Christmas In Devon

Collage of 3 photos, showing Exeter Cathedral, a sculpture of a comet covered in bright festive lights, and Glen standing with a pint of cider in a bar.

It seems hard to believe that it’s well over a year already since I was made redundant from my previous job in Torquay, and that the first anniversary of my new job in London is just a month away. But I still keep in contact with my former colleagues and friends down in the Westcountry, and last week I popped down there to see some of them again for a Christmas catch-up. So I thought I’d do a little write-up about it, as I have some festive photos and video clips to share as well.

Contents

Torquay Mates

As usual I stayed at the Premier Inn on Torquay seafront, which I always find very pleasant and comfortable, and it’s in a good position between the train station and the town centre (although the walk from the station to the hotel isn’t very well lit at night). I particularly enjoy having the cooked breakfasts there, not least because they’re always delicious and filling, but also because the staff are very friendly and happy to get things for me when I say I have a visual impairment. It makes things so much quicker, easier and more comfortable, rather than having to faff around by myself to see where everything is and try to dish things up without making a mess.

The fact that the hotel is attached to the Beefeater restaurant does help to explain why the breakfasts taste so nice. But it was also very handy because that’s where my ex-colleagues had booked our Christmas dinner again for this year, meaning all I had to do was pop down from my room to see them!

I had a wonderful time chatting to various people during the evening, having not seen them since my last visit in March, and I enjoyed the food I’d ordered, which consisted of:

  • Tomato & Basil Soup, drizzled with balsamic vinegar and served with toasted ciabatta.
  • Red Wine & Mushroom Sirloin Steak, specifically a golden puff pastry base filled with a grilled 8oz sirloin steak, garlic spinach and flat mushrooms, accompanied by roast potatoes and a mushroom, red wine & pancetta sauce.
  • Apple Pie with custard.

Some of us went on to the nearby Visto Lounge for a drink after that, and then up Fleet Street to Rock Garden for a couple more, where they had a band playing some lively songs. So it was a fun evening all in all. I loved seeing everyone again, and we also discussed a couple of ideas for our next possible meetup during the coming year.

Strings of festive lights hanging over Fleet Street in Torquay, along with some lit snowflakes on the first floors of the buildings on the right hand side, above the shops on the ground floor.
Christmas lights over Fleet Street in Torquay, designed to look like comets with a bright yellow outline. There are 3 small stars along the tail section of each comet, and a big star at the front.
Christmas lights over Fleet Street in Torquay, with brightly lit rectangles either side of a thin, colourful rainbow in the centre.
Glen standing with a pint of cider in the Rock Garden bar in Torquay, while some people have fun on the dance floor in the background.

Exeter Sights

Exeter was always a second home to me when I lived in Devon, as I went to school, college and university in the city. So I like to go back there when I’m in the area, which I did a couple of times during this little getaway.

The first visit was to see one of my best friends from school, which was lovely as the last time we’d got together was 4 years ago, just before the pandemic. So we had a great catchup over some hot chocolate and a nice walk around the area where they’re now living.

Then for my second visit I had a look around the Exeter Cathedral Christmas Market, which they have every year, as well the High Street in general. I didn’t buy anything, but it was just nice to soak up the festive atmosphere, admire some of the decorations and see what the area is like these days.

So here are a few photos I took of Exeter Cathedral and the market, in which you can see stalls for the WWF, Dazy Cocktails, Kenniford Farm, Oh Crepe! and, quite unusually, Viking Drinking Horns! And that’s just scratching the surface of the many things that were on offer there. It was difficult for me to get a close look at much of it of course, because it was so busy, but it was still worth a wander through it all to see what I could spot.

The front of Exeter Cathedral, towering over the people browsing the Christmas market stalls.
Close-up of the front of Exeter Cathedral, covered in figures and ornate detailing.
Side view of Exeter Cathedral.
Side view of Exeter Cathedral, from the rear end of the building.
People browsing stalls at Exeter Cathedral's Christmas Market, including one selling cocktails, and another promoting the WWF charity.
Kenniford Farm stall at the Exeter Cathedral Christmas Market, selling hog roast rolls, pigs in blankets, pulled pork, cheesy chips and more.
Stalls selling crepes and burgers at the Exeter Cathedral Christmas Market.
A stall selling viking drinking horns at the Exeter Cathedral Christmas Market.
A large wooden model of a dog, on sale at the Exeter Cathedral Christmas Market.

There were also some lovely decorations in the Guildhall Shopping Centre, with reindeers, stars and candy canes. I still miss Woolworths in that place though, and the Athena poster store that was just down the street on the crossroads.

Silver reindeer and large gold stars with lights around the edges hanging from the ceiling in Exeter's Guildhall Shopping Centre. On the ground floor below, a red throne with festive lights all over the back and sides is available for people to sit in for photos.
Red and white striped candy canes covered in lights, hanging from cables, also covered in lights, from the ceiling in Exeter's Guildhall Shopping Centre.
A model of 2 large gold reindeer pulling a red sleigh in Exeter's Guildhall Shopping Centre. Children can fit inside the sleigh to have their photo taken.
Two very tall red and white striped candy canes standing in an outdoor area of Exeter's Guildhall Shopping Centre, by the entrance to a corridor that leads to the inside of the shopping centre.
A tall box with open corners that people can walk through, featuring a vertical wall of lights in the centre on each side, and a large red bow with lit edges on the roof.

The Princesshay shopping centre also had some nice decorations up, along with the striking Blue Boy statue and Doug Hyde’s One Love sculpture.

A statue of a smartly dressed young boy with wavy hair, holding a hat in one hand and book in the other, located in the Princesshay shopping centre in Exeter. The entire sculpture is a striking blue colour.
The plaque on the Blue Boy statue in the Princesshay shopping centre. The inscription reads as follows. This statue of a blue boy stood in the courtyard of Saint John's Hospital School, founded on this site as a Bluecoat school by the Chamber of Exeter, A.D. 1636 in the dissolved mediaeval hospital of Saint John the Baptist. The school continued until 1931 in the new buildings erected in 1859, which were destroyed by enemy action on May 4th 1942.
Princesshay shopping centre in Exeter. Large wreaths, covered in white, silver and gold baubles, hang at regular intervals from the arched glass ceiling over the corridor, above the shoppers and the Blue Boy statue.
A large Christmas tree covered in white, gold and silver baubles, and lots of small lights, in an outdoor area of the Princesshay shopping centre in Exeter.
A large sculpture of a white figure with bulbous feet and a big round head, which simply has a black line drawn in a big smile and 2 black dots for eyes. The figure is holding a large silver heart, that is reflecting the people walking around him.

There were a few nice sights in the High Street too, including a large Christmas bauble that people can walk through, and artistic sights I’ve seen before, including the Pedestrian and Riddle sculptures, and the Urban Outfitters Mural by Vhils. I’m glad John Lewis and M&S are still there as well, I did have a quick look in the Christmas departments in both of those.

The Pedestrian sculpture outside Boots on Exeter High Street, showing 3 adults and 2 children. The figures are all linked together, as if slightly morphing into each other, and their faces have minimal detailing, with simple hairstyles and indentations for eye sockets.
Inscription on the plaque for the Pedestrian sculpture in Exeter High Street, which reads 88/9 Year of the Pedestrian. This sculpture was unveiled on 28th April 1989 by Councillor Al Sayers CBE BA, Chairman of Devon County Council to commemorate the Year of the Pedestrian. Mr Hawkins OBE, County Engineer & Planning Officer. Sculpture by Carole Vincent.
A large bauble-shaped structure on the High Street in Exeter that people can walk through.
Side view of the large bauble-shaped structure on the High Street in Exeter that people can walk through, decorated with gold and silver snowflakes, and covered in lots of small lights.
The Riddle sculpture in Exeter High Street, a tall triangular column with 8 panels, stretching the full height of the sculpture, standing out from the centre. Large metal balls fill the gaps between the panels around the base. The surfaces all reflect the light and scenery around them. In fact, every metal panel has a riddle engraved upon it in mirror writing, which you can read in its reflection on the adjacent panel.

And finally, there was a tall Christmas tree outside Exeter Central railway station as well, which was a nice way to be greeted on arriving in the city.

A very tall Christmas tree, covered in white lights, outside Exeter Central railway station.

Bay Of Lights

Back in Torquay, and I finished my mini holiday by having a look at the Bay Of Lights on the seafront. This is a 1½ mile trail that’s in place until 2 January, running from 4:30pm until 11pm every day (with music and sound elements turned off at 9:30pm). There’s a map you can download that shows the main points of interest, and there are other things you can glimpse along the way too. It’s funded by Torbay Council, SWISCo and the English Riviera BID Company, along with the support of many local business and organisations, so it’s a collaborative effort to bring some festive cheer to the area.

The first part of the trail goes around Abbey Park by Torre Abbey, just over the road from the Premier Inn, beginning with a large snowflake and ending with a tunnel of light. I saw both of those, as they’re right next to the entrances to the park, but I didn’t venture in very far to see the other installations, as I quickly discovered that there’s no lighting at all on some of the pathways leading to the other displays, so it was impossible for me to move around safely. So that was a bit of a shame.

A large white model of the top half of a snowflake, with a central opening that people can walk through and pose under to have photos taken. A sign attached above the opening has a blue picture of a palm tree and the words English Riviera, Naturally Inspiring.
People walking through a tunnel of bright festive lights in Abbey Park in Torquay.

I was able to see the rest of the trail though, which is found by going over the footbridge – itself lit up in changing colours – to the promenade, and from there the remaining installations take you all the way around to the harbour. The most prominent is a tall animated pixel tree, a bit like the Tree Of Kindness I’ve seen at Charing Cross, and Paignton and Brixham also have one each apparently. Meanwhile other displays include a comet, a walkway with colour-changing arches, and an octopus. I found the lighting on the route to be variable, but it was usually enough for me to get around easily, and I took things slowly and carefully in the dimmer sections, following other people where necessary.

A very tall tree-like structure, covered in pixels that are showing animated red and white patterns. A brightly lit yellow star sits on top of the tree.
The cliffs of Rock Walk Gardens in Torquay, bathed in multicoloured lighting, including yellow, green, blue and purple.
A sculpture of an octopus sitting up and smiling. Its body is covered in white festive lights, while it has round blue eyes and a small blue hat on its head.
A large sculpture of a comet with a big star at one end, covered in festive lights. It forms a large archway that people can walk through, or stand under to have photos taken.

Because photos can’t truly represent all the animations and colour changes, I’ve also put together a little compilation video to give a sense of what it was like. Obviously I can’t include the music they used for copyright reasons, suffice to say there were the obvious Christmas hits by Mariah Carey, Elton John, Slade, Cliff Richard and so on, plus tracks like Heaven Is A Place On Earth by Belinda Carlisle, Shotgun by George Ezra, Blinding Lights by The Weeknd and even Walk This Way by Run DMC & Aerosmith!

Sure, it doesn’t compare to London’s displays, but then I never expected it to. It still looks nice and brings a welcome amount of light and colour to the seafront. And given how busy it was on the Saturday night I was there, with lots of families exploring the trail, it does appear to have had the desired effect of bringing the tourists out, which is great.

Conclusion

So there you have it, that was my little stay down in Devon recently. It was lovely to go back there and see some of my old friends again, so thank you to everyone who took the time to meet up, and I look forward to returning during the year ahead.

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Author: Glen

Love London, love a laugh, love life. Visually impaired blogger, culture vulture & accessibility advocate, with aniridia & nystagmus, posting about my experiences & adventures.

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