This is Dublin on St. Patrick’s Day. Very few Irish people would ever brave Temple Bar, perhaps ever but definitely on St. Patrick’s Weekend. The holiday itself means very little, it really exists because of the diaspora all around the world longing for home or a connection to the past and in that context it carries a lot of meaning. The parades away from Ireland focus on Irish workers and Irish culture as it manifests in relation to its adopted country. St. Patrick’s Day as we know it, started in America. It wasn’t even a public holiday when I was a kid. The Parade now is a pageant, largely aimed at tourism. This is what it looks like when St. Patrick’s Day boomerangs back to its supposed home. I think the only Irish person in these photos is the powerless Cool Hand Jesus.