Burj al Arab and the Leaning Tower of Pisa are not turning green with envy - they are celebrating St. Patrick's Day on March 17 2012 - and Tourism Ireland is making sure everyone around the world notices.

By creating a worldwide phenomenon, the Irish tourism organization is generating a lot of interest in Ireland. The Sydney Opera House, the Manneken Pis in Brussels - which recently had its water shut off due to the freezing temperatuers in Brussels - the Niagara Falls, the London Eye and Table Mountain in South Africa, are among some of the well-known sites that will be lit up on March 17, along with Burj Al Arab in the UAE. The Leaning Tower of Pisa and Selfridges - the iconic Oxford Street store in London - will be added to the list of green monuments this year.

St. Patrick's Day is a religious and cultural holiday in Ireland in celebration of Ireland's patron saint and the arrival of Christianity in Ireland. It has now become a big cultural event which is celebrated all over the world. In the US East coast - particularly in Boston which was home to the most illustrious Irish family - the Kennedy family - St Patrick's Day is celebrated with great fervour. More than 20 US Presidents can trace their origin to Irieland. In fact both President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden have some Irish ancestry.