Stroll down most any street and you're apt to come across a few parking signs, a flier or two stapled to a pole, and some shops, restaurants, and trees, in no particular order.
But there's one famous thoroughfare that skips all of that typical stuff in favor of 15,000-slice city-shaped cakes, Learjets parked in the middle of the lane, and, yes, incredibly valuable Baccarat chandeliers hanging above it all.
Oh, Rodeo Drive. You are something. Never, ever change.
The unusual lighting implements, the sort of bauble-beautiful pieces you might see in a hotel ballroom or palace foyer, make their grand Beverly Hills debut, with the help of Gearys Beverly Hills, on Sunday, Nov. 23. There are 16 chandeliers in all, all of impressive size, and, for sure, they boast their own protective, clear boxes.
Call the Beverly Hills holiday chandeliers the only Christmas lighting in the world that comes with its own detail, or at least a handy method for keeping all of that Baccarat crystal clean, sparkly, and safe.
The worth of the display, if you're curious? You're curious: It's a million cool ones.
The grand holiday lighting ceremony starts at 6 p.m. on Nov. 23. While the chandeliers will certainly be the talked-about feature of the night, fireworks, a snowfall, musical performances, celebrity cameos, and the flipping of the switch on some 150,000 lights will also go down.
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Or up, since most visitors will be gazing skyward, at the chandeliers. If you want to get a closer view of the night's doings, the Luxe Hotel has a stay-over package on called "First Row on Rodeo Drive." The hotel is plum in the middle of the party, so this could be an ideal place to plant if you want to be in the thick of it, with prime views.
But everyone'll have a great view of the 42 lit-up palm trees, dotting the all-aglow area. This is Southern California after all, and we must have our gussied-up palms, an iconic symbol of the season around here if there ever was one.
Chandeliers work too, of course, as posh icons of the Golden Triangle. The presentation of the Baccarat pieces, by the by, is in celebration of the company's 250th anniversary.
Let it never be said that Rodeo Drive doesn't go all out in all matters of over-the-top-ness, Learjets, massive cakes, and million-dollar crystal-glow installations.
The Beverly Hills Holiday Lighting is free to attend.
