Carols to spread festive cheer

With Christmas fast approaching, Joburgers will be spoilt for choice having to decide between a host of events taking place around the City to spread the festive cheer.
IT'S time once again to shake the cobwebs off the Christmas tree and decorate it with your favourite baubles, don a Santa hat while you munch on a mince pie, and to get into the festive spirit.
Carols by Candlelight at the Zoo LakeCarols by Candlelight at the Zoo LakeThere are a variety of activities lined up in Joburg to keep residents feeling jolly, ranging from the traditional carols by candlelight to bustling Christmas markets around the city.

Benchmark carols event
Carols by candlelight are always a family favourite, and there are plenty of carols events taking place all over Joburg.

The city’s benchmark carols event at Zoo Lake will once again take place this year, on 30 November. Organised by the Rotary Club of Johannesburg, it has been keeping the Christmas spirit in the city alive since 1949.

First started by the City’s welfare department and a few members of the Rotary Club, it has since grown to be recognised as a favourite Joburg heritage tradition to usher in the silly season. As well as carol-singing, a nativity play is also an annual tradition at the event.

Simba the lion, the mascot of Simba Chips, will be adding his voice to the din at the carols evening, and will also be on hand to have photographs taken with his young fans.

Guests, while welcome to pack their own picnic basket with snacks and blankets, will also be able to buy food and drinks from vendors on the night. Should inclement weather ruin the festivities, the event will take place on 1 December.

Entrance to the event is free, but candleholders and song sheets will be on sale. It will start at 6pm and end at 8.30pm.

Along much the same lines is the Carols by Candlelight evening at Garden World in Muldersdrift, on 2 December at 6.30pm. Guests can pack their own picnic baskets or buy refreshments from the tea garden. In addition to the carols, there will be a Christmas craft market open until 9pm.

Hosted by TV presenter Derrich Gardner, the event will feature actors from the TV show Villa Rosa, as well as members of the South African Police Service (SAPS) band.

Simba will be entertaining kids at Zoo LakeSimba will be entertaining kids at Zoo LakeEntrance is free, but candles and song sheets will be on sale; all proceeds from the evening will go to Pathways, a home for physically disabled children, so guests are urged to take along donations and gifts for the children.

On the same day, just a little further up the road in Muldersdrift, the Ngwenya Glass Village will also be hosting carols and other activities from 3pm onwards. There will be crafts for the children such as beading and painting Christmas candles, as well as activities such as an egg and spoon race, a sack race and a one-legged race.

Carols for a charitable cause
Carols for charitable cause are at the heart of the festive season this year, and the Society for Animals in Distress is hosting an evening of carols on 23 November. It will take place at their farm at the Paddocks, Plot 20 Moerdyk Street in Vorna Valley, Midrand. It will start at 6pm, and entrance is R25 for adults and R15 for children.

The Walter Sisulu Botanical Gardens in Roodepoort are also encouraging guests to embrace the spirit of giving by taking items for donation such as clothing, toys and tinned food to their carols by candlelight evening on 3 December.

Candles will also be on sale at the event to raise funds for the Botanical Society of South Africa. The event will feature the Mzansi Youth Choir, a Marimba band and Pipes and Drums. It will start at 6pm, but the gates open at 4pm. Entrance costs R50 for adults, R40 for students, R30 for senior citizens, and R15 for scholars. Children under 6 get in for free.

To give the carols a touch of Africa, the piazza at Montecasino will play host to Carols by Candlelight under African Skies on 9 December. There will be plenty of entertainment on offer, including a visit from Santa and his elves, buskers, a jumping castle and a light display. Guests are also encouraged to take along a toy to donate to charity, but there will also be toys on sale on the night.

Picnic baskets are not allowed at this event though, but food and drink will be sold at the venue.

Christmas market galore
Lighting candlesChildren light candles at a Christmas eventIt is Christmas market galore in Joburg this year. George Hay Park in Parkview will play host to a three-day extravaganza from 25 to 27 November. With over 70 stalls and endless entertainment for all ages, ranging from live music to carousels and an ice-rink, the whole family will be kept busy.

Also heeding the call that Christmas is a time for giving, all proceeds will be given to charity. Last year’s market raised R530 000, and the target for 2011 is a staggering R700 000. The entrance fee is R30 per adult, while children are charged per activity.

On Friday 25 November the market will be open from 3pm to 10pm; on 26 November it will run from 9am to 8pm, with the concert taking place from 8 to 10pm; and on 27 November it will run from 9am to 4pm.

If shopping under the starry sky is your idea of fun, then the Parkhurst 4th Avenue Candlelight shopping event is a definite must. Late-night shopping and dining define this bustling street on 24 November and 1 December, and shoppers can browse and buy to their hearts content until 10pm.

There will also be collection points at various shops for children’s charity Jan Hofmeyr House, which supports disadvantaged children in Vrededorp, Vredepark and Jan Hofmeyr. Tinned food, clothes and toys can be dropped off at the collection points at Moi Décor on the corner of 4th Avenue and 12th Street; Senses Florist on the corner of 4th Avenue and 12th Street; Modernist, also on the corner of 4th and 12th; and Life Unplugged on the corner of 4th Avenue and 10th Street.

Christmas Carnival
A Saturday Christmas Carnival will take place in Parkhurst on 26 November from 9am to 3pm. It is an outing that the whole family can enjoy, and is in support of children’s and animal’s charities such as the SPCA, Bear Hug Project and Children’s Skills Training Programme. Stalls will dominate the streets stretching all the way down the trendy 4th Avenue to 14th Street.

Activities such as face painting, pony rides and a pet dress-up competition will keep the kids entertained, and a gift-wrapping service will ensure there is no last minute panic about presents.

Tree of Light at the zooTree of Light at the zooThe Blubird Shopping Centre in Birnam will be hosting an open-air market from 4pm to 9pm on 3 December. Carols and a visit from Santa will spread the spirit of the season, and food from the Blubird Wholefood Market will keep guests sustained as they browse around.

Guests are encouraged to bring their spirit of giving, as the market is supporting Reach for a Dream and World Chefs against Hunger, among others. There will also be a blanket drive where people can buy a lantern, write their Christmas message on it and release it into the evening air.

People will also be able to buy a Christmas tree from the Christmas tree lot, which they will be able to replant to contribute to Joburg’s status as biggest man-made urban forest.

Alliance Francaise and Dibuka will be bringing a dash of culture to Christmas with their market on 3 December from 9am. Books, vintage clothes, music and food will be on sale, and their will be storytelling in English, Zulu and French.

Entrance to this event, to be held at the Alliance Francaise property on the corner of Kerry Road and Lower Park Drive in Parkview, is free.

Tree of Light
Every year, the Tree of Light illuminates the Joburg skyline for a good cause. Housed at the Johannesburg Zoo, the Tree is a tribute to those suffering from terminal illnesses and people who have died and is an initiative of the Hospice Witwatersrand.

It will be switched on on 27 November. There will also be carols by candlelight led by school choirs, and guests are encouraged to take their own picnic baskets to enjoy the ceremony.

Light bulbs can be bought by individuals or companies to remember a loved one or to send a message of love and goodwill over the festive season; they cost R50 for individuals and R250 for companies. Each message is published on the Tree of Light website.

To purchase a bulb, you can visit the Tree of Light website or phone 011 483 9148 or 0861 HOSPICE (467423). Companies can buy their globes by phoning Doris Pillay on 011 483 9162. For more details, you can also e-mail events@hospicewits.co.za.