I was delighted to find 'Christmas Lane' on the 9th floor of Macy*s - or, to me, Christmas Heaven. A goodly portion of the floor was given over to Christmas trees and boxes of baubles and tree toys and everything sparkly and bright. I spent an age shopping for special ornaments for my tree - they had to be *just* right, and, of course, the fuschia-coloured shopping basket helped. I even got a little gingerbread house to remind me of Parc Guell. Then spent ages waiting for the ornaments to be wrapped safely and put in little Macy*s boxes. I got New York themed ornaments from the shop on the top of the Empire State Building, the Rockefeller shop and the Radio City Music Hall (but more of that later).
The Christmas lights were up on 5th Avenue but not, I think, switched on yet. They were, of course, fully on downtown on Mott Street (one of the boundary streets between Chinatown and Little Italy) as witnessed in this photo. The evidence is clear - Christmas is definitely alive and kicking on that street.More Christmas sights at the ice rinks we passed, in Bryant Park, the Rockefeller Centre and, of course, Central Park. No doubt all will be livened up the closer we get to Christmas, with trees and lights and the odd choir doing a set every now and then. I'm not one to go skating but I'm very happy to watch the fun, especially when the show-off kids crash into each other and end up splayed all over the ice! Cruel? Moi?
Radio City Music Hall is a Christmas all in and of itself! The Christmas Spectacular opened on 1 November with a musician's strike so the music came from the CD but I don't care - Radio City *is* Christmas! Decked out in lights, toy soldiers, Rockettes in miniskirt Christmas costumes, dancing, ice skating on stage, Rockettes dressed as reindeers and high kicking right, left and centre, dozens of Santas all over the enormous stage... WOW! And snow - yes, snow - falling from the ceiling at two different points in the show! It must've been ice scrapings or something and it melted on the skin... And I was ever so slightly delighted to be served popcorn in a Santa Claus shaped plastic container, about 10" by 5" in the shape of a red and white ho-ho-hoing Santa. Cor! Needless to say, I packed it most carefully in my luggage for the plane!
The foyer was decked out in full Christmas gear, with stalls selling everything you could want for Christmas (well, everything you could want if you suspend taste for a moment). I hummed and ha-ed about what to get - I *had* to get something as a reminder of a fantabulistic Christmas evening. Ended up in the Radio City Christmas Shop over the road and got a red Christmas bauble with a little miniskirted Rockette sitting on top! If you're lucky I'll take a photo of it on my tree and post it here!Christmas in New York must be in a world of its own...
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