St. Pats in Newport
March 25th, 2009
Sorry for the delay folks, but for those of you who have experienced it, it takes about a week to wrap your head around something as large and incomparable as the Newport St. Patrick’s Day Parade/Festival/Insanity. Well, to call it incomparable isn’t quite fair. That quaint Irish town to the north puts on a pretty good show.
The parade is a spectacle in itself. Dozens of Irish pipe and drum corps and many more performers and dignitaries roam Broadway and Thames. Traditional Irish music rings throughout the downtown area all day and night. The real fun comes though when the parade is over and the paraders come into town, free of their confines. There in nothing quite like reveling in the glory of St. Pats beside a group of men wearing traditional Celtic kilts and caps. Several eateries host an Irish breakfast, more still break out the corned beef and cabbage. Sidenote: Corned Beef is awesome.
The best part has to be sitting down for some food and drinks, and all of a sudden, the guys at the table next to you get up and play some bagpipes. You might think, “so what, a lot of places have performers.” You don’t understand. The restaurant had no idea they were going to do it! It’s all part of Newport’s laid back, anything goes attitude. So next time you’re looking for some St. Patty’s fun, give Newport a try.
Recommended: The Fastnet, The Brick Alley Pub, Buskers, The RI Quahog Company, O’Briens