An estimated crowd of 30,000 people lined the route of the St Patrick's Day parade in Galway this afternoon.
At its heart, this is always a community event and it was striking to see thousands of children involved, from the city’s sporting and recreation organisations, many of them taking part for the first time.
Led by Olympic medal winner Fiona Murtagh and Frank Downes, who has raised around €3 million for the Irish Guide Dogs charity, the theme of the 2022 Galway parade was 'Síocháin’.
That was most visibly represented by a group of Ukrainians living in the city, who were given continual applause as they marched near the top of the parade.
The traditional route through the pedestrianised heart of the city was altered in 2019 due to road improvement works.
Organisers opted to maintain the circuit from University Road to Eyre Square again this year and it seems to have given people a better chance to observe the celebrations.
There were lots of smiles, lots of excitement and a general sense of delight that the usual events to mark today are back in full swing.
After starting in glorious spring sunshine at 11.30am, the last participants made their way to the reviewing platform just after 1pm and just before the skies darkened and more traditional Galway weather took hold.
Ukrainians lead the way in Carrick-On-Shannon
Meanwhile, in Carrick-On-Shannon, Co Leitrim, the parade was led out by newly arrived refugees from Ukraine who are now living in the town.
The local Chamber of Commerce asked them to take on the honour of leading the parade and a float sent out a strong anti-war message.
Thousands turn out for Sligo parade
In Sligo, thousands of people turned out with a renewed enthusiasm for the first post-pandemic St Patrick's Day parade in Sligo town this afternoon, kicking off a three-day St Patrick's festival.
A street carnival is set to take place tomorrow afternoon in the Stephen's Street car park.
Sports clubs, particularly at under-age, were well represented by hundreds of members eager to display their colours and skills.
Sligo Youth Theatre used the streets of the town as their stage and Sligo Tidy Towns promoted the idea of biodiversity.
A new entrant this year was Sligo's first Dragon Boat Club - Medb's Warriors - all survivors of cancer and their supporters, sending out a message of positivity.
Support for Ukraine at Castlebar parade
In Castlebar, positivity and inclusiveness were the focus of today's celebrations, with a bumper cast involved in the 2022 staging of the town's parade.
A number of giant inflatable comic book characters were brought along for the journey from McHale Road to The Mall.
Mayo and Ukranian flags fluttered in the afternoon breeze, several local bands provided music for spectators and a vintage vehicle display rounded off proceedings to the delight of the hundreds lining the route.
In Boyle, Co Roscommon, the parade was led by three nurses – Shiny Joy, Cathy Weston and Ann O'Dowd.
Parade organisers asked them to accept the honour of being parade Grand Marshalls because the town wanted to thank them and all healthcare workers for their work in leading them through the Covid-19 pandemic.
Reporting by Pat McGrath, Eileen Magnier
