Christmas Light All Around: Breakfast with Santa in happy Harrow, plus Intu nationwide and London's Oxford Street

Problem
What's new? What am I missing?

Answers
All over England, and indeed the world, log into your nearby Shopping Centres to find out about the lights, activities and novelties and offers.

Dickens talked about the spirit of Christmas past. Here's my glimpse of the past lights.

Lights and train in 2016 at Intu. Photo by Angela Lansbury. Copyright.

Intu and Watford and More
Intu at Watford is a centre I know, which has lovely white lights, but the good news is Intu also has malls all over the UK.

Harrow
Harrow Harrow sent me an email and I discovered I can log into the St George's Centre which has its own website.

St George's has the handsome apprentice star turning on the lights. New this year (new for me) is breakfast with Santa. Another Santa opportunity elsewhere in a Santa bubble is an opportunity for a selfie with Santa and a competition.

If you don't want to spend any money, at least enjoy the new loos which are prettily painted with clouds and balloons.

In Harrow, which part is St George's and which is St Anne's? That always used to puzzle me. Then one day I looked up inside St George's and realised they had pictures of St George around the top.

From Harrow, it's quick and easy to get the train into London and see the London lights.

Oxford Street. 2017 lights. Photo by Trevor Sharot. Copyright.

https://www.timeout.com/london/things-to-do/christmas-lights-in-london

Handy Websites
intu, Watford
https://intu.co.uk/watford/event-archive/intu-watford-christmas-light-switch-on-event

St George's, Harrow
https://www.stgeorgesshopping.co.uk

Switch on dates
http://www.harrow.gov.uk/news/article/423/tis_the_season_for…_christmas_lights

London
https://www.visitlondon.com/tag/christmas-lights

http://www.regentstreetonline.com/events/the-spirit-of-christmas-by-regent-street-–-17th-november-2016



Author
Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer, author and speaker.

Key to Carnaby Street in London

Photograph by Angela Lansbury.

I spotted this colourful little map on the wall as we rushed along the street.Very handy when you have just arrived to get your bearings. Later, you see where you are in relation to main roads to find your way out of the maze.

Only later when I got home and loaded up my photo did I realise how useful it is. First, if you are looking for restaurants. Second if you are looking for shops. Finally if you need an ATM machine.

Another map will come up on your phone if you go to the Carnaby website. You will be able to see Oxford Circus station, Regent street running South with the landmark Hamlets toy store. Parallel to Regent street are Kingly Street and parallel to that is Carnaby street. Linking the two across the topic Ganton street, where we found Dehesa taps restaurant (described in a recent previous post).
https://www.carnaby.co.uk/store/

Angela Lansbury, travel writer and photographer.

London lights: photos courtesy of Trevor Sharot - Regent Street

Regent Street, London, England. By Oxford Circus station, which has several entrances and exits. You can recognise Regent Street because it curves.

These circular lights are screens with constantly changing advertisements. I have several other posts on lights. Photos by myself and others.

Angela Lansbury travel writer and photographer. Author and speaker.

London is cold New Year's Eve - time for mulled wine - and TV from Australia

London is cold coming up to New Year's Eve. I took this sign outside Bar None in Upper Regent street earlier this month. £3.95 for mulled wine, with 50p of your money donated to Save the Children.

A public fireworks display is in the centre of London at midnight. Even if you are nowhere near the main display, or others, you are likely to see fireworks overhead as you walk or drive home, or especially from an upstairs bar or restaurant or hotel room. Take warm clothes and keep them handy even if you are indoors in case somebody suddenly decides let's go outside, let's go on the patio, in the garden, on the roof terrace, whatever. 

The entrances to the underground railway stations will be very crowded just after midnight as everybody decides to go home - or go on to another party. When I was there last year it took about ten to fifteen minutes just to get into the station. The street had a huge queue marshalled by tape barriers with police with walkie talkies direction the crowds. So add that to your travelling time. 

Seeing the huge stationery or slow-moving lines of people, we went back to the bar -restaurant where we had had dinner and drinks earlier, and waited another 15 minutes. We considered walking to another station but went back to the first one. 

On the internet you can already see the celebrations worldwide, starting in Australia and New Zealand, then Asia, then Europe, then UK and Scotland, finally west coat USA then West coast USA.

What do you need to celebrate at home whilst watching the world as an armchair traveller? Champagne - great deals from supermarkets such as Lidl and Aldi. Party poppers. 

Fun candles from Poundland shop.

www.poundland.co.uk

"Poundland is the largest single price value retailer in the UK, with over 500 stores offering a great range at Amazing Value!"

What can you eat with your champagne? Panettone - mine's from Fellini in Hatch End. Fellini and the other Italian restaurants will be having parties tonight. How do you remember the spelling of Fellini and Penettone? Fellini - double ll like legs eleven (as they call in UK Bingo halls). Panettone - think Pa-net-tone. Or Pa-nett-one. Pa-netto-ne. Pane-TT-one.

Or keep looking at the word and spell it aloud three times. There are two letters N, two letter E, two letters N, but the N is at both ends separated by the double TT. Pa-NE-TT-0-NE.

Happy New Year!