New York celebrated Saint Patrick’s Day and the Irish heritage with the traditional parade held on Manhattan’s 5th Avenue.
The parade started at 11A.M. with bands, horses, police squads, cars going up the iconic avenue from 44th street to 79th. Green was -as usual- the dominating color and the Irish flags brought a touch of orange, green, and white to New York’s Streets.
The 6-hour procession is one of the city’s oldest events, with its earliest iterations dating back over 250 years.
Saint Patrick was not Irish: he was born in Roman Britain. He came from a wealthy family, which owned some slaves. At age 16, he was kidnapped and taken as a slave to Ireland.
Tradition says he worked as a shepherd for 6 years and, during that time, he found God. After he got to make his way back to Britain, he became a priest and went back to Ireland to convert people to Christianity.
He died on March 17th, but the parade is held on the 16th every time March 17th is a Sunday.
Saint Patrick’s Day is on official Christian feast day and a public holiday in Ireland, commemorating the arrival of Christianity on the island.
Watch our video to see the marching bands and listen to traditional Irish music.
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