Edinburgh's Capital Christmas, November 25th – January 7th
When winter stakes its ice-cold claim on Edinburgh in November, the city's Capital Christmas celebrations begin. The lights are officially switched on during a big celebration on November 25th each year amid concerts and fireworks.
From the moment the lights are switched on, the dark wintry days turn into a veritable fairyland with row upon row of twinkling lights wrapping around the trees which line the streets. Among my favourite attractions are log-hut German markets selling hand-crafted toys, chocolate covered gingerbread and hand-warming hot mugs of Glühwein (mulled wine which smells of cinnamon and fruit).
There is also a giant ferris wheel beside the Scots Monument, beside which is a 'Bungy Dome', a merry-go-round and a cluster of Scottish arts and craft markets. At the bottom of Princes Street Gardens is an outdoor ice skating rink and fun fair stalls and further along at the foot of Edinburgh Castle is Santa's Reindeer Garden.
At the other end of Princes Street (the street is a mile long), is a French Market which runs for the first week of December and is held in Castle Street. This street is directly inline with a view of the Castle, which provides a great backdrop for a bit of shopping. The markets are a great spot to get French favourites such as cassoulet, saucisson, croissants and of course, cheese. There is also a bakery stall which bakes the bread on the spot, and some stalls sell hot food such as Tartiflette.
Aside from all the activities in Princes Street, there are events going on throughout the city centre for the whole season. We went to see a fantastic circus show at the Festival Theatre by Cirque Eloize. The show was called Rain and was absolutely breathtakingly beautiful from start to finish. We later learned that this circus is a branch of the very famous Circque du Soleil.
