was Mardi Gras that you shouldn't drink on :|
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