St. Patrick's Day in Chicago - Festivals Around the World, Ep. 3

It's almost like Mardi Gras meets Halloween, where people just come up with these crazy costumes. I think it's just such a unique experience, and it's fun. I'm Lizzy Thay. I am a level four Google Local Guide here in Chicago. St. Patrick's Day in Chicago is like no other. People, one day a year, want to be Irish at St. Patrick's Day, but if you're not Irish, music and dance is very important, too, because those are really good ways to latch on. I'm mostly Irish, and the Irish pride, you really feel that it's definitely woven all throughout the city. The architecture is amazing. There are pubs everywhere. I just get inspired walking down the street. People are friendly here. They're driven. I just absolutely love it. I really thrive on this energy here. I live just a few blocks from the river, and to be able to just walk down to the river dying, where people are flying from all over for this, it's not something you get to see every day. People are just getting out here, but there's going to be thousands of people. Chicago prides itself on this tradition. It's been going on for more than a half a century. Plumbers Union are the ones who dye the river green. We're a middle America. We're built on a working class, and so it's a good fit. It's just different, and it's an experience. It makes for great photos. It's kind of cool. You can see the orange dye. That secret formula from the Plumbers Union. When people come to a new place, and they bring their traditions with them, that tradition evolves over time, and people kind of make it their own. And when you have such interesting ways to celebrate, people come back and want to be a part of that. My fingers are freezing now, so we're going to warm up and then get ready to go to the parade. People come from all over the place. People travel just for this occasion. We have people from Romania right next to me. Hey, guys. Irish dancers, bagpipes. Politicians will be out here. It's just exciting. You see everybody in their costumes, green tuxedos, and awesome looking dogs. It is quite the spectacle. People would go wild for a little green necklace. People who are Irish come out and celebrate, but really everybody is Irish on St. Patrick's Day. I'm a visual person, so being able to capture a photo and share that way I think is really helpful when people are trying to get a sense of a place. I have people reaching out to me from other parts of the US and all over the world, and it's really neat being able to connect with people and get them excited about a place that I think is really great. People from Chicago have a lot of pride about being from here. When I'm on the way home from the airport and the skyline's all lit up, I get chills. It never gets old. I appreciate it every single time.