The Uganda Breweries offices that were lit green for St. Patricks Day. Photo/ Isaac Ssejjombwe
Before 2020, St Patrick’s Day was celebrated with an outpour of Irish beer and all but we have since lost that luxury to party hard
On Friday, the headquarters of Uganda Breweries Ltd in Luzira, a Kampala suburb, were lit in neon green colours. The celebration? St. Patrick’s Day. This was in solidarity with Ireland’s Global Greening Initiative that has seen more than 500 iconic buildings and sites across the world lit green over the years.
Famous sites across the world including, Madison Square Garden in the US, London Eye, Burj al Arab in UAE, Niagara Falls in Canada, the ‘Welcome’ sign in Las Vegas, the Chain Bridge in Budapest, Hungary and Christ the Redeemer statue in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil among others have previously been illuminated in green to celebrate the annual day.
With Covid-19 restriction on events, this was perhaps the best way to pay tribute to Irish heritage as the day will not be celebrated across the world.
Before the pandemic, elaborate parades were the heartbeat of the St. Patrick’s celebrations all over the world. Here in Uganda, the day is usually celebrated by the Irish embassy in conjunction with UBL and Guinness.
Famous landmarks such as the iconic Jinja Bridge and the equator have been previously lit up in green fluorescent lights as part of the celebrations to mark the day.
St. Patrick’s Day is officially observed on March 17 each year. Initially a day to honour patron St.
Patrick of Ireland, the holiday has over time evolved into a fun and festive celebration of Irish culture associated to good luck and all things green are usually celebrated on that day.
issejjombwe@ug.nationmedia.com