Christmas in London

The sights and sounds of Christmas in London...I've been ill recently, which has meant a lot of downtime, which enables me to pause and really think about things and see the things around me. So, here are my Christmas observations of my new home...

Rain...lots of rain and wind. I thought the wind was an anomaly, but have been told it's pretty typical for this time of year. It's not too cold, certainly not below freezing or even close to that, but the wind and the rain make it chilly and not very festive!

Lights...lots of public light displays, in the big shopping areas, like Oxford Street and Regent Street and on the High Streets in all the communities. It gets dark early here, about 4:30 pm, so the lights are nice on the way home from work. Lots of public buildings have lights as well, and Buckingham Palace (Londoners call it Bucks House) is lit up for the first time this year. I haven't gone to see it yet, but I plan to before I leave. I have seen the Tower of London lit up, and Tower Bridge, and they are beautiful. Which brings me to my next topic..

Ice Skating Rinks...they're the latest thing - building ice rinks at famous historic sites and parks around the city. Tower of London, Hampton Court Palace, Somerset House, Hampstead Heath, Kew Gardens - these are just some of the places that have temporary outdoor ice rinks. Of course, it's not cold enough to do it naturally, like in Canada, so they lay down the surface and artificially freeze it and keep it frozen for most of December. Of course, this entails a cost, and that is passed on to the poor hapless skaters, who have to pay £10 (CAD $23) for an hour on the ice. Plus rent skates. The funny thing is that when Bucks House turned on their lights, the "greenies" have them a lot of grief over the amount of power they were using, however I'm sure just one of the powerplants that keeps the ice frozen uses far more power than the lights at Bucks House. People pick their battles, I suppose, usually for less altruistic reasons than one might think.

Traditional Things....mmmm traditional Christmas food is everywhere here. Mince pies and Christmas pudding are the big things - too bad I'm not a fan of either! Oranges play a big part, as does chocolate (some things are the same everywhere!). Christmas crackers are a must as well. They're very popular, and can be anything from very cheap to very expensive ($400 each in one store!) Of course, the expensive ones have nicer treats in them!

Christmas Trees....as you would expect, there are large Christmas trees in every major and minor square and shopping district. There is a huge one in Trafalgar Square, which is a gift from the Norweigan government every year in appreciation for England's help during the war. Apparently this tree is chosen early on in the year and cosseted and looked after all year until it is cut down and carefully transported to London. I haven't seen it yet, but apparently it is very large with lots of lights, but no other decorations. That also seems to be a theme - very little decoration on most of the public trees. They don't seem to cover their trees in decorations and tinsel, but follow the "less is more" theory. I don't actually know how I feel about that yet!

Christmas Concerts....they're everywhere - every church has several, Royal Albert Hall rings with Christmas carols, hymns, classical sacred music, the Messiah, etc. for the whole month of December, as does the Royal Festival Hall, down by the Thames. I haven't been to any yet, but I plan to go to a few before I leave. My church is having one next Sunday, and the Hogarth Singers one is Saturday (I'm not in the choir for it, but I might go to the concert anyway). I also want to hit a couple of the ones at the Royal Albert Hall, especially the Messiah, if I can.

Aside from the rain and wind, I'm loving Christmas in London. It's so different in many ways, but basically very similar. That said, I am definitely looking forward to Christmas in Canada!!