Christmas At Bergdorf Goodman

Our annual Manhattan window-viewing stroll involves a twenty block walk up 5th Avenue. By the time we arrived at Bergdorf's (saving the best for last) our fingers and toes required a trip inside. Any day of the year, this is what a grand department store is supposed to look like. In December, the creamy paneling and elegant chandeliers become a wonderland of white, with snow-laden trees and frosty branches. Taxidermized doves, swans and peacocks roost above the vitrines displaying diamond rings and opal necklaces.  Against all this white, the clutch of pastel handbags hovering on glass shelves off in the distance looked positively delicious. It's reassuring to know that a Grand Dame of retailing still reigns.