London Hosts First Ever St. Patrick's Day Parade
CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: From the country where it all began, about 3,000 tons of fireworks lit up the sky over Dublin's river Liffey last night, part of the celebration drawing an estimated half- a-million people. And Londoners</s>GAVIN MORRIS, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): Emerald England, a St. Patrick's day celebration to rival Dublin or New York. With a jig and more than a sprig of shamrock, Ireland invaded Britain, if only for a day.</s>UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Most English people have quite a little Irish in them somewhere too.</s>MORRIS: The Irish are London's largest ethnic group, and thousands of them turned out, their British cousins cheering them on. But it's the first time the two nations have shared a day quite like this. Not that long ago, the neighbors were divided by conflict. The Irish ambassador to Britain says the locals have now come around.</s>DAITHI O'CEALLAIGH, IRISH AMBASSADOR TO BRITAIN: They think a great deal more of us now than they might have done 20 years ago. And I should also say to you than we think a great deal more of them than we did 20 years ago.</s>MORRIS: With both countries embarking on a political path toward peace, in divided Northern Ireland, everything changed. (on camera): Twenty, 10, even five years ago, an Irish celebration of this scale in London would have been unthinkable. But the Northern Ireland peace process has not only quelled the conflict, it has created an unprecedented bond between Britain and Ireland. (voice-over): In Dublin, too, sentiment is shifting.</s>UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: English people are always very welcome here. And we get on very, very well with them. But I think relations have improved somewhat, particularly over the last year.</s>UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I get on very well with English people, and I find sometimes that they have more respect for the Irish than the Irish do necessarily for the English.</s>MORRIS: Hard-fought Irish prosperity and confidence also building a bridge.</s>FINTAN O'TOOLE, "IRISH TIMES": That sort of chip on the shoulder that used to be there is gone. People don't feel the same sort of resentment. And maybe they're able to look at each other much more as European neighbors rather than as the old relationship of big brother, little brother.</s>MORRIS: That this has never happened before is surprising, but both nations saying with a little Irish luck, it always will from here on. Gavin Morris, CNN, London.