After working on our article, I knew that my past St. Patty’s Day experiences may pale in comparison to the fun that people in other cities were having on the feast day of Ireland’s patron saint. It was my mission to experience a St. Patrick’s Day as it should be, and thanks to some scheduling shifts, I was able to pay my old college roommate a visit in her new city (and one of the coolest places to celebrate the day): Chicago.

Southwest Airlines was having some fabulous fare sales (which are still going on, by the way), and I was able to snag tickets from San Jose, Calif., to Chicago’s Midway Airport for around $90 each way! Not to mention, I purchased the tickets a mere two weeks before travel during one of the city’s most popular celebrations. I knew the luck of the Irish was on my side.

Unfortunately, due to jet lag, poor planning in regards to Chicago’s public transportation system and lazy, slow-moving boyfriends, we weren’t able to make it to the Chicago River dying ceremony, which I was really hoping to attend. Although it was not quite as neon as I had expected, it sure is green!

The Saturday before St. Patrick’s Day is when the city’s largest celebrations (including the river dying and parade) take place. At noon, 400,000 revelers lined the half-mile long parade route on Columbus Avenue to catch a glimpse of lasses dancing and bagpipes playing.

With that many people in the downtown area, things got majorly crowded, especially in the Loop where everyone went to enjoy a pint and some corned beef in one of the zillions of Irish pubs that dot the streets. I caught this shot on my way to catch the parade at Columbus Avenue and Monroe, the end of the parade route.

Thanks to some good luck, we were able to settle down into a great hole-in-the-wall pub. For a while was very crowded, but after the surge of people had left, I was able to enjoy my Smithwick’s in peace.

On Sunday, locals have their own celebration, known as the South Side Irish St. Patrick’s Day Parade. Held in the South Side of Chicago, this is the more localized version of St. Patty’s Day in the city. After the Southtown Parade moved to downtown in 1960 and became what’s known today as the main parade, some South Siders wanted their St. Patrick’s Day celebration back. In 1981, they finally got their wish, and the South Side parade rolls down Western Avenue. Unfortunately, I wasn’t able to make it to the South Side parade, thanks to overexertion (or overconsumption) the day before. Guess that means I’ll just have to go back to Chicago and check it out next year!