Saint Stephen’s Day -Walkers & Talkers-Train Ride,Walk,Dine & Wine in Antwerp

Saint Stephen’s Day - Walkers & Talkers-Train Ride, Walk, Dine & Wine in Antwerp - Meet in Antwerp Railway Station at 12.30pm Thursday 26th December, 2025.

Back during Covid in 2020, on 26 December we are reactivated our outdoor event, Walkers & Talkers activity and started a famous Irish Wren Day Tradition of getting people to meet-up.

This year we meet at Antwerp Central Railway Station, one of the most beautiful stations in the world.

For those who are not regular users of trains , there is a new pricing system that requires a 12 monthly Discount card. The special annual discount offer expires soon.
Please check out:
Train+ makes the train even more advantageous | SNCB-NMBS

We leave railway station at 12.30 and proceed to have a coffee at a local café where late comers can join us.

A range of activities are being planned with opt in and opt out options.

Our activities on the day subject to weather conditions on the day finishing up- with a meal in a restaurant with menu options to suit all tastes and budgets. If you have any suggestions to help plan our programme, please contact us.

More precise information will be posted between now and the date of the outing .

Out Door recreation plays an important role in supporting the the physical and mental wellbeing of everyone. People are encouraged to enjoy the outdoors.

Saint Stephens Day and the wren!
The Wren, sometimes pronounced wran, takes place every year on 26th December, St. Stephen’s Day. The Wren boys (or girls!) dress up in old clothes and paint faces. In some parts of the Ireland , they also wear straw hats. They travel from house to house singing, dancing and playing music for the household. In rural areas, it will usually be neighbors that call on the wren often collecting money for a local charity.
It’s a well-maintained tradition in certain parts of Ireland , particularly county of Kerry. The town of Dingle holds the best known Wren with a parade through the town every Christmas. Every year the town of Listowel they have an All Ireland wren boys competition where a stage is erected in the main square of the town and each wren boy group performs for the crowd. It’s a great night with all the wren boys parading through the town playing music and holding pitchforks with lighting turf. It sounds a bit crazy but it’s brilliant!

The history of the Wren predates Christmas, its origins are in Irish mythology where birds held great prominence. They were believed to be a link between this world and the next. The wren is said to have betrayed Irish soldiers fighting Norsemen by beating their wings on their shields. The poor wren is also blamed for betraying St. Stephen the first Christian martyr. This is probably why the wren was once hunted on this day. In former times it was hunted and then nailed to a pole at the head of the procession. Thankfully some traditions have died out but you can still hear people saying this poem on the 26th December.

The wren the wren the kings of all birds,
On St. Stephen’s Day it was caught in the furze
Up with the kettle and down with the pan
Give me a penny to bury the wren.

See more about how the Wren is celebrate in Ireland in normal times.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lTii6hXbBio
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4WvhPtiarW4

Nollaig Shona Duit – Irish for Happy Christmas (pronounced Null-ig hun na dit).