Today marks the start of my 2014’s Christmas Holiday. Ranked second after the 15-day long Chinese New Year, Christmas is my favourite time of the year. I have always thought birthdays too individualistic, Valentine’s a pleasant formality, NYE a good reason to finish bottle of gin (Tonic, who?)…unlike Christmas and Chinese new year where people all around me anticipate, prepare and engage themselves fully in the uproarious festivity. Celebrations are done in grander scale and so, the holidays are a lot more enjoyable.
This year, I’ve decided to share my Christmas holiday on this little beautiful and snowing blog. The chain of articles will be entitled creatively… “The Christmas Diary”. Since I’ll be spending my holiday in France, I figure they will be good Travel articles doubled as a means to connect with my family and good friends, who are invariably regular patrons of AlexandraLuella.
The plan this year is to leave London for Paris, spend Christmas in Languedoc with Quentin’s grandparents, head to Bordeaux for our anniversary/New Year, and then return to home in Paris. It’s going to take more than half a month and you bet who’s the most excited.
We will be departing tomorrow and thus, stop work today to do the last leg of christmas shopping, finalise our packing, and in between the chores, see H and catch up with K. After being in UK for more than 3 years, this is the first time I’ve ever had the chance to really feel the gist of Christmas in London.
The festive spirit here is in full bloom. Central London has donned her glistering Christmas dress embellished with pearls of light and aggrandised by mirthful patterns like peacock feather in Bond Street and antlers in Regent Street. It’s not a fun thing juggling five shopping bags and trying to find a path among throngs of overly jolly shoppers moving to and from the opposite direction. But the lights and distracting decorations in shop windows really do their parts to help moderate the tension. I am definitely more forgiving than usual, evidenced when faced with the hysterical crowd in front of Hamleys. I know, giving myself a pat on the back right now.
And god bless department stores, for providing everything we need under one roof – minced pies, Christmas cakes, cards, and a too-cute-to-ignore Moschino’s Coke Cup and McDonald’s Bag. I didn’t get the latter of course. But it’s always good to sing out loud and let Santa know.
See you tomorrow!
With love x
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