Happy Christmas Wishes

Illuminated Christmas greeting on a building across the harbour, as seen from our apartment:

This Christmas will be our fifth one away from 'home'; our 3-year-old son still has yet to experience Christmas as we used to celebrate it with family back in Perth. We do of course still celebrate Christmas, as we have always done since we moved overseas, but it's somewhat different without the big family affairs. There are many expats in our situation in Hong Kong, and as much as I hate to admit it, seeing all the extravagant (and sometimes over-the-top) Christmas decorations and lighting all around this city does help a bit to get me looking forward to Christmas. The following photos are just some of the Christmas decorations I happened to come across - mostly at shopping malls, and I'm sure you'll agree that they are quite grand. (There are many more such grand decorations all over the city, but I am not one to go out of my way just to look at decorations, and I detest crowded places.)

At Harbour City, a place that we avoid like a plague on weekends because it draws huge crowds of shoppers. This year the 'Toy to the World' decorations proved hugely popular:

We needed to be at Harbour City one recent weekend, and while we hated the crowds, the boy loved the Toy Story themed Christmas decorations. As you can see, it was crowded, and this shot took in only half the length of the Christmas display, at which point I was just eager to get out of the squeeze:

Inside Elements mall, there were gold and silver reindeers and Christmas trees hanging upside down:

At 1881 Heritage, a 'Royal Christmas' decor was set up, featuring nine hand-painted royal carriages. It looks like a life-size version of a music box:

Every year around Christmas time, locals, expats and tourists alike flock to both sides of Victoria Harbour to enjoy the kaleidoscopic Christmas illuminations, and I am ever so grateful that we are able to take in the view at a distance from our apartment without having to deal with the tight crowds (this time last year I also posted up a video of the nightly light show from our balcony). This is a panoramic shot from 3 images that I took on a recent night (click on image to see larger version):

On that note, I'd like to wish everyone a very Happy Christmas - may you all enjoy this time with family and friends, and (for those who believe) celebrating the birth of Jesus Christ.

Our own humble Christmas tree, decorations and lighting: