A Christmas Mission in Perth, Western Australia

At the registration desk a small crowd has gathered in the summer heat.

“Chow family,” my father announced to the volunteer.

Shirley wore tinkering Christmas bell earrings, “Ok my dears, Mr and Mrs Chow are table hosts and Natasha - this is for you.”

She handed me an enormous blue t-shirt which proclaimed STEWARD.

A rainbow of balloons filled the marquee, tied to hundreds of plastic chairs. My mother placed her handmade Christmas tree compiled of gold gumnuts at the centre of the table.

After greeting guests of all ages, I brought out lunch trays of turkey, salad and mince pies. Crackers continually popped whilst a choir sang Jingle Bells.

Lynette was savouring her lunch when my mother surprised her handing her a present. She tore away the wrapping to reveal a handbag. All ten guests at the table cheered excitedly.

“Do you like it?” Mum asked.

“I love it, I haven’t had a present in years.” Tears began to roll down her cheeks. “Thank you so much!”

Lynette wrapped her arms around my mother tightly.

A motorbike roared to life outside the marquee. Santa had arrived on a Harley Davidson. He wore red shorts and sunglasses and greeted children with a hearty “Ho ho ho!”

My family’s new Christmas tradition is volunteering at the Mission Australia luncheon in Perth. Christmas Day lunch is provided for hundreds of people – their simple Christmas wish is to have a welcoming meal in a safe place.


This post has been entered into the Grantourismo HomeAway Holiday Rentals travel blogging competition. www.holidayrentals.co.uk

The Most Beautiful Christmas Trees in New York City

New York City has Christmas trees in every building, shop, park and sometimes even on street corners! It's a heartwarming sight to behold, particularly at night when the lights of the trees glow majestically. It may be very cold and chilly outside but every Christmas tree you see gets you into the holiday spirit.

Union Square Park

Wall Street

Trees near Ground Zero

A Christmas tree made out of broken CDs in Chelsea Market

The most famous tree of all with the Swarovski star at Rockefeller Centre

Wanderlust Wednesday - The Christmas Tree at Somerset House

On the search for the most beautiful Christmas tree in London I discovered the Tiffany themed tree at Somerset House. It sparkles day or night with its signature blue baubles and silver decorations. Ice skaters glide around the rink in its stylish shadow. 

How to Host a Cross Cultural Christmas Dinner

When it's cold outside, having friends over for dinner warms up your spirits instantly. My friends in London speak a mix of Italian, Spanish and English. Hosting a festive dinner party with them involves eating new foods, having discussions with big hand gestures and learning new vocabulary.

My main tip for hosting a dinner party is to be flexible. You can’t plan for everything – for guests to be on time when there’s snow outside and for all dishes to be perfect. The unexpected fun and frivolity is the best sort though!

Have a starter with lots of oozing cheese and bread

For starters we enjoyed caramelized red onion, olive, sundried tomato and brie tarts. This was also accompanied by baked camembert cheese stuffed with garlic and fresh thyme and drizzled with olive oil. Ciabatta bread was on hand to mop up the cheese.

Learn to make an impromptu dish – Le Con Tomate

Maria showed me a very easy Spanish tomato and bread dish which I incorrectly called bruschetta. On a piece of ciabatta grab a tomato sliced in half and squeeze it onto the bread. Rub it against the bread so all the juice soaks in. Add a sprinkle of salt and olive oil. You can top this up with more cheese or ham if you like too.

Make your oven work overtime

Before dinner the oven was pumping out Christmas cookies right before it finished off roasting the main course - a whopping 3.3 kg roast pork! The crackle was crisp and crunched nicely in your mouth it was perfectly roasted by Lorraine.

We also devoured Chiara’s Italian ragu – she makes her own special tomato sauce.

Improve your food vocabulary in Spanish and Italian

Did you know that salad is called ensalada in Spanish and insalata in Italian?

Have a hands on dessert like fondue

For the seriously decadent finale we had not one, not two, but three separate desserts. I made a sticky date pudding with Baileys dessert sauce and a cheesecake from Tesco. The cheesecake was surprisingly good!

Fondue is fun - dipping strawberries and grapes into chocolate feels naughty but oh so nice! Since there’s fruit involved you feel somewhat healthy even if there's 300g of melted chocolate to get through. The only thing left to do was to wash it all down with mulled wine and cider.

It’s not a Christmas party without crackers!

Bad jokes and hats are mandatory for a Christmas celebration, no matter where you’re from!

The Beautiful Bath Christmas Markets

The city of Bath is full of old world charm. When you walk the streets, you feel like you should be hoisting up your parasol, wearing a bonnet and curtseying when you greet your neighbours. You may even feel like you’re a character in Jane Austen’s Persuasion.

The UNESCO World Heritage city is full of historical sandstone buildings and is framed in a small valley. On a crisp winter’s day, we were blessed with blue skies despite a 3 hour bus journey from London through foggy roads.

Once we escaped London we were pleasantly greeted by the relaxed pace in Bath on a sunny Sunday. In Bath people seem happier, they are in no rush and the main streets are full of families, couples and, surprisingly, lots of young people.

The Christmas markets in Bath stand in the shadow of Bath Abbey. In the Abbey churchyard there are over 100 stalls selling arts and crafts, foodstuffs, wines and liquers. We indulged in the free samples, savouring cheese and chocolate and the incredibly decadent toffee pudding for only £4 from Devon. I purchased Lick the Spoon chocolates, two packs of a set of three cinnamon infused, chocolate covered spoons and a chocolate star ornament for £10 – for a sweet Secret Santa.

Christmas carols echoed through the churchyard sung by the harmonious local choir. As dusk began, the lights framing the streets glowed and the Christmas tree in the centre of the square sparkled.

 

It may have been cold outside, but Bath certainly warmed us with the Christmas spirit and also with a glass of mulled wine. 

Oh Bath Christmas tree, we love thee!

A Winter Wonderland Photolog - Hyde Park, London

Winter Wonderland in Hyde Park is a Christmas sensory overload. The smell of cinnamon wafts through the chilly air - from the Belgian waffles, crepes, mulled wine and other sweets. Santa is everywhere. 

The highlights include: 

• a singing Moose, 
• rides for all ages, 
• an ice-skating rink, 
• a Bavarian village - with currywurst, bretzen and bier, 
• lots of Christmas market stalls including one that sells wooden ties and 
• a VIP white bar with oysters, champagne and a Ferrari

It's completely free to enter and the Christmas cheer will be on everyday until Jan 4th 2011. 

It's also simply too hard to resist having Nutella crepes when you're in Wonderland...

Wanderlust Wednesday - The Kissmas Tree, Covent Garden, London

For an Aussie like me, a Northern Christmas is utterly magical. I dream of a white Christmas, of chestnuts roasting by an open fire, a real wintery holiday. No BBQs, beaches or 40 degree Celcius Christmas days which is generally what it's like back home.

London lights up for Christmas. The streets sparkle with fairy lights. Shop windows have impressive displays. Everything is unashamedly Christmas themed, I've even succumbed to ordering Peppermint Mochas instead of a normal one!

In Covent Garden there is a Kissmas tree. It only lights up when couples kiss under the mistletoe. Even the biggest scrooge breaks into a sappy smile when the tree lights up! 

Wanderlust Wednesday - New York City

Central Park, New York City, December 2006

New York. Concrete jungle where dreams are made of...

New York City holds a special place in my heart. It's where I spent my 21st birthday. I celebrated by visiting the MET, seeing the NYC Ballet perform the Nutcracker and having a Japanese dinner.

I've blogged about NYC at Christmas before. And this year I may, just may, be spending Christmas there again. Only this time it will be Christmas Day and all the way to New Year's Day.

There's so much I didn't do on my first trip that I'm already daydreaming about, such as:

• iceskating at Rockefeller Centre
• going to a basketball game
• exploring all of Central Park
• watching the ball drop in Times Square on NYE
• eating a pretzel
• gazing into the window of Tiffany & Co
• going all the way to the top of the Empire State Building
• shopping...ala SATC style