Alicia Ojeda and her young daughter sat in the giant Ticket Concourse hall in Union Station with hundreds of others, anxiously awaiting the start of the holiday festivities on Monday night, Nov. 25.
The mother and daughter came from South Los Angeles to see Santa switch on the 30-foot Christmas tree, listen to music from Los Rebeldes Romanticos, and sip hot chocolate in the historic train station’s north patio, said Ojeda. Her daughter, however, was wishing for something else.
“Cats,” said Anastasia, twice. “Cats.” To which her mother quickly answered: “Oh, she just loves cats.”
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Well, the night may have disappointed Anastasia, but the crowd seemed to enjoy the 9th Annual Tree Lighting Ceremony put on by Metro Arts and LA Metro. There were no cats, per se, but there were fairies and angels adorned with electric white lights swirling their wings, and golden stars dancing in the moonlit patio — both performed on stilts — who stirred the imagination of tiny tots with eyes all aglow.
Two elves in green were dwarfed by a large pot-bellied Santa in a red suit who wondered how the tree would light just by the touch of a wireless button on stage. “I don’t see any cables. Do you think it will work?” he mused, then touched the button and added golden, twinkling lights to the tree, sending oohs from the patient crowd.
LA Metro CEO Stephanie Wiggins and Whittier City Councilmember and Metro vice chair Fernando Dutra greeted the large crowd and helped with the tree-lighting. After getting a hug from St. Nick, Wiggins thanked him for her greatest gift so far this season.
“I’ve been on the good list, Santa, all year long. We now have 1 million people riding Metro every day,” she announced. She was referring to September and October ridership on the vast Metro system surpassing the one million mark for the first time since before the pandemic, with average weekday ridership at 1,025,262 in October, the latest figures available.
The standing-only crowd craned their necks to see the band, who revived the Los Angeles Bolero movement with their melodic Latin American ballads and cumbias. In between, they snuck in some Christmas classics singing in English, “Let It Snow,” a wish that, well, wasn’t happening in balmy Los Angeles. Even the clouds had parted outside, chasing away intermittent rain sprinkles.
Can Los Angeles properly celebrate the holidays without snow, weather that’s frightful, or chestnuts roasting on an open fire?
Just ask Yolanda McClamb, who came from Culver City riding the Metro E Line train to attend her first-ever holiday celebration in Union Station. “There are many events across Los Angeles that have that kind of holiday spirit,” McClamb said. She has attended other shows in the 1939 building, celebrating its 85th year anniversary.
Union Station serves Metro’s A, B and D lines and a fleet of Metrolink and Amtrak trains, and a bus plaza, where folks can get across the city and to and from LAX.
Many parents and children waited in long lines to greet Santa and have their pictures taken. Just before the event, those exiting the A Line train received free tamales from a vendor, as part of the festival.
McClamb mentioned other events she’s experienced at Union Station, including the model train show and a video game extravaganza event in the recent past. But on Monday night, she discovered a new band and Boleros music. And she drew hope and encouragement from the crowd to begin the holiday season.
“We just love the spirit, the camaraderie and the amazing music selection,” she said.
Dutra expressed a wish of togetherness for the season during this difficult political season for many in Southern California.
“I want Angelenos to have a happy, safe Christmas. I want everyone to come together, put politics aside and focus on the reason why we are here for the Christmas season,” he said in an interview after the tree lighting.
Los Angeles Conservancy will be conducting 90-minute “Holidays at Union Station” tours on Dec. 5, 12 and 19 starting at 5:30 p.m. The guided tours will take visitors through the historic station at night highlighting the holiday décor. To register for tours go to: Tours & Events – LA Conservancy.