Marking St Patrick’s Day in Slovakia

SLOVAKIA will celebrate the patron saint of Ireland, Saint Patrick, with a host of events. This year a building in Slovakia will participate in a major global Greening Initiative for the first time, while Slovaks will get the chance to taste Irish cuisine, listen to Irish music and read Irish literature.

Bratislava’s historic Radisson Blu Carlton Hotel will celebrate St Patrick’s Day in style when its façade is illuminated in green. The façade will go green from dusk until dawn on the eve of St Patrick’s Day, March 16, and again from dusk until dawn on March 17.

“I am delighted that the historic Carlton Hotel in Bratislava is joining a long list of landmark sites worldwide [which are] going green as part of the St Patrick’s Day celebrations,” said Irish Ambassador Anne-Marie Callan, as cited in the press release.

The Carlton will also serve Irish food in the Mirror Bar on March 17 and play Irish music throughout the day. Moreover, it will offer half-price parking to anyone wearing green in the Carlton garage on St Patrick’s Day. Crowne Plaza will feature Irish food for its brunch on March 16 and the Kempinski will hold a St Patrick’s-themed brunch on March 23, featuring Irish music in the restaurant.

Košice will join in the celebration, too. The Public Library of Ján Bocatius will promote works by Irish writers like Samuel Beckett, James Joyce, Bram Stoker, Oscar Wild and William Butler Yeats. On March 17 the library will decorate its premises on Hviezdoslavova Street with shamrocks containing passages of famous Irish writers to draw readers’ attention to their work.

At 18:00 the Cailleach band will play traditional Irish folk songs while a video presentation of photos taken by readers who have visited Ireland will offer a visual representation of the country.
Irish coffee will also be served at this free event, while organisers are calling on attendees to come dressed in green.