Visit Montserrat for St. Patrick's day Celebrations

MONTSERRAT’S ST.PATRICKS WEEK ACTIVITIES
The “other” Emerald Isle celebrates St. Patrick’s Day

Montserrat, West Indies – January 20, 2006 – The island of Montserrat is the only place in the world, besides Ireland, that recognizes St. Patrick’s Day as a national holiday. This lush, tropical island in the Caribbean with a rich Irish heritage celebrates with an annual festival from March 11 – 18, 2006.

To commemorate the slave uprising that took place on the predominantly Irish island on St. Patrick’s Day in 1768, Montserratians celebrate the holiday with much enthusiasm and activities that include feasts, parades, concerts, and outdoor theater productions. Declared a national holiday in 1985, the bulk of the festivities took place in the village of St. Patrick’s in the southern region of the island but due to the eruption of the Soufrière Hills Volcano in 1995, that area has been declared uninhabitable and celebrations are now held in the northern part of the island. During the weeklong festival, a slave village will be erected in Festival Village in Little Bay that will include individually decorated slave huts and a slave feast where indigenous foods, such as goat water, stewed yard fowl, and bush tea, can be sampled. Other activities include the dancing of the masqueraders, masked mummers dressed in colorful costumes, a kite festival, a national exhibit with local art and crafts, junior calypso competition, St. Patrick’s Day Barbeque, and an annual church service. In addition to selling Guinness, local bars celebrate in a more mainstream way by decorating bars in green and shamrocks.

Montserrat is the only island in the entire Caribbean chain that is of noticeable Irish heritage. In the 17th century, the island was a haven for Irish Catholics who had served out their time as indentured servants in the British West Indian islands. Today, there’s a touch of Ireland in its looks, sounds and even tastes. The harp and the female figure on the island's flag and official seal are derived from the Irish heraldy. The local speech is softly laced with Irish brogue and the Irish legacy is evident in surnames and folklore. Even the national dish, Goat Water, a stew made of kid or mutton and spiced with cloves and rum, is of Irish origin.

The full list of activities for 2006 St Patrick's Week Celebrations is as follows and is also available on http://www.visitmontserrat.com/

2006 St. Patrick's Week of Activities

Sat March 11
Freedon Hike organised by the National Trust (6:00 am)
Kite Festival at Gov't Headquarters (3:00 pm)
Call in Cadio Programme on Montserrat's Heritage (ZJB Radio)

Sun March 12th
Special Church Service (RC Church in Salem, 9:00 am)
Heroes of St Patrick's Day (ZJB Radio, 2:30 pm)
Creative Expressions (Brades Arts & Ed. Centre, 5:00 pm)

Mon March 13
National Exhibitions (March 13-16th) - M'rat Arts & Craft Association (MACA, Brades, All Day) - Montserrat National Trust (MNT, All Day) - Public Library (Brades, All Day)
Annual St. Patrick's Day Lecture (UWI Centre, 7:30pm)

Tue March 14
"De Long Journey" Concert (Venue TBC, 8:00 pm)

Wed March 15 Oldie Goldie Dance Time (Lookout Comm Centre, 6:00pm)
St Patrick's Day Bar B Que (Vue Pointe Hotel, 7:00 pm)

Thu March 16
Carrs Bay Plantation Archeological Site Open House Junior Calypso Competition (Police HQ Car Park, 7:00 pm)

Fri March 17
St Patrick's Day Holiday Freedom Walk and Run (Cudjoe Head Corner, 6:00 am)
Community Fun Sports & Breakfast (Salem Park, 7:15 am)
"Mout' Open - Tory Jump Out" Radio Programme (ZJB Radio)
Heritage Day - Slave Village & Feast (Festival Village, 2:00 pm)
Ole-Time Bingo (Festival Village, 6:00 pm)

Sat March 18
Carrs Bay Plantation Archeological Site Open House (7:00 am)
Annual St Patrick's Day Dinner (Vue Pointe Hotel, 7:00 pm)