Luck of the Irish

Whether students stay in town, in state, in the country or travel abroad, come March 17, they'll be sure to find green beer wherever they go.\nSince St. Patrick's Day falls during spring break, students will have the ability to go anywhere throughout the Midwest or the world to celebrate the Irish holiday. But no matter what a student's travel plans or economic situation, St. Patrick's Day celebrations will be easy to come by. \nIt's convenient for students that one of the America's most popular St. Patrick's Day destinations sits only a four-hour drive away. Chicago may be the "Second City," but it parties harder than any in the middle of March. \nIn fact, Chicago's St. Patrick's Day celebration is so big, they don't have just one parade; rather they have two parades to commemorate the holiday.\n"Probably the biggest thing [this year] is it's bigger," says James Sullivan, general chairman of the St. Patrick's Day Parade Committee in Chicago. \nThe fact that it is free should be attractive to college students, he says.\n"That kind of sets off the whole week of crazy Irish celebration," he says.\nThe first parade kicks off from the intersection of Balbo and Columbus Drive in Chicago at noon, March 11. The route continues north on Columbus Drive, where there will be a viewing stand set-up in front of Buckingham Fountain.\nBefore the parade begins, the St. Patrick's Parade Committee will dye the Chicago River green, as they do every year. Planners say the best place to view the changing colors of the river is from the upper-level bridges on Michigan Avenue or Columbus Drive \nThe parade will also feature the 2006 St. Patrick's Day Queen, whose name, ironically, is Kelly Green, the same name given to the bright color of a four-leaf clover or a leprechaun's "get-up." \nIf the first parade isn't enough, the Irish are in luck, round two of parade madness starts Sunday for the South Side Irish Parade.\nThe South Side Irish's festivities begin at 8:30 a.m. with traditional Irish music and dance followed by a 9 a.m. Mass at the St. Cajetan Parish. \nAfter Mass, the parade begins from 103rd Street and Western Avenue at noon and will run throughout the South Side of Chicago.\nSo with everything going on in the Windy City, why would someone stay in the Hoosier State for St. Patrick's Day?\n"That's a hard one," says Kimberly Harms, associate director of media relations for the Indianapolis Conventions and Visitors Association.\n"That's a tough one, really," concurres Tosha Dougherty, communications coordinator for the Bloomington/Monroe County Convention and Visitors Bureau. \nBut Harms says "mileage, convenience, affordability and more of a quaint setting" would be good reason to lure people from Chicago to Indianapolis. \n"College budgets don't lend themselves to some of the costs you'll find in Chicago," Harms says in an e-mail.\nIn fact, there are plenty of events throughout St. Patrick's Day to keep people of all ages entertained in Indianapolis. The events begin at 6:50 a.m., March 17 when Indianapolis mayor Bart Peterson is expected to dye the canal green. \nAt 7 a.m., registration begins for the "Shamrock Run and Walk," sponsored by the Indy Sports Federation. Runners will compete on a five-mile course, and walkers will compete on a five-kilometer course. The run begins at 9 a.m. and the walk begins at 9:15 a.m.\nAt 11:30 a.m., Indy's St. Patrick's Day Parade begins at the intersection of North and Pennsylvania Avenue. The parade is also sponsored by the Indy Sports Federation.\nLive music begins at 5 p.m. with the "Shamrock and Roll," sponsored by an Irish restaurant Claddagh. It will feature a tent and serve food, beer and a small amount of Irish beverages. Though bands don't start playing till the evening, the tent doors open at 10 a.m.\nIf a trip to Indianapolis is still out of a spring break budget, there are plenty of things to do in Bloomington, Dougherty says. \n"There are a lot of things going on as far as the party scene," Dougherty says. "They always have great St. Patrick's Day celebrations."\nFrom the bars on Kirkwood to the Irish Lion, Dougherty stresses that Bloomington has a "small town feel" not evident in Chicago or Indianapolis. \nAnd it is convenient for college students. \n"It's obviously cheaper to stay in town than to travel," she says. "If economics are a concern, that might be one reason to stay in town."\nFor some, however, economics are not a major concern, as many will be traveling to some of the warmer climates the United States has to offer.\nIn Daytona Beach, Fla., a popular spring break destination, the green beer "will be cheap," says Frank DeMarchi, director of Black Crow Media events division.\nWKRO "The Kro," a Daytona Beach country station owned by Black Crow Media, is sponsoring Daytona Beach's own "Shamrock and Roll," a pub crawl throughout downtown Daytona Beach.\nThe "Shamrock and Roll," which starts at 6 p.m. and ends at 3 a.m., will feature live bands, bagpipers, traditional Irish dance groups, and Irish food. DeMarchi says the atmosphere is just as great as the party itself. \n"It's a very beautiful historic downtown," he says. "It attracts a real diversity of people," including college students from all over the United States and Canada. \nThough St. Patrick's Day is not as popular in the south as it is in the north, DeMarchi says Daytona Beach attracts people from all over Florida to celebrate. \nWhile U.S. cities work hard to replicate an Irish St. Patrick's Day celebration, there is no place like Dublin, Ireland for celebrating the biggest Irish holiday of the year. \nWhile Chicago needs two days to celebrate St. Patrick's Day, Dublin needs five to celebrate what planners call "Ireland's National Festival."\nThe St. Patrick's festival in Dublin features theater, concerts, carnivals and comedy and will host over 4,000 performers and 1.5 million spectators. St. Patrick's "Festival" planners are so confident about their program their Web site www.stpatricksday.ie claims "St. Patrick would be very proud."\nWhether you're traveling overseas, down south for the ocean and sand, migrating around the midwest or hanging out in B-town, St. Patrick's Day celebrations are not that far or few between.