Christmas has 12 days. Why celebrate just the first one? You have no doubt heard the famous carol The Twelve Days of Christmas; perhaps you’ve even heard the hilarious Irish spoof on it. But you know which days are the 12 days of Christmas or why there are 12 of them? Traditionally, Christmas begins on […]
Tag: occasion
Ireland Seems to Love Him, but Who Was St. Stephen?
In Ireland, St. Stephen’s Day is a holiday and St. Stephen’s Green is a beloved, popular Dublin park. So who was Stephen? The second day of Christmas is December 26th, and in Ireland, we celebrate St. Stephen’s Day on that day. Now, the customs such as hunting the wren and the straw costumes are more […]
Tis the Season for Joyce
James Joyce might not seem like the most Christmasy and festive of Irish writers, but he does have a special resonance at this time of year. Yes, those who have a week or so of extra free time during horrible weather do have a great chance to try (again) to tackle Ulysses, but there is […]
Battered but Not Broken, Dublin Survives Brutal Invasion
Americans have Black Friday. The Irish have something far more frightening. Culchie Shopping Day. They rose before the first light yesterday, hustling to get ready for the planned assault on the nation’s capital. Taking sandwiches and biscuits along with bags for the loot they expected to bring home, they left their homes early to travel […]
When the Best of Times Is the Worst of Times
For some, there is deep darkness behind the twinkling lights. What can you do to help anyone in your life who is struggling with depression? One of Ireland’s most famous singers recently posted a suicide note on Facebook, and was thankfully found in time to be helped. That individual deserves privacy at this time, but […]
Why an Irish Panto Beats the Ballet at Christmas
Many American families have a tradition of taking their children to see the ballet at Christmas. The Nutcracker is hugely popular. And surely the little ones enjoy the magic of it all, the beauty of the dancing and music, the fun of sitting still in their seats for an evening watching others dance, the joy […]
Add a Little Craic to Your Christmas
Let’s be clear – that is craic, not crack. In Ireland, we have a few Christmas staples that have not crossed the Atlantic in a significant way, and one of them is the traditional Christmas cracker. This is not an hors d’oeuvre. The last thing you’d want to do with these is eat them. A […]
Make Yourself a Merry Little Necklace
Christmas decorating does not stop with decking the halls and lighting up the tree. Tis the season to make yourself or someone on your gift list a merry little necklace or bracelet with festive Christmas and winter theme beads from Tara’s Diary. Dreary winter days are the perfect time to get creative and crafty, and […]
Why Halloween Is Much Scarier in Ireland
Halloween has Irish roots. It developed out of the pre-Christian Celtic New Year called Samhain, when it was believed that supernatural creatures and departed souls could come creeping from the spirit world to torment the living. But that isn’t why Halloween is so much more disturbing here than in North America. In many ways, Halloween […]
Croagh Patrick: Ireland’s Holy Mountain
Throughout Ireland and around the world, people march in parades on St. Patrick’s Day in honor of Ireland’s patron saint, but that is not the only walking done in his memory. St. Patrick’s largest namesake in Ireland is Croagh Patrick, which is known as Ireland’s holy mountain. More than 100,000 religious pilgrims come to this […]