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Destination: Christmas 2006
It's Not Too Late to Create Your Holiday Journey!
By Jean West Rudnicki
By the time you read this, we're already at least one official week into the Christmas season having just completed the turkey day celebration. Unless, of course, you go by retail store calendars, in which case the season began immediately after you got the kids (or grandkids) back in school. Your box of Christmas decorations are either: a) sitting on the floor in the living room next to the tree you just bought; b) in the attic anxiously awaiting your arrival; or c) just a vague intention you have of that perfect Martha Stewart-Southern Living garland-strung, hand-crafted-decorations-from-the-garden bedecked holiday home. If however, your house was decorated before Thanksgiving, your tree was up that same weekend and you're already up to your tenth batch of Christmas cookies, quit reading and go back to the kitchen. You are beyond rescue.
For the rest of us who love the idea of the holidays, but not the work or stress, here's a tip. Buy a few poinsettias (silk is best) to place around the house for a festive look and feel, then go pack your bags. Granted, it's a little late in the season to be making travel arrangements for the holidays, but we checked, and if you hurry and you're flexible enough, you can still enjoy the Christmas of your dreams - whether city, country, classy, colonial, or cowboy - without ever stringing a single strand of lights. And that, my friend, is worth singing a few carols about.
Here are some possible destinations. Oh, and about all that Christmas shopping - skip it. Tell family and friends you'll bring back something "special" from your travels.
CITY CHRISTMAS
New York: If you can't get enough of city lights, the Big Apple is certain to flip your switch. The city that boasts of being the first to use electric lights is the ultimate "city Christmas" destination. While a visit to our nation's capitol might include a stop at the National Christmas Tree, New York City has a list of at least nine trees to see. There's the Rockefeller Center tree covered in no less than five miles of dazzling lights; the South Street Seaport's 50-foot Chorus tree including singing choir; the 30-foot Botanical Gardens tree with a holiday train show at its base; the Cathedral of St. John the Divine Peace tree covered in 1,000 paper cranes, and the American Museum of Natural History's Origami tree, to list a few. If that's not enough to light your fire, check out the Bronx Zoo with more than 140 illuminated sculptures, eight miles of tree lights and two miles of architectural lights, or catch the Grand Central Terminal Laser Light Show. You won't want to miss the "Great White Way" either as the lights of the Theatre District are known. Don't forget the must do's - ice skating at Rockefeller Center, strolling through Central Park; taking in the 5th Ave. department stores' windows and visiting FAO Schwarz, the oldest toy store in America. Stay for the ball drop New Year's Eve and wave to family and friends who'll be glued to their flat screen TVs hoping to spot you in the crowd. Find more information at www.nycvisit.com/home and www.ny.com/holiday/december/trees.html.
New Orleans: New York too wired for your taste? Then saunter south to the Big Easy. Rebuilding under way, you can help without donning a hardhat or lifting a hammer (though that kind of help is welcomed, too). Spending tourist dollars not only provides for its citizens' livelihoods, it helps replenish the city coffers and gets the town swingin' again. Christmas New Orleans style is unlike any other. Stroll through the "Celebration in the Oaks," the city's premier holiday light show covering 12 acres in City Park with plenty of entertainment and lots of good Cajun eats; drop by St. Louis Cathedral for free nightly concerts featuring local jazz musicians; tour exquisitely decorated homes in the Garden District; enjoy caroling in Jackson Square. Indulge nightly on Revellion meals, borrowed from a French tradition and served typically only after midnight Mass on Christmas Eve and New Year's but available New Orleans style throughout the entire month of December. Catch a Mississippi cruise Christmas Eve to view the levee bon fires that light the way for Papa Noel. For special Papa Noel rates and more information visit www.neworleansonline.com.
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