Each year in November and December, Orchard Road, also known as Singapore's most popular shopping district, will be decorated with beautiful lights and decorations in the spirit of Christmas. Known as the Orchard Road Christmas Light Up, it's the most popular event in Orchard Road and on Christmas Day each year, a section of Orchard Road will be closed for the public to walk around freely on the roads and enjoy a variety of Christmas related shows and performances to celebrate Christmas. Sure, Christmas is long over and the decorations are no longer here as of this writing. This post is for you to check out what you might have missed during the Christmas Light Up event in 2012. I have written an article about the 2011 version of this event which you can check it out here.
Christmas Tree outside Scotts Square
I started my walk from Far East Plaza all the way down to Plaza Singapura. There were plenty of Christmas trees around Orchard Road. Some of them were huge, some were small, some were creatively decorated and some can even be entered on the inside. The Christmas tree above isn't really a Christmas tree but a string of tiny lights made to look like a Christmas tree. This tree can be found outside Scotts Square which is near the Marriott Hotel. The Christmas tree was so cool and bright. Plus, the design was just unconventional because of the strings of blue lights. This tree also reminds me of the Christmas tree at the Singapore Flyer also known as the largest Christmas tree in Singapore.
Christmas Tree outside Plaza Singapura
Another Christmas tree that I found along Orchard Road was this giant Christmas tree located outside Plaza Singapura. The tree outside the mall near Dhoby Ghaut MRT Station is more traditional-looking. Traditional as in like it looks like a regular Christmas tree although the obvious difference is the size. Not really that too special and cool-looking but I think the height and the big box at the bottom makes it look more interesting. Also, I'm not entirely sure if the box at the bottom is a giant Christmas present but it looks like it.
Christmas Tree outside Ion Orchard
Here is another Christmas tree that looks awesome. This Christmas tree was located right outside Ion Orchard. On the outside, it looks like a regular Christmas tree similar to the one at Plaza Singapura although with some slight design differences like the purple ribbon. However, what makes this better than other Christmas trees found in other places is that you can actually enter the tree. There were two entrances and when you enter, you can listen to nice Christmas music and check out the beautiful tiny lights all around the interior (except the floor). Furthermore, there were two bells at the top of the tree and a visitor can ring the bells using the long piece of rope that suspends from the top of the tree. Last year's Christmas tree at Ion Orchard was even more cooler whereby it acts like a temporary viewing tower. Although, visitors have to line up and wait for the others to go in first. Still, I think the Ion Orchard Christmas tree is by far the best Christmas tree I have seen along Orchard Road.
Christmas Tree Inside Ngee Ann City
The last Christmas tree that I will be talking about will be the one found at the atrium of Ngee Ann City. Ngee Ann City is just a stone's throw away from Orchard MRT Station and Ion Orchard. The Christmas tree at Ngee Ann City was big and huge. It's decorated mostly with blue lights like the one near Scotts Square and it has some of the ornaments that people usually hang on their Christmas trees. This is like one of the brightest Christmas trees I have seen along Orchard Road plus I just love the lighting. I just wish that I can actually enter the tree like the one at Ion Orchard.
A Very Busy Street
Okay, enough about the Christmas trees, let's talk about the lights. I came here on Christmas Day and as you can see, there were lots of people everywhere. Most of them were tourists and most of them were also Singaporeans who were taking a break because it's a public holiday. Lots of booths selling souvenirs can be found and there were also plenty of small-scale performances located along Orchard Road. Plus, there were also plenty of people hawking things like Santa hats, some sprays and portable lights to get into the spirit of Christmas although usually I don't really buy them.
Crowded Walkways Everywhere
Here is another shot of the crowded walkway parallel to Orchard Road. If you can see properly, there were people walking along the road. A portion of Orchard Road will be closed on Christmas Day for `eople to walk around and some shows and activities also took place on the road like Line Dancing and Christmas carolling. You don't really get to walk along the actual Orchard Road often so on Christmas Day, everybody is given the chance to walk on it without having the risk of getting run over by a vehicle.
Very Cool Looking Lights
When I first saw the lights along Orchard Road, first thing I noticed was that the lights were mainly red and gold coloured. Unlike last year's, which were mostly blue, this year's lights reminds me of Chinese New Year because of the red and gold theme colours. Since Chinese New Year was close to Christmas, that may be the reason why they used those colours. Apart from that, I like how the lights were not really that messy and very fussy unlike the Light Ups of past years. I think they made a good choice choosing a colour scheme that's different from the usual blue and green colours.
Very Realistic-Looking Sculptures
When I was on my way to 313@Somerset, I came across this very life-like and real-looking bunch of sculptures right before the junction near Ngee Ann City and H&M. These sculptures totally complement the Christmas lights and the Christmas spirit in Orchard Road. Oh and by the way, the guy who is posing on the left-most side of the picture is not part of the sculpture.
Shopping Malls Showing Their Christmas Spirit
Other than Christmas trees, malls around Orchard Road also put up other decorations in the spirit of Christmas. For example, the picture above shows some Christmas decorations put up by Orchard Central, the tallest shopping mall on Orchard Road which is located right opposite The Centrepoint. To me, it looks like an orchard with the lines of fake trees placed on both sides of the walkway. Plus, the trees have cool-looking lights and ornaments that people usually place on their Christmas trees. Another thing to note is that the decorations represent an orchard which was what Orchard Road used to be.
One Last Look
Before I finally wrap this post up, here is another close up shot of the lights hanging over Orchard Road. It looks like some Chinese New Year firecrackers because of the red and gold accents. I still like how they use a different colour scheme as compared to Christmas Light Ups of past years.
Conclusion
The 2012 Christmas Light Up in Orchard Road was great. You get to see a whole new colour scheme, brand new set of lights hanging above Orchard Road, big (and small) Christmas trees located outside major shopping malls and various kinds of decorations that can be found in various malls. I'm not entirely sure if the 2012 Christmas Light Up is better than the 2011 version but what I can say is that, I am impressed by the lights they put up in 2012. I hope that this year, the year 2013, the Orchard Road Christmas Light Up can be an even bigger and more extravagant event than last year's. Until then, do check out other light ups around Singapore during major holidays such as the Chinese New Year Light Up in Chinatown, Hari Raya Light Up in Paya Lebar and Deepavali Light Up in Little India before the Christmas one at the end of this year.