Dinner with Mannequins, Virtual Santa: How Canadians Spend Govt Christmas – National

With some parts of the country under lockdown and restrictions on gatherings amid a second wave of corona virus outbreaks, this year will be a different and measured Christmas for people in Canada.

The epidemic has already canceled many holiday celebrations this year, such as Christmas markets, Santa Claus parades and holiday shows.

According to a recent poll by Ipsos, nine out of 10 people in Canada plan to modify or cancel this season’s events, and the country’s new corona virus cases are on the rise.

Still, some are trying to find creative ways to bring holiday joy to their homes.

Dinner with mannequins

In British Columbia, a woman eats Christmas dinner in the company of the Manequins with attached pictures of the faces of her daughter, son-in-law and grandchildren.

BC Enforced provincial-level restrictions on community meetings in November and extended them to January 8 in early December.

That is, for most people, the Christmas dinner will be limited to one’s instant home, even if exceptions are allowed for individuals living alone, or providing regular child care for a family member.

“Our kids decided it was impossible for them to come here, so I was a little sad about the whole thing and thought what I could do to bring a little more excitement to what was going on here,” Esther Esa told Global News.

Virtual Santa

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For everyone who stays connected with loved ones and works from home, video conferencing at Zoom has become a regular this year.

Now, Santa Claus connects almost exclusively with children across the country using the platform.

Several online sessions and chats are planned for families to choose from and register.

“It’s so much fun, it’s so relaxing,” Santa told Global News.

“This is the first year that families at the North Pole have allowed me to come here.”

1:36Santa Edmonton spread the Christmas spirit by meeting the children

Online music show for seniors

The online concert series for seniors across Quebec kicks off on Christmas Day, Friday, December 25 at 2pm with a special holiday show.

The event is organized in the Society for the Arts in Health environment (SAMS) and is attended by about 30 professional musicians from the province.

The Free concert Until December 31, 2020 everyone will have access online.

“We want to make this available so that everyone can feel like a happy Christmas,” SAMS ambassador and artist Winston McWade told Global News.

3:48A Christmas concert hopes to bring joy to seniors who have been severely affected by COVID-19

In a yard full of lights

To many, the lights are similar to the Christmas season, but an Okanagan man has gone above and beyond in creating holiday magic.

His courtyard in Vernon is full of decorations, including 45 inflatables, turning heads and illuminating faces.

Every year, Al Wilkinson begins to put out the lights on November 1st.

2:11“I think about 14 thousand,” Vernon estimates how many Christmas lights the man has in his house and yard while creating a magical scene during the holidays.

“I think about 14,000,” Wilkinson said when asked how many Christmas lights he has in his home this year.

“I like to make people happy,” he said.

“A lot of nights two, three hundred cars come and go. It gets me here at heart.”

– Files by Simon Little, Morgan Black, Laura Casella, Claudia van Emerick, Global News.

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