IF Paris is considered the City of Lights in mainland Europe, then London can be considered the City of Lights in the Island of Great Britain. There are numerous landmarks in London along the River Thames that are dazzling with lights not just this Christmas season but for the whole year round. Among them are the London Eye, the Tower Bridge, Westminster Bridge, the London Bridge, the Buckingham Palace, the Westminster Palace, Big Ben and the uniquely-shaped City Hall. During Christmas season, London’s bars, clubs, restaurants, hotels, resorts, even cruise yachts cruising along River Thames and everywhere else where one can find a function room, it is usually full especially at two weeks leading to Christmas and New Year. One cannot find a vacant spot there so if you have not booked even one cramped area, then you better spend your Christmas party at your own vacation suite and grill anything that you want to grill. By the way, London doesn’t have its own unique gastronomic delicacy unlike Paris so most of the food here is typically Westerner such as burgers and steaks.

But if you are invited to a big corporate party where the atmosphere is like that of parties attended by James Bond, then brace yourself for everything from the cocktails to the music are elegant. However, if you have yourself a drink too many, that’s not a problem either as the London city government has instituted a booze bus. Actually, there are a dozen of them and they are manned by the Metropolitan Police. They will not arrest you; they will even assist you and escort you to straight to your hotel room or wherever vacation suite you’re renting during the Christmas season.

The only other concern that you will have in London this Christmas is that weather forecasters are already predicting of extreme snowfall even extending up to the urban areas. But that’s not really a cause for anxiety as it is just a snowfall and not a snowstorm after all. Yet it can be cold here with temperatures reaching as low as -3 degrees Celsius so you have to don some additional layers of clothing in your body if you want to step outside and enjoy nature at its rawness. And remember not to wear anything cottony because cotton tends to absorb moisture. The result – you will get even colder.

If you are trapped here in London during Christmas alone at your vacation suite but you’ve got friends from the city, then better invite a few of them in during Christmas Eve so you’ll not be lonely. I suggest that you shop during the day and cook turkey so you’ll have a gracious celebration while everybody is celebrating the birth anniversary of the Messiah. You can also have green vegetables splashed with butter and red wine, roasted vegetables and some red wine. Remember, eat healthy during Christmastime. That is the essence of the celebration of life.