Christmas 2010 - Things you can do if you're in Dublin (26th-28th Nov)

Christmas is here. Exactly in one month it'll be Christmas day...really exciting!

I've always loved this time of the year, and now that there are two little "monsters" around I love it even more!

Since we started our expat experience, we have not had the opportunity to spend the whole Christmas season in Dublin, as we either went to our home country to spend some days with our relatives or took advantage of the days off work to travel around Ireland and get to know the island a little bit better. But this year we've decided to stay here, in Dublin, to live Christmas as the Dubliners do, do the same typical things, go to the same places, eat the typical food.... and I suppose that is because as time goes by, we do feel less and less like expats and more like at home here, and that is a great feeling.

So I've been researching for the last weeks in order to make a list of all the events taking place in the city during Christmas season and these are my findings:

• To start with (as I'm not talking about the events that we've already missed), this weekend - from 26th to 28th November - I don't want to miss DUBLIN TASTE OF CHRISTMAS at the new Convention Center Dublin. I hope to get lots of ideas of what to cook during these special days to come. Some great chefs will also be there performing live shows!

• Also this weekend - from Sat 27th November to 23rd December - it sounds like a great idea to visit Santa @ THE NORTH POLE EXPERIENCE, at the Red Cow exhibition center, on Naas Road. The kids will have the opportunity to visit Santa, to check by themselves how the toys are made by the elfs and to play in the bouncy castles. They will also be able to meet Santa's reindeer...wow!

• We are looking forward to visiting CHRIST CHURCH CATHEDRAL during the Christmas season and, if possible, listening the choir singing carols inside the church (see the link for dates and times), but this Saturday 27th November, Santa will also be coming to Christchurch!. According to their web, "on Saturday 27th November Santa will arrive at the gates of Christ Church Cathedral in a horse drawn carriage and then make his way to his special Grotto in the crypt of the cathedral". And there will also be a Christmas Market in the crypt on 27th November (the Christmas market will be installed on 27th Nov, 4th, 11th, and 18th Dec).

• If we still have some free time, we can burn some calories in the ARNOTTS ROOFTOP ICE RINK - from 12th November to 23rd January - and it'll be opened everyday (except Christmas day) till late in the evening. You can check opening days and times as well as prices in the link provided.

• Last event of the weekend, have some fun at THE FAIR @ WOLF TONE PARK. This will be on during the whole Christmas season - 26th Nov to 26th Dec- so I think we'll wait and visit it when the Christmas market is open (8th to 12th December).

This I've found just for the first weekend of the season. Very promising, isn't it? In my next posts I'll be including things to do during the month of December - keep connected!