Christmas Time is Here

I took a break from my nightly television watching to stroll along Boulevard Haussmann to look at the Christmas lights and windows at the big department stores. These are pictures from Galeries Lafayette and Printemps, which are probably roughly equivalent to Macy's and Fortunoff in the US. I really liked the lights on the Galeries Lafayette because it had a very nice North African mosaic pattern with lights that went on and off in really beautiful and complex patterns. Here are a few examples:





Then Printemps had a kind of tacky setup with nets of lights over their domes and then lights under the main awnings of the store. For some reason they had a Norlandic theme with lots of hideous windows with what I imagine were supposed to be fairies with blond braids that kept getting hung up in trees and things and hideous crystal glassware everywhere. But they did have a few cute animal scenes including these penguins and polar bears. And to its credit, Printemps did have a couple of large pictures of George Clooney on the front of the building.




Unfortunately all the parents kept pushing their little kids up to the front and being quite rude so I didn't get very good pictures. Christmas is really when I most hate strollers and little kids. Why would you bring your stroller onto the busiest sidewalk in the entire city just to spend two seconds looking at a mechanical penguin, especially when the temperature was probably in the teens at most (fahrenheit that is)? Plus we nearly saw a few out and out brawls between parents whose children couldn't get close enough to the front and were ready to take everyone down. Parents get pretty psycho when you mess with their child's enjoyment of "the magic of Christmas."

Those of you who know me well enough to know about my unspoken-of past life in the sign language performing group will understand why any phrase that contains the words "children" or "magic" at Christmas makes me scowl ferociously. I have no other way to explain my lack of Christmas cheer. Fortunately I'm going to a party tonight with lots of spiced wine, cider and cheese so that should raise my Christmas spirits!