I wonder if anyone has thought of a universal gift for Christmas and New Year's Eve. Giving gifts is a very sweet and pleasant tradition, but choosing these gifts becomes more difficult every year. You have to find something nice, cute, and ideally, useful. And something that you haven't gifted before... it can be difficult. New Year's fairs try to help us with our choices.
I decided to visit one of these New Year's fairs and see what interesting things we are offered to buy. It is a small fair on New Holland Island. It takes place in the circular courtyard of an old red brick building. The courtyard has an almost perfectly circular shape, only two symmetrical towers make this outline more complex. In the center of the courtyard is a tall Christmas tree. It is so tall that it didn't fit in one shot. I had to shoot the top of the spruce against the sky separately. As I took this shot, a wind suddenly came and swept the snow off the roof of the building. Snowflakes swirled in the air and I got two shots instead of one: a clear sky and a blizzard.
The fairgrounds are simply organized. Stalls are set up around the perimeter of the building, tables and roasters with burning coals stand closer to the Christmas tree. Some stalls sell gifts, others sell food. Here you can buy pastries and a hot drink. To get a bowl of soup or a full meal, it is better to go into the building, inside there are a variety of cafes, restaurants and bars.
The stall that interested me the most was the one called "Vintage to Everyone!" I don't consider vintage to be the most successful gift because many people prefer to buy only new things, but I enjoyed looking at old glass Christmas tree toys. These were the kind of toys that created a New Year's mood in my childhood days.
The time of New Year's and Christmas holidays is a traditional time of charity. My attention is attracted by the beautiful blue envelope of the "New Year Post" - this stall collects gifts for charities. Nearby is the "Anton is nearby" stall, a charity for people with autism. Cute figurines, mugs and badges with kind slogans, warm socks - there is a lot to choose from.
What surprised me the most was the stall from Lantern Baths. Lantern Baths was a regular town bathhouse about 30 years ago. Then, I don't remember exactly when, these bathhouses closed. The building was slowly deteriorating and looked very entourage. A few years ago the building was completely renovated, now it is not only a bathhouse, but also quite an expensive place to rest.
The stall from the Lantern Baths sells everything you might need in a bathhouse: washcloths, soap, robes, brooms made from branches of different trees. It wouldn't look very appropriate if it weren't for one cultural peculiarity. The iconic New Year's Eve movie begins with the characters going to the bathhouse, they have a tradition of bathing on December 31st. It is in the bathhouse that the events of the film begin. Then comes a lot of confusion, sometimes lyrical, sometimes funny, ending with a happy ending.
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| Smartphone | Google Pixel 3a |
| Location | Saint Petersburg, Russia |
This is my entry for the #marketfriday challenge by 