Tags
Amsterdam, Beijing, China, Christmas, Christmas decorations, Christmas ornaments, France, Happy New Year, new beginnings, new challenges, shoes, souvenirs, Sweden, Travel
Today I’ve done something most people think it’s a bit early to do…I’ve taken out my Christmas tree and tidy up all my season decorations that have been giving us that Christmassy feeling these last couple of weeks…
I have a tradition to do this on January 1.st, and I as much as I love Christmas, I also love the fresh feeling of new beginnings on this day. And I take my time when I put my Christmas ornaments away.
My Christmas ornaments are not only decorations for me. They are also a walk down memory lane, and a travel around the world.
I don’t know anyone else that has shoes on their trees, but I bought my first Christmas ornament in shape of a shoe in Beijing back in 1998.
Since then my collection has grown, and this year I got a white sandal from one of my best friends added. She had bought it in a Christmas marked in Sweden, and I love that another contributed to my shoe collection.
In 2004 I was in Cairo, Egypt, and in the middle of a busy marked I found a golden shoe. It looked like it was the one Cinderella lost, and I paid probably a lot more than it was worth, to take it home to my Christmas tree. Two years after, I found my first Christmas bag for my tree, and a matching silver shoe. These two I bought in Oslo, so they are the only one from my own country.
In 2007 one of my friends found a glass bag in a Christmas marked in Germany, and knowing my love for handbags, and also my love for originally Christmas ornaments, she bought it for me. This was the same year my niece bought me the second silver shoe, which she found in a marked in the south of France.
I went to the same marked a year later, and found a silver booth.
My silver sandal, I bought in Athen, Greece. The lady, who sold it to me, told me that the sandal would bring me happiness, and she was right, every time I look at my tree, I feel happy.
My Chinese purple shoe from 1998 was a single colourful shoe of my collection for a long time, until I found a matching pair in Amsterdam, adding one red and one green shoe.
And now my handbags and shoes are all put away, together with hearts and angels. It’s January first, I’ll see them again in 11 months’ time.
HAPPY NEW YEAR!