The Christmas 2024 illustration series -

New Yorks Jungle Plaza

Shop the christmas collection of illustrated cards now live on the Gisela Gayleard Shop.

Read “The Jungle Plaza” christmas story bellow. This Inky Narrative has been written by Gisela Gayleard and Is part of the 2024 copyright for her work.

The Jungle Plaza

It was the week of Christmas, when New York was at its busiest. Children were making their last wishes to Santa, parents were frantically decorating houses, shops were selling their last minute goodies and people were standing at every corner singing Christmas carols.

But there was a place that waited all year for the excitement of Christmas, ‘The Jungle Plaza’.

It was Somewhere where people from all around the city of New York would come each year to spend Christmas, but not only that, it was the only hotel that allowed the animals from all over New York to come and stay too. The exotic animals came from Central Park zoo, the cats wandered down from  Greenwich village, the dogs hidden away down in Brooklyn came running ready with their bags excited for christmas to begin.

Each year, park rangers would collect the animals from around the city ready to stay for Christmas Eve night till new year. The cars would be filled with animals and their luggage, dressed in their best outfits that had been collected over years by the monkeys.

Once arrived the lifts in the Jungle Plaza Hotel would be going up and down with guests holding their Christmas gifts while the animals would be getting themselves equipped with human objects again, like pianos and skis. There was one little cat named Lottie that became the lift musician over christmas, playing classic christmas songs with a little meow here and there.

While the chefs and waiters prepped the food for the annual Christmas party, some of the hotel staff would take the guests and animal visitors down to Central Park for some ice skating.

Over the years, the heavier animals had broken the ice, so this year they came prepared with large  hotel plates and cups for them to skate on for a smoother landing. The waiters were the best Ice skaters, their skill of balance was extraordinary. The dogs were always keen to keep up with them though.

On Christmas Eve night the party began, there was champagne, fire works and Christmas pudding. The guests would dress up in fancy dress that was inspired by New York City. All the guests would sing and dance with each other till the last two standing would make their way up before midnight ready for the last sleep till christmas morning.

Once all the visitors were tucked in their beds, the manager of the jungle plaza ‘Miss Flora’ would go round with gifts for all the guests, the zebras were always on hand to help with strict instructions from Santa to be the backup reindeers for the night. They decked the halls with decorations and ran down the stairs to deliver each present to each child and little cub.

Every guest would wake in the morning with the hotel covered in presents, there would be Christmas morning breakfast in bed and toys being flown out of boxes and stockings.

And then there was one little child that said to Flora “I think I saw Santa and his tiny eight zebras”…..

And miss flora would say “you will have to come back next year to see”. She gave a little wink to the smiling boy, and off she strolled back through the halls of the hotel already thinking of christmas next year at the magical ‘Jungle Plaza”.

The End.