I can’t believe that just
last week we were in London! Time
certainly has flown by!
Since this was only my
second trip to London and it’s Christmas
time, I wanted to make sure I saw some of the Christmas markets. Sadly, I only
had time for one market as our flight from Warsaw first was delayed by 2 hours, then canceled and
finally rescheduled for 5 hours later in the day. We finally arrived in London
around 6 p.m. with just enough time to enjoy a fantastic dinner at NOPI
Restaurant (from the creators behind the Jerusalem
and Plenty
cookbooks.)
One day while my husband was
working, I strolled over to Hyde Park to explore the Christmas Market as part
of the Winter Wonderland. I was
envisioning rustic Christmas stalls filled with handmade goodies not a park
full of glitzy carnival rides for children.
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| Winter Wonderland at Hyde Park in London. |
I finally found the Angel’s
Market which is home to about 100 wooden stalls selling everything from Christmas
decorations to homemade candies to leather wallets and Turkish lamps. (I seem
to find a Turkish store wherever I go!) The market is open daily, except
Christmas Day, through January 5.
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| The Winter Wonderland entrance near the Hyde Park Corner tube station. |
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| And you can't leave a Christmas market without buying a Turkish lamp! |
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| Lots of food and drink options at least! |
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| Of course, you'll find several stalls selling mulled wine and hot chocolate too! |
You can avoid the carnival
ride section by taking the London tube to the Hyde Park Corner exit and
following the signs to Winter Wonderland. I discovered that little tidbit after
I walked through everything. Oh well!
The market is a little
over the top, and I didn’t find as many authentic-looking, handmade Christmas
decorations as I had hoped. I did buy two wooden decorations made from Black
Forest wood in Germany. Guess next year, we need to visit one of the real
Christmas markets in Germany!
I concluded my market
visit in London by eating a grilled German bratwurst and drinking a pint of
Weiss beer.
A Christmas market doesn’t get any more authentic that, right?
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| Mmm...grilled German brats! |
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| Some tasty looking candies! |
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| There's even an ice skating rink at Hyde Park. |
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| And if you wander off to the side of the market, you'll find a pond with these white geese in Hyde Park. |
