Those who are Irish, those who wish they were Irish and people who normally don’t have anything to do with Ireland, will be out celebrating St. Patrick’s Day today.   In Ireland, the Archbishop of Dublin has blessed sprigs of shamrock in the traditional start to Ireland’s national holiday and many thousands are expected to line the route for the St. Patrick’s Day parade in the Irish capital.  It’s the culmination of a four-day festival featuring music and dance performances, cultural tours, street arcades and of course, pub crawls.

In excess of 5,000,000 Canadians trace their ancestry to the Emerald Isle., more than 2,000,000 of those live in Ontario.   Famous Canadians who claim Irish ancestry include former Primer Minister Brian Mulroney, actress Katherine O’Hara and Father of Confederation Thomas D’Arcy McGee .