December 2020 was always going to feel strange compared to previous years. In the run up to Christmas I enjoy a trip to the Capital with my camera, to wander round the streets with their Christmas decorations all up, and to sample the various Christmas Markets.

2020 was not going to be like other years. The Christmas Markets were all cancelled, London was still just out of one lockdown, in a high risk tier and everyone knew that after Christmas we’d be back in lockdown again.

Christmas was going to be tough with the limits to how many people could meet indoors (6 from 2 households), but I was determined to keep some sense of normality and have my Christmas trip to London.

So, in early December, on the first weekend post the lifting of the lockdown, I went down for a wander around the city. Instead of heading straight for the West End or South Bank, I started behind Kings Cross Station beside the Canal. From there it was off to Holborn – a place i knew well as I started working there when i left School as a fresh faced 16 year old. After a wander round Covent Garden it was off to Soho and Carnaby Street to end the day.

A week later, and we heard the news that a new lockdown would commence on Boxing Day, with Christmas restrictions imposed as large areas of the UK went into Tier 4. However, at least I had felt some normality with my annual Christmas trip.