'A Christmassy Walk And Oranges'

I went for an evening walk along George Street in The Old Town of Hastings on the 9th. So much of Christmas is 'best served' when it is dark and the cobbled streets of The Old town really come into their own when you can see lots of Christmassy lights twinkling and flashing above them!

The snag with that though is that it is VERY hard to try and capture the magic of all that with a small camera - especially if like me you are no 'whizz kid' with the technical side of things! As you can see by the pics here, I did my best but ultimately failed pretty miserably!

Still, Christmas is a time when it does you good to get out into the world and give yourself a chance of meeting new people. With people traditionally busying about the shops there is often a chance to stop for a rest on a seat and share a few words with someone you don't know...

In many cases, it is words like this that can make a Christmas for many. I'm one of thousands of single people who often feel isolated at Christmas and while I while I  am lucky enough to have some GREAT friends, when the festivities really get under way they all have families of their own to visit or concentrate on and so I spend a lot of the main days of Christmas playing records in my bedroom at home. Mum and Dad are not really into Christmas at all (especially Dad, whose the ULTIMATE 'Bah Humbugger') and so I have to try and create the festive atmosphere for myself more often than not! Next time you sit down next to or near someone when Christmas shopping say a few words to them - it doesn't cost you anything and you might just make someones day!

Anyway, I made a little video of my walk! Like the photos here, its not great quality but if you want to see it you can do so here...

If you do watch the film, there is a part in it where I take a shot of the front window of the Jewellers shop . I was really taken with that scene as it transported me straight into the era of one of Charles Dickens novels. I felt like Tiny Tim lovingly staring at the toys in the window of the toy shop in 'A Christmas Carol' I can tell you! This morning I had an Orange and the citrus burst I experienced had a similar effect upon me as I imagined the look of utter delight  there would be on one of the poor little street urchins faces in that film if they could have just one segment...I think the Orange is the most 'christmassy' fruit of all and in the right circumstances can really connect with how marvellous a feeling it must have been to poor kids to find a WHOLE one all to themselves at the bottom of their Christmas stocking...

'Once Upon An Old Town Christmas'

It was a lovely, sunny winter day today and I had a nice time along Hastings Old Town taking pictures of the 'Once Upon An Old Town Christmas' celebrations.

 You have to hand it to the Old Town community, you know, they ALWAYS seem to come up with ways of making special occasions that little bit more special! Even better is the fact that the whole community get behind and get involved with whatever the plan is and that is something I find so heartwarming living in Hollington - a much less community minded area.

Don't get me wrong there are a lot of nice people in Hollington and I have gotten to know some of them over the last few years in my role as 'The Clean Up Man' but there simply isn't the same sense of togetherness or connection that I see and feel every time I visit the Old Town. It is no surprise therefore that I feel almost like an 'honorary Old Towner' sometimes though honestly I doubt whether I could quite 'cut the mustard' if I did live there as I am a person who sometimes just 'needs his own space' and may therefore not outwardly give off the right signals to others all of the time. Maybe that is why I'm still single at 49?  Its a shame really as I think I have a lot of love to give - I'm just not sure who to and whether I am capable of surviving in a 24/7 relationship?

I tell you what though! I would give living in the Old Town a go if ever I won the lottery and could afford a place there. Just look at these two lovely ladies! How nice to see smiles and people prepared to dress up in a festive outfit and take part in helping tom promote the event. While the Old Town was quite lively during my time there I didn't think there were as many people about as I expected to see. Then again it was barely midday when I left and on cold winters days in December it takes people longer to get themselves together to go out. I took this picture opposite The Jenny Lind at the beginning of Courthouse Street and the retro market there seemed to be drawing quite a few people. The Christmas film 'Elf' was on at The Electric Palace Cinema as part of the days events and a 'Santa's Grotto' could be found in 'Warps Weft' along George Street. I decided at 49 though that an appearance there might not be wise. For me to sit on Santa's knee and tell him that I'd like a BEAUTIFUL lady for Christmas was only likely to get me arrested and poor Santa up the Conquest Hospital with a back strain or hernia!

I did catch a couple of Santa's helpers using a snow machine though along George Street! Smiles were easy to come by there and a lot of the shopkeepers had made a good effort in decorating their shop windows. Sadly, its not really possible to get great pictures of those because of the reflections you get in the glass! I want to get a picture of whats in the window - not of me standing in front of it taking it!

Unfortunately, I didn't have as much time to spend along the Old Town today as I would have liked so did not get the opportunity to visit the 'Global Feast; at the Stade Hall or the Crafts Market at All Saints Hall.  As you can see though, I did  get some nice pictures and meet a few nice people. Here are a few of the other good ones I got............

Hats off to all who took part in making the Old Town a magical place to be today. You do all of us in Hastings & St Leonards proud...

Merry Christmas one and all!