Cardiff does Christmas

I won’t actually be in Cardiff for Christmas as I’m off to Cornwall with a friend for a week but here’s a little of what I’ve been seeing in the lead up to the big day ...

Winter Wonderland takes over the green in front of City Hall. With its Giant Wheel, an artificial ice-skating rink, rides for young and old, and lots of eateries, it’s a favourite place for folks to relax after their hectic bouts of Christmas shopping.

And speaking of shopping ... the huge St David’s Mall and all the shops in the streets round about are sparkling with decorations and geared up to sell you everything you never wanted at the best possible prices. An Advent-calendar-type countdown of specials seems particularly popular this year.

Haven’t seen much of Santa but he’s probably been hiding away in his various grottos.

Not a lot of snowmen either and not a snow flurry in sight.

Lots of people adorn their front doors with wreaths that look very pretty. You can glimpse trees twinkling away indoors as well, but I thought photos of those might be a bit intrusive.

Speaking of trees, though ... here are mine (a beautiful driftwood tree made for me by a wonderful friend), theirs (in one of the malls) and ours (the much discussed and criticised Cardiff Council tree – don’t even get me started on that story!).

The city looks lovely in the early evenings (it gets dark now around 4pm) when the street decorations light up. This photo also shows some of the Christmas market stalls that line one of the streets.

More city lights ...

Saving the best till last ... Despite ‘that tree’ Cardiff Castle does look lovely, mostly because of the deer grazing on the front lawn. I presume they are meant to be reindeer though none have antlers and one of the special things about reindeer is that, as well as the males, most of the females also grow antlers. Still, these gorgeous beasties are most definitely my favourites!