{"id":9368,"date":"2020-12-23T23:15:57","date_gmt":"2020-12-23T12:15:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/graziamagazine.com\/?post_type=articles&p=183518"},"modified":"2021-02-04T23:36:34","modified_gmt":"2021-02-04T23:36:34","slug":"christmas-cancelled-london","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/graziamagazine.com\/us\/articles\/christmas-cancelled-london\/","title":{"rendered":"What Christmas Feels Like In A City Where Christmas Is Canceled"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Pedestrians walk past Oxford street illuminated with christmas decorations in central London on December 13, 2018. (Photo by Daniel LEAL-OLIVAS \/ AFP) (Photo credit should read DANIEL LEAL-OLIVAS \/ AFP via Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Just six days out from Christmas, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Boris Johnson, declared it canceled for the nearly nine million people living in England\u2019s capital city. Off, done, finito.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Despite rapidly growing COVID numbers in the country and a struggling NHS, no one predicted that Johnson would put his foot down – for once – on such a significant day, leaving millions to spend the holiday alone and significantly impacting not only the morale of his people, but the future of his own leadership. After all, the UK\u2019s response to the pandemic has been flailing at best with lockdowns imposed, then lifted, then quickly reinstated, tiers introduced and then taken away, leaving those trying to follow the rules constantly confused as to what they actually<\/span> are<\/span><\/i>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Citing a \u2018new strain\u2019 of COVID, one that\u2019s potentially more transmissible than previous variants, Johnson reignited fear, panic, and chaos in the country, as supermarkets once again were filled with people stockpiling for the end of the world and anyone who even looked like they <\/span>might<\/span><\/i> sneeze was shot death stares.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In the hours following the announcement, Twitter was ablaze with fury directed at the government, something which only heightened when, the next day, over 40 countries cut off the UK completely. It turns out that Johnson had not only scared his people, but other world leaders, too, who, seeing the shitshow happening here, quickly worked to prevent anyone bringing the mess into their own backyard.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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A sign informs drivers that the French border crossing is closed at the cordoned entrance to the ferry terminal at the Port of Dover in Kent, south east England on December 22, 2020, after France closed its borders to accompanied freight arriving from the UK due to the rapid spread of a new coronavirus strain. – Britain sought to sound a note of calm saying they were working as fast as possible to unblock trade across the Channel after France shut its borders to UK hauliers in a bid to contain a new variant of the coronavirus. (Photo by JUSTIN TALLIS \/ AFP) (Photo by JUSTIN TALLIS \/ AFP via Getty Images)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

At home in New Zealand and Australia, people are preparing their barbecues, long lunches in the backyard, and trips to the beach on Christmas Day. The fact that both countries are on the other side of the world, available to reach only by plane or boat, and with leadership who not only responded better (top points to Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern), but who had months longer than those in the UK and Europe to figure out a solid plan, helped to steer both countries to relative freedom this festive season.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Though we love a good Christmas Down Under, the way it’s celebrated is completely different from that of the UK. Over here, Christmas is a reprise of the bone-chilling winter and grey, gloomy days. Meeting up with friends to toast the season in the pub is an almost nightly occurrence, seeing Oxford Circus lit up with lights (this year, they\u2019ve even turned those off), drinking mulled wine and hunkering down to open presents by the fire is tradition. If you\u2019re lucky, some years it\u2019ll snow.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

To cancel Christmas in London isn\u2019t just canceling a day, it\u2019s canceling the spirit of the nation. It\u2019s telling us that after all of the months spent in lockdown, it wasn\u2019t enough. You still can\u2019t see your family, you can\u2019t say goodbye to the chaotic, traumatic year that was 2020 with a happy respite. It\u2019s almost certain that this news will result in suicide rates and calls to mental health hotlines spiking and it\u2019s almost certain that, if the virus was handled correctly by the country\u2019s leaders, this could have been avoided.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Of course, right now, the most important thing is the safety of others. We\u2019ll complain, but we\u2019ll also do as we\u2019re told. We\u2019ll get back on that dreaded Zoom app and pop our Christmas crackers through screens. This time next year, when we\u2019re planning our big lunch with friends and family, we\u2019ll know how lucky we are to have human contact and connection, and hopefully we\u2019ll all stop to slow down and realize that community, family and friends really are the most important things. If we’ve learned anything this year, let it be that (oh, and to not vote Tory).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9593,"featured_media":9369,"template":"","format":"standard","categories":[38,16],"yoast_head":"\nWhat Christmas Feels Like In A City Where Christmas Is Cancelled<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/graziamagazine.com\/us\/articles\/christmas-cancelled-london\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"What Christmas Feels Like In A City Where Christmas Is Canceled\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Just six days out from Christmas, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Boris Johnson, declared it canceled for the nearly nine million people living in England\u2019s capital city. 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