Well, no snow, and it wasn't that cold. Which was better for festive perusing! But we did go to Hyde Park's Winter Wonderland. I was there last year and loved it, and was bound to go back. And tonight, we did. Get off the Tube at Hyde Park Corner and it isn't too hard to find - just follow the twinkly lights and the streaming hordes.
From that station, you come in at the Angels Market - the largest Christmas market I've been at in London.
Two avenues of wooden stalls, which line each side of the path (with some extra at the edges) make for an irresistible shopping experience. There are ornaments of wood, glass, and crystal, there are woolly and furry garments, there is jewellery. Don't spend all your money at once - you could easily spend an hour just checking what stalls are available and you might find better further in. There are food stalls by the dozen - stalls with gift food - jams, cheeses - and places you can eat.
Ultimately, I had a burger (which wasn't great, but filled a spot) and finished off with a much better chosen skewer of four large, chocolate-coated marshmallows I got at a sweet stall further along, when I'd finished the burger. Look out for them - I haven't a clue where they were, but they are worth looking for. Helen had a Belgian waffle, drenched in chocolate sauce. I do believe that went down well too!
We sat to eat in the shadow of one of those horrendous rides where people pay to be catapulted into the air and hurled in a circle. Yes, Winter Wonderland also incorporates a funfair!
So the sound of screaming accompanied our dinner. Well, but it is interesting to be sitting right under one of those things.
Not everything was Christmassy..
There's an ice rink, a Bavarian village, bars (including one that revolves!), a full-blown restaurant.. there are grown-up, scary rides, and rides for littler people. And when you're not in earshot of live rock music, you can hear Christmas tunes. There really is something for everyone.. and not that I went this year (yet), but let me recommend Zippo's Circus, with the Cirque Berserk in the evenings, for adults only. Most rides are paid for with tokens, which you can buy from the token stands dotted around the venue. Oh, and there are cash machines too.
And I was well worn out by the time we left, purchases in hand. Tomorrow night should be a much more sedate affair - The Dead Wait, a play at the Park Theatre, Finsbury Park. And then it's back to Ireland for the weekend.. and then it'll be December. Roll on Christmas!
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