Christmas Advent Calendar Christmas Memories 2011 Outdoor Lights

Last year's visit to the Christmas lights.  Won't go this year they are 5 hours away.

Outdoor light have always been something we loved, but did on a very small scale. Lights around a window or around the porch.  We did love to drive around and see the more elaborate lights. Last year I blogged about the outdoor decorations. 
My most memorable year of viewing Outdoor lights was around 1959.  My parents decided to have a Christmas vacation and we went to visit my aunt who lived in Albuquerque.  There were many fun things around this visit, but the Luminarias Tours was one I would never forget. We did not take pictures.  The small lunch sacks with sand and candles in them, and their being set from the street to the tops of the houses was so beautiful! (If you missed it, you can click on the Lumiarias Tours in the sentence and see a picture) I couldn't believe that either the owners or someone hired by them would vigilantly watch the candles and if one went out, they would replace or relight.  I know there are electrical Luminarias you can purchase now, but it was more than the lights themselves. It was the background of the Spanish style homes, and walls that was so very beautiful. It really felt like maybe you had gone back in time. Visions of old style Spanish missions floated in my head.  Maybe, it was a forerunner to my love of history.