Winter is here and so are the festivities!

Keeping busy could well mean keeping warm! BUNAC plans an extensive programme of social events for participants, all of which are a great ways to make some friends with other BUNAC participants! Our full social diary is shown on our events website which is www.bunac.org/events and we have some crackers coming up to help you enjoy the festive season. It is regularly updated and shows all upcoming events from London as well as photos from previous trips and pub meets.

There are various festive events happening all over the UK throughout the run up to Christmas and New Year. Christmas markets and outdoor ice skating rinks will be set up in town centres nationwide. For those of you, who want to don your skates and carve up the ice in London, why not head to ice rinks in Hyde Park, Greenwich, the Tower of London or Somerset House!

On Saturday 5th December, Covent Garden is hosting the Great Christmas Pudding race at 11.00 am. Teams are made up of 6 people and the actual race is a relay race balancing Christmas puddings on a tray around a challenging course! All money raised goes to charity. Log on to www.xmaspuddingrace.org.uk to find out more.

London itself will be quite quiet on Christmas day, hardly anything will be open and the underground and trains will NOT be running. There will be various places around the city that will be hosting Christmas celebrations if you are not sure what to do!

The International Students House (ISH) will be hosting special Christmas Day events from 12pm onwards, 25th December, including:

• Drinks reception & welcome
• 3 course traditional Christmas dinner
• A group stroll in Regents Park
• Nibbles and tea
• Christmas movie marathon 'til late

Cost: Student £10 Alumni £30 non student £35 (For student & alumni tickets visit the Events Office, with relevant ID)

Also, at Christmas why not go to a traditional Christmas service in St Paul’s Cathedral? On the 24th and 25th December you can get into the spirit by singing some Christmas carols. Go to www.stpauls.co.uk to find out the service schedule.

If you want something a bit more daring to do on Christmas Day, why not head along to a Christmas Day swim in the sea! If you’re living on the coast then it is more than likely there will be a group of rather strange people that work up an appetite for their turkey dinner by having a quick dip in the sea! Those of you who have some sense and would prefer to just spectate, they will be taking place all over the UK including Brighton, Bournemouth and even right here in London’s Hyde Park! The race starts at 9am on the 25th December, on the south bank of the lake close to the Serpentine Café (the old pavilion), London. Spectators are most welcome, but are advised to wrap up warm. Have a look at www.serpentineswimmingclub.com for more information. If you’re outside London, keep an eye out for advertisements in your local paper.

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We have 1 ticket to give away for our Bruges day trip on Saturday 19th December. We will be leaving London bright and early by coach to catch a ferry across the English Channel and will continue our journey to Bruges. We will have approximately 4 hours in the city so plenty of time to indulge in yummy Belgian chocolate and beer and to wander around and enjoy the beautiful city. It’s a great day out and to be in with a chance of winning a ticket you need to send an e-mail to wib@bunac.org.uk with the subject title 'Bruges Prize draw'. The ticket is worth £39 and if you don’t win, tickets are available right now just give us a call or pop by the office. We will make the draw on Friday 11th December.

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If you are looking to get away over the Christmas period then maybe one of the following Christmas getaway packages might just be the one for you!

Visit www.haggisadventures.com and check out their great ‘Christmas in a Castle’ and ‘Mega Christmas’ and the ‘Hogmanay’ tours. The tours take in Edinburgh, Fort William and Loch Ness where you might catch a glimpse of the all famous Loch Ness monster! The best part of the trip is to spend Christmas Day in a haunted Highland castle! Use the ‘BUNACUK’ promotional code to get 15% off.

International Friends are offering various trips around the Christmas period. They will be in Paris for Christmas and have some day trips on Boxing day also. Take a look at their website, www.internationalfriends.co.uk. Use the code ‘BUNAC10’ to receive a £10 discount.

Fancy a white Christmas, guaranteed? Then www.karibuni.co.uk do some great deals over the Christmas week to the Alps staying in catered chalets. Check out their website for their special Christmas Ski Holidays 2009!

New Year is a huge celebration and there are lots of different ways to enjoy it! If you’re in the capital, there will be a fireworks display from the London Eye on New Years Eve to mark the beginning of 2010. Trafalgar Square is also another popular place to see in twenty ten, tradition is to listen to the Big Ben countdown into New Year from here. If you wanted to see midnight in at an organised bar event in London or anywhere else you will more than likely have to buy tickets in advance so look out for promotions now to avoid disappointment!

If you’re not feeling too lacklustre from the New Year’s Eve celebrations why not head to the free annual New Years day parade in London starting from 12 noon Parliament Square and heading to Piccadilly. Artists from all over the world will head to the streets of London to start 2010 off with a bang.

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The Christmas and New Year period for many in the UK, is not complete without a trip to the Panto! Enjoyed by children and adults alike, you become accustomed to them as a child and whilst they may seem a bit naff when you are in your teens, you are keen to go and see them again, as you get a bit older! There will be pantomimes all over the UK, some professional, others amateur, either way you are promised some Dad and Uncle type jokes, pantomime Dames and some c-list celebrities too! Check local press for more information, but it’s a great tradition and one we would recommend partaking in!

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Please note that the BUNAC office will be closed the following days over the holiday period:

On Wednesday 23rd and 30th December we will be closing at 5:30pm not 7pm.

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Please remember that you need to fill out your report cards to keep BUNAC up to date with your details. Your 2nd report card needs to be completed once you have a job and a place to live and your 3rd report card needs to be filled out when you have finished on the programme. You can complete your report cards quickly and easily online at our website www.bunac.org/incoming.

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For those of you that haven’t already joined us on Facebook, this is just a reminder that BUNAC has an official Work in Britain group. So if you are a CURRENT participant and want to keep up to date with all of our social events and stay in touch with other BUNAC participants around Britain, click on this link to join: www.bunac.org/facebook. We hope you enjoy these pages!

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Remember that BUNAC staff are always happy to help you with any questions or concerns. Call (020) 7251 3472 to speak with Caroline and Amanda.

Incoming Programmes, BUNAC, 16 Bowling Green Lane, London, EC1R 0QH.
Email: wib@bunac.org.uk