| St. Patrick’s Day is right around the corner and, as usual, there will be lots of celebrations around the State. Here are a few to get you started:
Coral Gables - St. Patrick’s Day Festival sponsored by the South Florida Emerald Society, this annual event offers great Irish entertainment, food, beverages, Irish crafts and many events for the kids such as the giant slide and rock climbing. Noon to 6 p.m at Fred B. Hartnett Ponce Circle Park, 2800 Ponce de Leon Blvd., Coral Gables (305) 273-0118 or visit www.emeraldsocietysfl.com
Rockledge - The 1st Annual St Patrick’s Day Sunset Cruise - March 17th, 2008 hosted by DolphinGirl Cruises & Eco-Tours departing from the Conch Key Grille, 6533 S. Hwy US1, Rockledge at 6 pm - 8 pm. Grab a bucket of beer from the Conch Key, and hop aboard the St. Patty’s Day themed boat for a nature cruise along the lagoon, looking for dolphins, manatees, birds, & ending with a sunset! Finish off the perfect evening with dinner at Conch Key Grille - Corned Beef and Cabbage Dinner is $9.95! Cruise cost is $25/adult, $20/kids. Spaces are limited and reservations are required, so save your spot today! 321-591-3670 or www.dolphingirltours.com for more details.
Delray Beach - The 40th Annual St. Patrick's Day Parade - This year the instead of just wearing green, they plan to be green and to celebrate St. Patrick's Day in an environmentally friendly way. There will also be a free party before and after the Parade featuring live music, traditional Irish food and green beer. This year’s celebration will honor the founding father of the parade, Maury Powers. As legend would have it, forty years ago, and spending his first St. Patrick's Day in South Florida, Maury Powers lamented the lack of any local celebration of St. Patrick's Day. With just a little encouragement from his pals and a bit of Irish whiskey, he took up the challenge to have an impromptu parade right then and there. Maury left for a few minutes, only to return with his top hat and shillelagh and began a solitary stroll up the middle of Atlantic Avenue (much to the delight of his drinking buddies and chuckling passersby). When questioned as to just what he thought he was doing, parading up the middle of the Avenue, his proud response was, "I'm having a Parade!" Hundreds of thousands of people have attended the St. Patrick's Day Parade in Delray over the years, and it all started by one mans decision. NEW THIS YEAR - Pre and Post Party with live music, food, bar and of course green beer - 10:00 a.m. and 7:30 p.m. in the parking lot east of Old School Square, located in between Atlantic Ave. and Old School Square parking garage. The Parade runs from 1:00 - 2:30 pm atAtlantic Avenue East from Gleason Street to Swinton Ave., and the Green Parade Party runs from 2:30 - 7:30 pm at the NE 2nd Avenue Public Parking lot adjacent to Old School Square. For more info, call (561) 279-0907.
Jupiter - March 18 – The Indian River Pops Orchestra presents “Sounds Of Ireland.” Experience the foot tapping beats of traditional Irish music - showtime is 7:30 pm. All tickets are $25. Tickets are available at the Maltz Jupiter Theatre Box Office, online at http://www.jupitertheatre.orgor by phone 561-575-2223 or 800-445-1666. The theater is a member of the prestigious League of Resident Theatres. The Maltz Jupiter Theatre is located at 1001 E. Indiantown Road and State Road A1A in Jupiter.
Ybor City – St. Patrick’s Day Parade - March 15, 2008: The streets of Ybor City come alive when hundreds of floats masked with lights and loaded with leprechauns. Everybody’s Irish for Tampa’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade. The annual parade in Ybor City is presented by the Rough Riders and will fill the streets with crowds dressed in green clovers. Beads, beads, and more beads will hang from the necks of thousands of children and adults. Many food and trinket vendors will be there to satisfy the St. Patrick’s Day spirits. For more information, please visit the Rough Riders’ Web site: www.tampa-roughriders.org/
Naples - On Saturday, March 15, McCabe’s Irish Pub will host one of two St. Patrick’s Day celebrations. Held in conjunction with the city’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade, the event will offer guests prime seating for the annual parade, and a selection of the finest import ales, stouts, whiskeys and brews. Immediately following the parade, McCabe’s Irish Pub will kick off an entertaining line-up of Irish merriment of its own, with Celtic performers, a traditional Irish menu, and several outdoor bars available until 6 p.m. The festivities will continue on Monday, March 17 with an all day Irish celebration. Starting at 4 p.m., the Pub will offer guests favorites from the Emerald Isle, such as Irish stew and corned beef and cabbage. Additional menu items such as Reuben sandwiches, chicken pot pie, hamburgers, and hotdogs will be served. Several outdoor bars will allow patrons to enjoy their favorite drinks while listening to toe-tapping entertainment from Irish musicians in the Fifth Avenue Plaza until midnight. Guests can “Shamrock-n-Roll” to the tunes of a variety of Irish entertainers. Saturday, March 15, 2008 from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., Monday, March 17, 2008 from 4 p.m. to midnight. Location: McCabe’s Irish Pub at The Inn on Fifth, 699 Fifth Avenue South, Naples (888) 403-8778. |
