Parades:

• The Shamrock Club of Columbus hosts the St. Patrick’s Day parade and it is always held on the 17th. This year the parade is down town Columbus.
  

  “The Parade will form at Nationwide Blvd. and John H. McConnell Blvd. between 10:30am and 11:30am. There will be a shuttle bus running from Vet’s Memorial to the Parade staging area from 9:15am until 10:15am. The cost of this service is $1 per person plus a parade badge. The Parade will step off at 11:45am and proceed East on Nationwide Blvd.”

• The city of Dublin parade.
  

  “The annual City of Dublin St. Patrick’s Day parade promises plenty of “Irish Attitude”. Featuring 100 units ranging from fantastic floats to bands and balloons, the St. Patrick’s Day parade will bring Irish at every angle.

  The parade will take place on Saturday, March 14 at 11 a.m. The parade route will start at the Metro Center Plaza and end in Historic Dublin.”

Resturant and Pub Activities

• Fado Irish Pub is hosting several events over the weekend.
  • St. Baldrick’s  Charity Event
  • Cornhole tournament
  • Irish American Pub Quiz
  • Kegs n Eggs
• The Brazenhead Irish Pub
  • Door prizes at both locations all day on the 17th
  • Irish Dancers at both locations all day on the 17th
• Claddagh Irish Pub
  • Irish Sing-a-Long with Paddy on the 14th at the Polaris Location
• Brynes Pub
  • Well frankly, we don’t know what else they have besides, beer and music. But isn’t that enough? It’s Byrnes for Pete’s sake.

Other

• Dublin Blarney Hop
  • “Free wee folk activities including crafts, games, prizes and balloon art will be found throughout the event area. Access to a variety of inflatables (weather permitting) will require a $5 per child wristband, a portion of which will benefit The American Cancer Society. Irish dancers, live music and a DJ will keep everybody hopping throughout the afternoon.”
    

Here is a list of the bands and djs performing at the most prominent Irish bars and restaurants in the Columbus Area. There is something for everyone. Many businesses are also hosting other activities during this weekend. Check back for more information in the coming days.

Web sites for Restaurants and Pubs
Byrnes Pub
The Brazenhead
O’Shaughnessy’s Public House
Fado’
Mary Kelly’s
The Claddagh Irish Pub

This year, multiple businesses are getting together to have “The Blarney Hop”. I don’t expect it to be similar to the Blarney Bash of the past, but it does hold promise for fun family activities.

The event is a Relay for Life event and some details can be found on the American Cancer Society’s web site, The American Cancer Society:.

$5.00 will provide access to inflatables and a Wee Folk area with crafts, games, prizes and balloon art is free.  Irish dancers and live music is also going to be present but no details on which bands will be performing, nor does it give any indication of whether or not there will be a tent of some type for these activities.

Other events are still taking place, including their parade. Part of Carina’s email is copied here.

This year before the parade there will be the 4-Mile Run and a silent auction, games and vendors at Indian Run Elementary School (located on 161). Following the St. Patrick’s Day parade there will be an event called the Blarney Hop (American Cancer Society) at the Shoppes at River Ridge with inflatables, vendors, crafts, etc., which is located just east of the Scioto River on 161.

There will probably be more events as the date approaches. All of this information will be posted on our website at www.dublin.oh.us ( http://www.dublin.oh.us/ ) within a few weeks.

You can contact our Event Administrator, Buddy Caplinger if you have any further questions.

Disappointed but not surprised. Apparently, the city of Dublin has its hands full with the Irish Festival held in the summer. We had a grand time at Fado’ at Easton last year and are looking forward to visiting again. Anyone with a better idea, let us know.

Take the day to celebrate the Irish and the effect that they have had on our amazing country.

Just point your browser to http://www.last.fm to enjoy free music when ever you are sitting at your computer. There are basically two ways to listen to music using Last.fm. The first is to type in a musician that you like and it will start playing music from that musician and any other musicians that are comparable. The second way to find music is to use tags. Tags are simple search terms that describe the music. A note of warning, tags are not infallible. I noticed that Drop Kick Murphys are listed on Celtic Folk. By their name you can guess their style of music. You probably wont be sipping your tea while listening to their little ditties.

Tags

• http://www.last.fm/tag/irish
• http://www.last.fm/tag/irish folk
• http://www.last.fm/tag/celtic
• http://www.last.fm/tag/celtic folk

Some artists to give you a head start

• Christy Moore
• Mary Black
• Clannad
• The Chieftans
• The Irish Rovers
• The Dubliners
•  Cherish the Ladies
• Tommy Makem
• The Clancy Brothers
• Van Morrison
• Lorenna McKennitt

Some artists with a little more bump

• Great Big Sea (Not necessarily Irish)
• U2
• Drop Kick Murphys
• The Cranberries
• The Corrs
• Sinead O’Connor
• The Pogues
• Gaelic Storm
• Black 47
• Seven Nations
• The Prodigals

That should get you started. Once you start to use Last.fm, you will find more musicians you like by looking at the similar artists.

The city has stated that they want the city businesses to take more of an active part in participating. They are hoping that the businesses will have their own activities after the parade. I think this is all good in theory but I don’t believe any of the local businesses have the room for an event of any size. The city officials even pointed to Mary Kellys having entertainment this year as a sign of what they are hoping will take the place of the Blarney Bash. The problem is, that Mary Kellys probably only sits 200 hundred people (I am guessing) compared to the thousands that turned up for the Blarney Bash.

The Blarney Bash was special because it had become a city wide event. By city event, I am talking of Columbus and not just Dublin. Its proximity to the hotel offered other perks such as being able to indulge in the festivities and drink (if that’s your thing ) without worrying of driving around town or finding a taxi. The day had become an activity for the entire family, Irish Dancers, Wee folk activities, and music made it possible for the entire family to have something to do.

I for one am sad that this event has been canceled. It appears as though it has been canceled for good. The truly sad thing is that St Patrick’s day is about 3 weeks away and very few events are planned in Dublin other than the Parade. It is likely that our family will venture to another city to try to find a better family event. Please comment if you find other events worth checking out.

Last year I bought my Utilikilt at the Dublin Ohio Irish Festival and I couldn’t be happier. I’ve always wanted one but couldn’t quite get into the traditional tartan look. I also couldn’t bare the price. Utilikilts are still not cheap, ranging in price from about $100 – $500 but I find it a lot more useful than my suits that are hanging in my closet gathering dust.

So, make this year, the year to step up and be properly dressed for any occassion.

UTILIKILTS : American Made Utility Kilts for Everyday Wear

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