Saturday 8 November 2008

Hurray - it's Santa!

With Bonfire Night behind us (Some of the neighbours are still celebrating), we went for an adventure today. Rosie and I set out to drive to Styal Mill, intending to stop on the way at Lakeland Plastics for some bread tin liners. It rained and it was such a long drive that we stopped at Radway Garden Centre for a coffee and then diverted to Stapeley Water Gardens near Nantwich instead. Stapeley have a large indoor oasis with water features and plants. The attraction also includes fish, amphibians, reptiles, mammals and a variety of insects. In fact it is one of a couple of inland attraction in the Midlands where you can see a live shark or two swimming in their own tank.
When we arrived we walked across the large car park to the Garden Centre - on our return, the sparsely used car park was full to bursting, so something had to be happening. It was not long before we realised that Santa was about to make a visit and all of the kids and parents were eagerly awaiting his arrival - a bit like a Royal visit.
Santa arrived in his helicopter - it's the best way to travel when your audience is world wide. He did a flypast of the crowd and then landed in an adjoining field. Of course he had a special car waiting at the field gate and an entourage of helpers and elves, some of whom must have arrived earlier.
It is nice to see the excitement that this sort of event brings to the little ones and parents alike, but for me, Christmas has never been the same since I saw Santa shopping in the Mansfield Co-Op just before Bonfire Night in the 1970's.

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