Christmas Eve 2007

Most of the people we know here in California decided to go home this year for Christmas. We decided not to for many reasons - we went pretty recently (last Christmas), we've had loads of visitors this year (including family), Kynan doesn't have much leave accrued and I decided to study during third semester this year.

I was expecting it to be a droll and dismal Christmas but it ended up being one of the best Christmas' we have had for years. There was something very unusually relaxing about the town we live in. The roads were practically deserted, the restaurants easy to book and Kynan had a few days off. But even more exciting than all of that was that the lovely Sarah & Andrew lent us their Toyota Prius while they were on holidays. What a bloody cool car that is.




We used it to tool down to San Jose to see Christmas in the Park, a large selection of decorated trees, an ice rink and some freakish anamatronic scenes featuring grinning chikdren and festive mice.It was kitch and camp, but mostly fabulous. There were even snow blowers attached to all the lamp posts so as you walked past them they shot some poofs of snow into the air.

And a ferris wheel... which Kynan enjoyed. A lot.




The night came to a fab end when we managed to get into Melting Pot, a fondue restaurant we have been meaning to go to for about a year. We'd called earlier in the evening to book a spot & were told they were fully booked out - with a 'Haven't you heard, it's Christmas Eve!' kind of scoff. Luckily, my natural instinct is to not believe people, and we headed over to try and wangle our way in. It worked, and after a few minutes waiting we had a seat at the bar.

We ate the traditional Swiss fondue for mains, and the ying yang dessert. All for about $45. There were appetizers on offer, but they seemed expensive for what was offered. The salads we saw on other peoples tables were minuscule for the price. All in all, it was definitely worth the effort of going.