An excuse to celebrate!

Last week Manchester was bombarded with fireworks. Bonfire Night and the Christmas Lights Switch-On ruled the city on the 5th and the 9th November, respectively. For those of you who don't live in the UK and don't know what Bonfire Night is, it is an annual celebration that commemorates King James I’s survival from the attempt on his life by Guy Fawkes. You can find some more information on its historical origins here. The Lights Switch-On, however, is a more Christmassy event that includes performances by some top music bands and theatre companies, as well as an amazing fireworks display (see the video below!).

To be honest, I’m not the biggest fan of celebrations of this kind (although, as I already commented on a previous post, I'll make an exception for the fireworks at the Manchester Christmas Lights Switch-On!), but I do love dropping by to an event as an excuse to meet up with friends and have a nice time with them! What I mean is that sometimes it doesn't matter what you are celebrating if that makes it possible for you and your loved ones to see each other after a long time or just share one more of those lovely moments together. I have always thought that there is a halo of hypocrisy surrounding Christmas, with people becoming more and more materialistic during those dates and celebrating something that very often they don't have religious beliefs about (I must admit I am one of the latter), but I’ve finally come to realise what Christmas means for many of us. Cheesy as it may sound, it is a special time of the year to celebrate family, friends and everything that makes us happy, go through the past year and plan our new year ahead, be thankful for what we have, and maybe reconcile with ourselves. It’s just an excuse... An excuse to celebrate all good things.

That being so, let Christmas 2012 roll!