Wearing The Green Across The Globe

Hundreds of thousands of people in Ireland are raising a pint today as they honor St. Patrick, the patron saint of the island nation.

In the capital, Dublin, the annual parade is drawing a record crowd of about a half million. It's being hailed as the biggest St. Patrick's Day parade turnout in Irish history.

Dublin's big show features dozens of exhibits and 25 marching bands from overseas, including one from Japan. The day will end with a massive fireworks display.

And there are tens of thousands of visitors to Ireland this time of year. Transportation officials are reporting a 20 percent increase in tourists over last year.

Stars of screen and stage, including Hollywood siren Sharon Stone, were expected to be in Ireland for the ultimate celebration of all things Irish.

But along with thousands of foreign tourists and a contingent of American marching bands flown in for Dublin's parade Friday, they may wonder where all the Irish have gone.

The exodus has been led by the Irish government as ministers scatter around the globe. Prime Minister Bertie Ahern departed Monday for a visit that began in Australia and wound up in Washington.

Thousands of Irish punters are making the annual trek to the Cheltenham horse racing festival in England, a traditional magnet for Irish equestrian enthusiasts, which starts Tuesday.

Leaving aside matters of state or rival attractions, there is also a feeling that the Irish diaspora can out-party their native land.

"This year I'll be here and it'll be great but New York was the best ever. It really was the greatest craic [atmosphere]. You can see why people hop off for the weekend," said one Irish businesswoman.

Friday's national holiday celebrates Ireland's patron saint, who is associated with introducing Christianity to Ireland in the fifth century. He is also credited with driving snakes out of Ireland.

Traffic chaos is predicted for those staying in Ireland, with the country's creaking infrastructure put to the test by the flood of visitors. Hotels are booked to bursting.

Budget airline Ryanair has put on 25 extra flights this week to cope with demand for the celebrations and racing. It expects to carry more than 150,000 passengers between Ireland and Britain during the holiday period, while car ferry services across the Irish Sea are reportedly booked out.

Among the better known passengers scurrying to Dublin, red-haired British media personality Chris Evans will host his TFI Friday TV show from the capital.

Irish newspapers said Sharon Stone, star of Basic Instinct, had joined the queue of top stars looking for a bed in the luxury Clarence hotel run by Irish rock supergroup U2. It was unclear whether the sex symbol had managed to find a bed for the night.

And for those revellers staring at the stars from the gutter, Russian space station Mir will ake an appearance over Ireland during the festival.

Dublin's four-day festival - billed by the Irish Tourist Board as the time of year when everyone wants to be Irish - will have a distinctly foreign flavor. Some 3,000 Americans will perform in the parade, which will include 22 marching bands, a girls' high school band from Hiroshima and street theater performers from Barcelona.

Mindful of the 40 million plus Americans who claim Irish descent, the parade will be broadcast to 350 public television stations in the United States, the tourist authority said.

In New York, marchers experienced a wet St. Patrick's Day parade - without Cardinal John O'Connor. The 80-year-old cardinal has been in poor health since he underwent brain surgery in September. The parade had unusual political overtones as U.S. Senate candidates Rudy Giuliani and Hillary Rodham Clinton marched.

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