German market

I am not sure why but over the Christmas holidays there is a small German market in the market square in Kingston upon Thames.

There are only about ten stall but it is enough to add a touch of continental flavour to the town.

The centre piece looks like a Christmas decoration - at least it looks a lot like a German Christmas decoration that I bought about 25 years ago where heat from candles turns the blades at the top making the whole decoration rotate.

Other stalls sell what I presume is typical German stuff for this time of year, such as a rather impressive range of sausages.

I'm not too sure if the market is aimed at locals or at the significant local German population (attracted by the German School nearby in Richmond) but either way it good to see different cultures being promoted in Kingston.

Elsewhere in Kingston there seems to be a little evidence that this actually is Christmas.

There are a few lights in a few places and some decorations but overall they do not make much of an impression.

The shops seem to be fairly busy though and there were queues for the stars of the sales this morning.

It will be interesting to see what impact the much talked about recession has had on the level of seasonal shopping.