Cape Island is so darn cute at the holidays that it just makes you want to go home and bake cookies. Of course the highlight of the month is the Annual West Cape May Christmas Parade which will no doubt be over by the time most of you read this. Always held the first Saturday in December, this year’s 42^nd annual parade will fall on December 1. Kick off is at 5 p.m. and it begins at the West Cape May Borough Hall, proceeds along Broadway, turns onto West Perry where it winds into town and ends at Carpenters Lane and Ocean Street.
   Another event which attracts both locals and tourists alike is the annual Washington Street Mall Association’s Candlelight Hospitality Night, Thursday and Friday, December 6-7 from 7-9 p.m. Now, brace yourself. The mall will not look like it usually does with twinkle lights and festive decorations all around. Work began in earnest on renovation of the mall in November and there is a 30-foot-wide construction area going down the middle of all three blocks. But workers, city officials and engineers have come together to keep the mall open for business. Plus, storekeepers went out of their way this year to brighten up their storefronts just so you won’t be too disappointed. Besides, think of how beautiful it will all look in the spring.
   Because of the mall renovation, the folks the Mid-Atlantic Center for the Arts (MAC) went out of their way this year to make the grounds at Physick Estate at 1048 Washington Street, a holiday wonderland. Be sure to check it out. The MAC Christmas Community Wasssail Party on December 12 is a particularly good time to visit the Physick Estate. The Carriage House Gallery will feature an exhibit of Christmas traditions called, appropriately enough - An Old-Fashioned Christmas: Holiday Traditions Through the Years. The Physick House will be open for self-guided tours and refreshments will be served 7-9 p.m. The event is free and open to the public. A donation of non-perishable food items will be accepted for the Community Food Bank of Cape May. For more information, call
800-275-4278 or visit www.capemaymac.org.
   Locals always turn out in droves for the Center for Community Arts’ (CCA) Great Cookie Exchange held this year Monday, December 3 from
6-8 p.m. at the Cape May Elementary School on Lafayette Street. Please call 609-884-7525 or visit www.centerforcommunityarts.org for more information.
   If you can’t make it to CCA’s Great Cookie Exchange, then be sure to pop in on the Inn of Cape May on Ocean Street and have tea or breakfast with Santa. This popular MAC-sponsored event is a family friendly event which everyone will enjoy. Tea with Mrs. Claus will be held twice – Saturday, December 1 and Saturday, December 15 at 1:30 p.m. You only get one shot, however at Breakfast with Santa, Saturday, December 8 at 10 a.m. And don’t be late – you know how badly that sits with the big man in the funny red suit. For more information or reservations, call 800-275-4278 or visit www.capemaymac.org.
   For more adult fare in the culinary world of Cape May, there are any number of offerings at the Mad Batter, 19 Jackson Street, at 1 p.m. including Holiday Cooking Class, Saturday, December 8 which includes lunch. Sign up early, the class is limited to 30 people. Additionally, December 14, there is a Wine Dinner—Old World and New World Wines at the Mad Batter. Enjoy a five-course dinner, comparing the types and tastes of wines produced in Europe with those of the New World. 7:30 p.m. Limited to 60. For more information, call 800-275-4278 or visit www.capemaymac.org.
   Throughout the month, there are a number of other food activities which even the most persnickety of gourmands should find pleasing. From a Wine Cellar Tasting – spend an afternoon at Cape May Winery which includes a tour of the vineyard to see how grapes are grown, an introduction to the winemaker’s art, and a barrel tasting with cheese, fruit, and a complimentary glass of wine – to a Taste of Christmas Tour that involves taking a walking tour of Cape May’s Historic District, followed by lunch at the Mad Batter restaurant. Culminating with a Spirited Cape May Weekend (December 14-16). Triple your enjoyment by combining a Wine Tasting Dinner, a Winery Cellar Tour and a Wine School Class for a weekend of total indulgence. The four-course Wine Tasting Dinner will be held 6 p.m., Friday, December 14, at the Washington Inn, 801 Washington Street. Guests will be treated to individual attention by the wine steward. Next day, enjoy a guided tour and tasting at the award-winning Cape May Winery.
   So, after all that eating and imbibing, why not settle down for a night of enriching theatrical entertainment? Our little island enjoys the pleasure of two, count ‘em two equity theaters – The Robert Shackelton Playhouse at Cape May Stage on Lafayette Street and East Lynne Theater located in First Presbyterian Church at the corner of Hughes and Decatur streets. This month East Lynne is bringing Louisa May Alcott (who’s summer home is the Hotel Alcott on Grant Street) to life in Louisa May Alcott’s Christmas December 2, 7, 8 at 8:30 p.m., with Gayle Stahlhuth, as Louisa, relating the stories of the March family Christmas from Little Women, and other Christmas stories penned by this famous American author. For more information, call 800-275-4278 or visit www.capemaymac.org.
   Charlie Bethel’s The Seven Poor Travelers is finishing up at The Robert Shackelton Playhouse December 2, followed by Every Christmas Ever Told (December 5-30) written by three local playwrights – Cape May State Artistic Director Michael Carleton, actor/author James Fitzgerald and local favorite John Alvarez. The theater is open Thursdays through Saturdays at 8 p.m., Sundays at 3 p.m. For more information, visit www.capemaystage.com or call (609) 884-1341.
   What kind of Victorian town would we be if we didn’t have a Dickens Extravaganza in December?  Sponsored by MAC December 2-4 enjoy the sights, sounds, tastes and scents of the Dickens era. A variety of lectures and performances about Dickens and the Victorian world will be offered daily. The festivities conclude with a proper Victorian feast. $150 per person. Separate admission for many events. Complete packages with accommodations are available.
   And of course, nobody does tours like MAC. There’s a plethora of them to choose from. Some of the more popular ones include Santa’s Trolley Ride – bring the kids to the Physick Estate on weekends for a ride around Cape May on the Santa Trolley. Each ride has a special guest aboard – Mrs. Claus, one of the elves or maybe the man in the red suit himself. Or feeling spiritual? Try the Ghosts of Christmas Past Trolley Ride – enjoy an evening trolley ride through the Historic District while listening to ghost stories of holidays past. Sunday, December 2 through Wednesday December 5. Tours last about 30 minutes. Times vary.
   And of course, no visit of the island would be complete during the holidays without the 34th Annual Christmas Candlelight House Tour: This self-guided tour, the main attraction of Cape May's festive holiday season, features homes, inns, hotels and churches decorated for the holidays, plus caroling, strolling musicians and good old-fashioned cheer. Hospitality centers offer warm beverages and home-baked treats. Includes admission to the Physick Estate and the Carriage House Gallery. Continuous shuttle service on heated trolleys is available. Tours are December 1, 8 and 15 from 5:30-8:30 p.m. Or try the Lamplighter Christmas Tour: Relive the memories of yesteryear by joining in this self-guided evening tour of five of Cape May’s finest bed and breakfast inns, where the innkeepers will share their holiday spirit. Includes a visit to the Carriage House Gallery of the Emlen Physick Estate for warm wassail punch and traditional cookies, and an opportunity to see the exhibit, An Old-Fashioned Christmas: Holiday Traditions Through the Years.
   Well, that ought to keep you busy for while. And don’t forget – there’s no place like Cape May for the holidays. Who knows, if you’ve been good, look up and maybe you’ll get a glimpse of Santa and his reindeers passing through. From all of us at CapeMay.com and Cape May Magazine, we wish you Happy Holidays and a prosperous and healthy New Year.