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I had imagined that at 3.30pm two Tuesdays out from Christmas I would not find the monster mall up the road from me at Bondi Junction too crowded with seasonal shoppers. I was wrong.
The warning signs were there with the queue of cars into the car park; itself renowned as one of the most frustrating mazes in Sydney. As it was a parking space magically fell vacant for me only ten minutes into my search for one. Then followed an interminable wait for the lift to the shopping levels. Thankfully the one that eventually arrived was not packed with mothers and their triplet size prams nor with families steering shopping trollies overloaded with a month's supply of food that would feed the entire US army in Afghanistan.
My own modest purchase of Belgian chocolates - a rather mundane seasonal present for a friend - was accomplished comparatively quickly followed by the completely unnecessary impromptu purchase of chocolate creams to assuage my sweet tooth.
I should have made a hasty retreat to my car at that point but I am easily seduced by those familiar Christmas Carols broadcast across the mall and they were sounding especially joyous this afternoon. So I hung around a while just listening to a few, humming along until the realisation that I was in danger of further impulse purchases not to mention losing complete track of where I had parked.
I then made as speedy a departure as queues, lifts, car park boom gates and exit traffic lights would allow.
Doesn't Sydney have a downtown where you can stroll on the street from shop to shop having taken public transport in from your home?
ReplyDeleteOr am I living in a dream world?
You wouldn't get me in a shopping mall this time of year for all the tea in... where ever the global conglomerates grow it these days. ;)
wcs - Oh we have a downtown but 'stroll the street from shop to shop' which sounds very leisurely is not what is on offer. The downtown (or city or CBD as we would refer to it) is as crowded as the malls plus there are all those city workers to contend with as well.
ReplyDeleteIn the days when I was a city worker myself I used to curse the suburban shoppers clogging up the city streets and slowing down my own 'important' lunchtime rushing about.
I had a similar experience at Chadstone last week having forced myself to brave it after work one evening to avoid the living nightmare that Saturday shopping has become there. I too was a bit seduced by carols being played, this time by a Salvation Army band - lovely sounding music by three young people from such a good organisation, reminded me much of nice times from my childhood.
ReplyDeleteIt is a rule in our household to NEVER go Christmas shopping on the weekends. We do it on weekday evenings, to avoid the congested parking lots and hords of people.
ReplyDelete