St. Patrick's Day has a way of distinguishing itself from other religious holidays. Neither Easter nor Hanukkah nor Ramadan has the revelry to match March 17. Of course, the day has become more of a secular event than a sacred one -- a time when everyone is Irish, otherwise embarrassing green clothes come into fashion and all the familiar icons of the day make their annual appearances: leprechauns, shamrocks and rainbows with pots of gold.
For local party-goers, Shawn McClelland and the folks at Funky Chicken Productions have added go-go girls and fire spinning to that list. Starting tomorrow night at 9:30pm, the dance floor at 2nd Floor will be transformed into a venue for live bands, a VJ showcase and DJs spinning for dancers past sunrise.
Bilingual foreign ska band The Wall Tigers will get the evening going, followed by Air Dolphin (海豚), who have shifted from mainstream rock to a synthesis of DJs and live music. Headlining the evening, Sticky Rice (糯米糰) will shake the house with a funk all too rarely heard in Taiwan.
Following the bands, DJs Dark, Joe Ho, K Fancy and others will maintain the groove on two separate dance floors. Accompanying them above the main floor will be a series of VJs lighting up four screens.
"We're calling it `The Carnival,'" McClelland said. Funky Chicken, who have developed a reputation for their party-planning savoir faire, have thrown in elements of another holiday with Catholic roots, Mardi Gras -- though, to be sure, this is no church-sanctioned event.
"We wanted to give folks something other than the regular `come in, throw your money down and go home' night out," McClelland said. "There'll be a trapeze artist, fire spinners, shooter girls, and Irish bungee jumping."
Irish bungee jumping?
"One end of the bungee cord is tied around your waist, the other end to the wall," McClelland explained. "There's a beer on the opposite side of the room for incentive."
Saint who?
Sounds fun, but what does any of this have to do with a religious holiday? Pressed to provide an answer, most Taipei denizens can't tell you much about the man or what he did -- at least not much that's correct.
"He played a flute and drove all the snakes out of Ireland," said Lin Chie-san (
GRAPHICS COURTESY OF FUNKY CHICKEN PRODUCTIONS
Others provide what, at face value, are perfectly logical answers. "That's when everything is green. It's like environmental protection day," said another university student too embarrassed to give her name.
Seven-year-old Rebecca Chen was the first in her English bushiban class with an answer during a recent lesson on the holiday. "Him!" she said, pointing to a poster of a leprechaun adorning her classroom wall.
In truth -- or at least what's known of it -- Ireland's patron saint was neither a leprechaun nor even Irish, but a Welshman named Maewyn born sometime around 385AD. Sold into slavery in Ireland by a group of brutish Celts who pillaged his village, he escaped six years later and made his way to England and then France. There, having grown closer to God during his captivity, he began studying at a monastery and took the Christian name Patrick.
Following 12 years of study, Patrick asked his superiors' permission to return to Ireland so that he might dedicate himself to converting the island's pagans and Druids to Christianity. One rejection and two years later, his wish was granted and he was appointed second bishop of Ireland.
In Ireland, Patrick proved an adept hand at converting locals, much to the chagrin of the Celtic Druids, who jailed him several times. Each time he would escape and relay his jail-breaking tale to punters in pubs down the road, winning more converts over pints of mead.
Patrick established monasteries, schools and churches across the Irish countryside before dying -- some say in a pub -- on March 17, 461 AD.
A great deal of folklore surrounds the man, though much of it was likely concocted in the same pubs where he won converts. Some believe he drove all the snakes out of Ireland -- corroborating a couple of Taiwanese theories -- despite the fact that snakes have never inhabited the island. What remains undisputed is that Patrick's tradition of barroom evangelism continues every March 17, albeit without much evangelizing.
None the wiser
That tradition will no doubt be carried on in bars across Taiwan this weekend, though many of Taiwan's bar owners will be none the wiser. Inquiries to several watering holes regarding St Paddy's Day specials drew silent responses.
"Will you have green beer?"
"Of course not. Regular beer."
A couple of venues islandwide have caught a case of Irish fever and punters looking for a less rowdy evening than the one being promised at 2nd Floor have at least a couple options.
Starting today, green suds will flow at Sean's Irish Pub, located in Taipei's Westin Hotel. Live band Powerhouse will play at 10pm each night. They hail from London, which is no doubt close enough to Ireland for Taipei's standards.
Napoli in Taichung will sell green beer from a special outlet in Tiger City mall starting at 2pm tomorrow and Irish band Duff Paddy will take the stage at the club at 10pm.
Check listings on page 9 for information on other St Patrick's Day events in Taiwan's hotels, clubs and pubs.
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