Winter Wunderbar-land in Kilmainham

We've been watching the bright lights of Winter Wonderland glisten from our windows and listening to people scream daily as they dangle a few hundred feet from the ground on the super scary Mission Space ride.

The event features an ice rink, Fossetts' Circus, Christmas market and funfair, and opened its doors at the Royal Hospital Kilmainham on December 8th.

KURVE APPEAL: Spin around at increasing speed until your stomach churns on this mini-rollercoaster.
Photo: rice_e@twitter.com

WHAT'S THE WURST THAT CAN HAPPEN? My favourite German word has long been 'currywurst', despite being a vegetarian. It's closely followed by 'lecker', though I can't personally vouch for the tastiness of the wursts here.
Photo: rice_e@twitter.com

NEON CITY: Lots of colourful lights at the Winter Wonderland funfair. The Mission Space ride is on the right.
Photo: rice_e@twitter.com

The market is one of the better I've seen and there are some nice little bars, such as the Porterhouse, to choose from.

SIGNS OF THE TIMES: I love the Wunderbar neon sign. I want one in my house!
Photo: rice_e@twitter.com

LIGHT UP: The windmill bar, toboggan tower and Mission Space.
Photo: rice_e@twitter.com

HORSIN' AROUND: The pretty vintage-style carousel, the least scary ride in the funfair.
Photo: rice_e@twitter.com

The colourful and slightly retro fun fair makes you feel like you're on the Continent and it's very pretty lit-up at night. Eoghan took lots of great photos above and below.

There's lots of food and drink options, from spiced cider to currywurst, plus crepes a-plenty, churros (Spanish doughnuts) and waffles.

BRAVE SOULS: One of the cranes of Mission Space gets ready to swing people hundreds of feet in the air. The scariest ride I've ever seen at a funfair.
Photo: rice_e@twitter.com

TWIST AND SHOUT: The toboggan tower.
Photo: rice_e@twitter.com

SWING BY: The windmill bar features all-important indoor seating.
Photo: rice_e@twitter.com

It's a lovely place to spend an hour or two, even after December 25th (the event runs until January 8th). Here's hoping it will become an annual event in Kilmainham.

ROLL WITH IT: The Alpine Coaster. Photo: rice_e@twitter.com

THE STUFF OF NIGHTMARES: Mission Space.  Photo: rice_e@twitter.com

ELECTRIC VEHICLES: Bumper cars. Photo: rice_e@twitter.com

Christmas is almost here and we've made the living room festive. It was even cold enough last week to justify a fire, which Waffles the cat loved.

WINTER WARMER: Waffles and I cosy up beside the fire.
Photo: rice_e@twitter.com

SPIN IT: The view of the Ferris wheel from our house.
Photo: rice_e@twitter.com 

JINGLE BELL ROCK: This dancing Santa stands in our living room window.
Photo: rice_e@twitter.com

Tree-mendous collection

FIR REAL: My friends Aoife and Rob's majestic Christmas tree

Is it just me, or are far more people sharing photos of their Christmas trees on social media than ever before? It also seems that we have re-embraced the tradition of sending Christmas cards, judging from the nice envelopes hitting the doormat this week.

The following Christmas trees are aesthetically pleasing, but seem a little cold.

JUST ALL WHITE: This modernist tree via M2JL Studio

A LITTLE FLAT-PACK: An IKEA Christmas tree via DigsDigs 

In contrast, my friends Aoife and Rob's tree (pictured in all its glory at the top of this post) had me transfixed when I visited their home recently. It's a real Christmas tree decorated in ornaments which each have a story to tell. They pick up decorations on their travels, including India, San Francisco, Boston and Paris.

Some of their eye-catching tree decorations:

Other Christmas ornaments at Aoife and Rob's:

WAX LYRICAL: The heat from candles powers this helicopter house

TWIST AND OUT: A classic nutcracker

Christmas 'Mainham

Finding the positive in negative equity (we bought our house in 2008) #1 ... a Christmas market around the corner!

The 7UP Winter Wonderland will be located on the grounds of the Royal Hospital Kilmainham (the site of the Forbidden Fruit Festival in June, pictured below).

MUSIC ROYALTY: Enjoying the Forbidden Fruit Festival at the Royal Hospital Kilmainham (By Himself) 

At Winter Wonderland, there will be an ice rink (my lack of coordination rules this out), a circus (have some issues with animal acts) and a presumably free-entry Christmas market (promising gluhwein and other delights). The Spiegel Saloon and Le Cirque are amongst the other attractions.

JINGLE BELLE: Christmas market in Brussels (Via Shutterstock)

The other half's brother and wife live in an amazing house in the heart of Brussels (above), right beside the city's Christmas market at Place Sainte-Catherine. One of the highlights the last time we were at the Brussels market was trying to last more than a few seconds in a shipping container fashioned into a minus-temperature bar.

It will be interesting to compare the two markets.


http://7upwinterwonderland.ie/
http://www.christmasmarkets.com/Belgium/brussels-christmas-market.html
http://www.belgiumtheplaceto.be/729-christmas-markets.php