The Switching On Of The Lights
The Christmas lights get switched on in Christchurch tonight, I suppose given the name of the town it's only fair we should get first go! It's blowing a gale and pouring with rain at the moment so there's a good chance the whole thing will be called off (again!) like last year.
We went two years ago and it was horrendous, not the lights but the whole experience - speak to anybody who was there that night and one word will crop up again and again in conversation - crush. It got pretty frightening to be honest, the problem was that the official switching on was by a local DJ which meant the local radio station parked one of it's publicity wagons across the High Street thereby cutting the road in half and causing everybody to funnel into a very small space. The whole thing was made worse by the fact that it coincided with the Christmas Street Market so the pavements and parts of the road were already taken up by stalls and their customers.
One of the big letdowns - and to be honest it was only beyond embarassment because it was so funny - was the 'Ice Rink'. For weeks the local papers and local conversation had been about the ice rink that was going to be assembled in Saxon Square. Well cometh the hour, cometh the rink, except it was probably smaller than our lounger, it wasn't ice but some weird multi-weather tiles, that were pretty lethal under foot but didn't create that certain magic everybody was expecting.
Anyway, if the town lights don't get swtiched on tonight everybody can come and look at a house round the corner from us, I reckon 1st December must be a new all-time early switch-on. As for ours, well the Sunday before Christmas is soon enough thank you. If you think I'm tight, you should meet one of Janis's brothers, he actually took down the tree and all the decorations one year on Boxing Day so he could prepare for his New Year DIY - now that is sad.
2 comments:
I like Christchurch as you know, perhaps its changed since the last time I was there. I'd guess 12 years or more...but I remember one Summer catching a bus in from Bournemouth and getting down to the quayside where the swans, boats were and then suddenly the weather changed so much.
Suddenly it was like the middle of Winter, cold, wet and windy. We had to turn around and get onto the next available bus back to Bournemouth.
Ah, the old topless bus, it doesn't run from the Quay anymore. I know what you mean about the weather changing, when the wind swings round to an easterly it rushes up the river from Mudeford.
The centre of the town hasn't changed in the best part of twenty years - there's no room for development! Along the river has though with new apartments/developments.
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