Away, But Not In a Manger - Post No. 15

Many months ago Janet proposed a pre-Christmas trip to one of our favourite places, London, to experience the British Christmas season: lights, decorations, markets, food, entertainment, all infused with English traditions. As a bonus we would escape a bit of Alberta winter weather and recover from the the frenetic activity of the sale of our home in California and the trip back to Spruce Grove. And a week-long trip would not cause us to miss all of the seasonal events with friends and family. Good, sound planning, you must agree.

So why London, given that there are notable Christmas markets in many places in Canada and Europe? Well, it's pretty easy to get to, the language and culture are different, but not too different, we have friends to visit and we get to spend a bit of time living a very different life than we have here. Here virtually any activity, social, cultural, sporting or food requires us to get into our car and drive somewhere. In London, a car is a monumental headache - traffic and parking are impossible obstacles. Instead, we walk, take public transport or, in pinch, wait 3 minutes for the nearest Uber to arrive.

A rented flat a short walk from a Tube station makes an ideal base that puts virtually every place we want to visit or experience within a 20 to 30 minute walk/bus ride/Tube journey. What do we do there?

A typical day would include a gallery or museum, a bite of lunch then a bit of exploring (a market, a bookstore, a sight), then a stop back at the flat to rest and recharge, then out to dinner or to a play, concert or Christmas light display. 6 days of that leaves you quite ready to get back to your regular life.

For us, the highlight of the week was our first ever trip to Royal Albert Hall, which must be one of the world's most renowned concert halls. The occasion was their annual "Carols At the Hall", an event so popular that we had to buy 2 single tickets in different sections months ahead. The program was presented by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, the Royal Choral Society and the National Youth Choir (with 8 military trumpeters thrown in for effect). All your Christmas favourites were performed, with the audience given song sheets to join in on 6 or 7 classics, including the 12 Days of Christmas. Sections of the Hall were given different parts to sing and the result was truly joyous. Just as amazing, enough to cause goosebumps, were the couple of times the two choruses joined together and were brought to full volume by the conductor. With close to 300 performers on the stage between the orchestra and choirs, in the ultimate acoustic environment, with songs you know and love, the effect was memorable. Their versions of two of my favourite carols, "Once in Royal David's City" and "Carol of the Bells" will be with me for a long time.

So it wasn't a week on a warm sandy beach at an all-inclusive resort, but for us something just as enjoyable: some galleries and museums, some old Christmas displays that were new to us, some Christmas markets, our favourite bookstores, food (French, Italian, Indian and even British) and friends. A great new way to kick off the 2025 Christmas season. I hope your Christmas is just as pleasant, but a bit more relaxed.