Snowdays

I cannot remember ever having a snowday. And now I have had two in a row. On the Sunday the weather was quite bad: fine snow but hard winds made for very tricky driving conditions. Not that I tried, as work was cancelled before I had gotten in the car. 

I decided that instead I would go for a walk. It was heaving with people who all had had the same idea as me. It was good to be out though and I saw several small birds (robins, tits, sparrows) trying to find some food under the snow. I also saw a hare as it was being chased by a dog. Its owner was calling it back in vain (the dog, not the hare). From what I saw the hare was winning, but then they were out of sight.

On Monday the wind had abated somewhat, but it was still snowing and the company I work for didn't think it a good idea to get out on the road in those conditions. Not for us drivers, not for the passengers. This time I had made it to work though and knew that the main roads were open, but there was still a lot of snow drift happening.

I went back via the storage facility where all my things are most of my things are and dug out my snow boots and several other good things to have in winter. Then I went home, changed out of my uniform and went for another walk. 

This time there were not that many people. Most were working (from home) or in school and I had the place more or less to myself. No hare to be seen this time, but I did see some birds again. Every time I got close to take a photo though, they flew off!

On Tuesday I again made my way to work and this time I was actually asked to do something as well. However, after a short break there wasn't a bus for me to use on a route, so they sent me home with a bus that was nearing empty. 

Today I was off and I did a short walk through the neighbourhood. Tomorrow I am back at work. Perhaps by then services will be back to normal. Most bigger roads are now clear and the bus routes usually get some extra attention.

I haven't built a snowman yet and I have seen very few anyway. The snow was so fine it doesn't really stick nicely. And even though it is below zero during the day, it is already starting to melt once the sun comes out. I did put out some sunflower seeds for the birds though, they just haven't seen them yet I think.

All photos and short video from my walk on Monday

Photo on Sunday 2021-03

 

As work was cancelled due to the weather, I thought I would go out for a walk...

Did you miss me?

Home is where I hang my hat...

You may have noticed I haven't been around for a while. As I told you in my last post, I was about to go on a short holiday in the Highlands of the Netherlands. Even though they prefer you to stay home, they do allow you to travel to another destination to have a short break there.

And this was that home. The open window was my room.

I took a laptop with me, but when I hooked it up, I couldn't get connected, so I hooked it down again and put it out of the way. I didn't really miss it either. But you want to know about what happened to me and the sights I saw. Well...

We were ready for this holiday!

Not much happened. A h-attack had started on the Thursday before my trip and apart from the Sunday and to a degree the Thursday during my trip, I had to deal with that. There was also quite large amounts of rain coming down on occasion, not making it that attractive to go out and walk.

Find the squirrel

On the Sunday I did though and I did a walk around the holiday home park. Through mud and fields, sloshing my way back to the cottage. It wasn't a long walk by any stretch of the imagination, but I had gone out. 

I knew the headache was coming back (it always does, 2-3 days on the left, 1-2 days off, 2-3 days on the right), so had to change my plans accordingly. So, instead of a walk a day, I would take it easy, hope the h wouldn't get too bad and go on my big walk abroad on Thursday. 

I could have made a fire as well, but thought it was too much work.

It didn't happen that way. On Monday the weather was crappy, the h was manageable, on Tuesday the h was there with a vengeance and stayed until Wednesday. Thursday did see me get out to walk, but I wasn't going to drive somewhere first, I was staying close to home.

Limburg is the province we were in.

Fortunately the weather was nice, so Brom and I decided to see whether we could find the castle that was supposed to be close by. Again I sloshed through wet and muddy fields, found a path I could follow and came to a standstill when I saw I had to walk through a big puddle. 

Carnaval would not be celebrated this year,
but there were plenty of signs this was Carnaval Country!

There was some grass on the verge, right next to the barb wire fence, but even so, after only a few steps, the grass went down and so did my foot. Right into the water. Well, in for a penny, in for a pound as they say, so I sloshed on and by the end, my shoe was nice and clean (ahem).

Aerwinkel Castle

After that the path was fine and I ended up in a small village. From there it was only a short distance to the castle and Brom and I weren't disappointed. Mind you, I say castle, but it was more of an elaborate manor or mansion really. A place that in the right light would look really spooky as well. We were both happy though and made our way back to the cottage.

This used to be a typical house for the area and it was my favourite.

The week was therefore mainly spent watching my DVD's of Eureka (a sci-fi show I loved), crocheting,
eating chocolate (I fulfilled that promise) and enjoying the me-time in a lovely and especially quiet part of the world. I also enjoyed the birds and the squirrels in the garden. 

So, even though I had a headache throughout, I did enjoy my time and it was nice to be able to relax on my own. Definitely something to be done again in the future. Perhaps even in the same place as I really enjoyed it there. 

View from the living area

Away

There are times when living with my parents during a lockdown, however great my parents are, just gets to me a bit. And as work is now a bit less due to that very same lockdown, I thought I chance it and get a few days extra off. 

One phone call later and I was the proud 'owner' of a week off. Well, eight days to be exact. And they start today! But, as I said in the first paragraph: living with my parents gets to me a bit. So, I looked around for somewhere to go. 

In the end the choice was between two areas of the country: the Highlands or the Islands. And no, I haven't moved to Scotland! The Highlands are basically the highest parts of the Netherlands, down South, between Germany and Belgium. Have you heard of André Rieu? Well, he is from that area.

The Islands are the complete opposite as they are in the North and located in the 'Waddenzee'. Fresh sea breezes, birds aplenty, perhaps even a seal or two. Plus a ferry to get there. In the end my choice was...

The Highlands! 

And that is where I am going today and I am not coming back until next Friday. By which time I hope to have plenty of stories, plenty of photos and a very relaxed Mara. Brom and Mouse are coming, Miss O is not. She doesn't do traveling.

There will be walking, some sightseeing, a trip to Germany and Belgium (well, one step into either country, max), television, films, chocolate, perhaps some alcohol, a fire in the fire place and plenty more. Oh, and did I mention chocolate?

See you next week!

Photos all taken during my first River Vecht walk

The first of many

Last Thursday I made my way to the bus stop close to home and took the bus into town. From there I was going to walk the first bit of a route that is well over 200 km. The Dutch part is about 90 km, the German part would be the rest. But, I felt I would start with the Dutch part first. Mostly because international travel is not possible for 'just a walk'. 

The walk is called the 'Valley of the Vecht Route' and leads you along the River Vecht (or Vechte in German) and its surrounding area. When I looked at it more closely it was actually amazing how much of the river I would actually get to see. 

St Michael in front of the Great or St Michael's Church

Case in point: the first stretch, in which I did not get to see it at all! I saw other waterways, most notably the one the Vecht is emptying into, but not the river itself. Mind you, I only did about 12,5 km, and I know the next stretch will lead me towards it and along it.

The start point was in the center of town and by the second sign I had already missed a fair few as I was just walking about a bit. Fortunately I know the center and was able to make my way to the part where I needed to come out, but it was still a bit annoying as I might have seen some more nice things along the way. They will have to wait until another day.

The cycle route and the walking route overlap at points

The day itself was windy. Very very windy. But the sun was out for most of the walk, my legs felt fresh (for the first three km anyway) and I went for it. And went for it. And went for it. By the end, I felt myself lagging a bit, as it was further than I had done before.

I had gone for that route for two reasons really: Firstly, I want to do something that does have a particular goal, in this case the source of the River Vecht. My second reason was to test myself and more importantly the knee. How would it fare on a longer stretch? I know the knee will hurt afterward, that is nothing new, but how long will it bother me after that? 

When I started walking again last June, even a short distance would then see me barely move for four to five days, recovering from the pain. As time went on, the recovery period lessened, even though the distances grew. And I am glad to say that this time around it was much the same: only one day of real pain, one day of moderate pain and then I was right as rain again.

As I have very thick/fat knees (can't remember a time when I didn't), wearing braces has proved to be nearly impossible. They just don't fit and if I do get it around, it will tear easily. I tried a brace bandage as well and that was even worse as it kept loosening and falling off!

Step by step

As you know my goal for this year was to reach (at least) 790.8 kilometers and so far I am doing fine. The goal for the first month is getting in sight and I still have about two weeks left of this month! Not that it is all plain sailing. 

For the past few weeks I have changed the source of the walks from the forestry commission to a general network of walks. And not one of those walks has really met the standards of the forestry commission. Missing signs, vandalised signs and last Saturday I found half of the walk was closed of, which was not mentioned online.

I could understand the why: to give migrating birds time to rest and come spring, time to nest and raise their young. Apparently. As the path was closed from October 1st until April 15th. Not many birds have raised their young by then I think. 

Anyway, that missing part was annoying to say the very least. I had done the worst or ugliest part first, so I could end up by walking along the dyke and see plenty of birds in and around the river delta. I had been looking forward to it. So, when the gate was closed and I read the sign, I was a bit peeved off. Had I known it in advance, I would have picked another walk elsewhere.

Inflatable rubber dam that is used in case of high water.

Another walk I did, saw me lose my way three times. Fortunately I knew the general direction of where I was supposed to go, so I did find it again, but if it had been in a place where I knew nothing, it would have been a different matter and taken the enjoyment out of the walk.

The one thing that is bothering me sometimes is the knee. It keeps hurting after longer walks, although it is now recovering quicker than it did at the beginning. And as I tell my parents: whether I do a three, five or nine kilometer walk: the pain is the same, so I might as well do the longer walk.

Photos were taken on the walk where a part was closed off. It was cold that day and the sky grey with snow laden skies.

Stumped

On my recent 'Friends' post, Anvilcloud posted a comment which went as follows: Do you wish that you had stayed in Norway, or at least have stayed longer and not gone to Ireland?

It was a question which I have had before and every time I have given a 'sort of' answer. This time however, I will attempt to give you a proper honest answer. 

My life in Norway was pretty good. Especially on the social side I was doing fine with friends and nice colleagues that I actually did things with. Swimming, walking, cycling, even on occasion going out. I still miss that a lot. 

The work side of things was not that great which had more to do with me than with the job if I am going to be honest. That especially made me think about moving to be closer to my sister a bit more often. Then my mum got sick (all better now) and it hit home even more. And that's when I did the wrong thing.

What I should have done was look at my options, do my research, the way I had done when I moved out to Norway (even though that was inadequate as well). Research into the job I eventually got would have been a bit pointless, as it was a new company. However, research into the country I was moving to would definitely have been a good move. What actually happened was that I moved within the space of six weeks!

The fact that my sister already lived there got me over the line faster than it would have done otherwise. In fact, had my sister not lived in Northern Ireland, I would never have contemplated even to move there. Scotland, Wales, England: yes. Northern Ireland: no. 

To be clear here: Northern Ireland is part of the United Kingdom and Ireland is a separate country to the south. I had severe prejudices about Northern Ireland. And in my time there, I barely got to meet enough people to prove me wrong. The fact that I worked all the time didn't help either. 

Do I wish that I had stayed in Norway then? Not so much, yet subconsciously.... I dream about Norway and moving to Norway a lot. In different forms, guises and such, but a lot. Should I have stayed longer? Yes. Definitely. 

Do I wish I had never moved to Northern Ireland? No, I don't. Even if it was a failure, I did give it a go and did learn more about myself. Should I then have moved back to Norway instead of to the Netherlands? No, as that would have meant being far from family yet again.

The big question now is: will I ever move abroad again and where to in that case? Never say never of course, but for now the answer is no. I don't know what the future will hold and perhaps in two years time you will find me back in Norway, but for now my home is in the Netherlands. Even if it is only an attic room at my parents'...

All photos taken on a recent walk in and around Kampen

Photo on Sunday 2021-02

White roll with smoked salmon and a cold chocolate milk (the only real one). My reward after one of my walks.

 

Friends

To Preikestolen with one of my friends

As you may know I spent a few years living and working in Norway. The first few months were hard and I did lose weight as I didn't know what was good to eat and what wasn't. Once I had found out, the weight came back. 

However, it wasn't until my sister came for the second or third time that I learned about the great Bamsemums. Basically chocolate covered marshmallows in the shape of teddy bears. She loved them and soon got me hooked. Not too often, but on occasion I could eat a whole bag of them.

I bite the head off first!

Fast forward to last year. As my sister could not come and see us for the third time in a row, we decided to get her a December box. Basically an advent calendar that went on until December 31st. Containing lots of useful things like hankies, chocolates, ginger nuts, pens and several other things. Accompanied by short badly written poems.

There was however one thing I needed my Norwegian friends for: Bamsemums. So, I put out a plea to them and within ten minutes one of my friends had promised to send some. Half of which I duly sent on to my sister. 

Then yesterday a package arrived. Containing clothes that I had ordered. In a smaller size as I am losing weight you see. But next to that package was another one. Huh? Oh, it was from Norway! 

Yummmmmmmm

My friends and former colleagues in Norway had pooled together and bought lots of different Norwegian chocolate, including several more bags of Bamsemums. The chocolate is great, the friends even better!

And as my mum said: the clothes will keep! 

The state of affairs part 2

I liked these and was quite ticked off when they broke.

The next new thing is about my glasses. I had trouble seeing the screens in the bus when wearing sunglasses. They were polarised and it meant that some things needed to be tilted slightly in order to see. Annoying when you are driving and you have to keep turning your head to actually use the navigational tool (see the second photo of yesterday's post).

Then my regular glasses broke. Well, the leg of one came off and could not be fixed anymore. I had some spare pair that I used, but I knew it was time to get my eyes checked again anyway. When I got my glasses back in 2018 in Northern Ireland I was told/warned that I would probably need multifocal glasses next time, but I wanted to keep that at bay for a while longer: finances you know!

A great Christmas present

I had my eyes checked at the optician's and as he prepared to put the final pair on my face to see how they suited, he gave me a piece of paper to read as well. As I was struggling my way through it, he also put another bit on the end and all of a sudden I could read. Multifocal it was...

I ordered six pairs again, as there was a deal going: get three, pay for one. My only gripe about the whole glasses at that point was that they were all so big. Over the past few years I have worn glasses that were quite nice and fairly small. The new ones are nearly double the size and even after a week and a half I am not liking them. However, unless I am willing to fork out lots of money (I am not), these will have to do for the foreseeable future.

Yeah, not my favourite size: they show the bags under my eyes more!

What about the glasses themselves though? I had only gone multifocal on my regular glasses and that was hard enough. I am slowly getting used to them and when reading and watching television they are great. For walking I am still on the fence, even though I do wear them. The first couple of days were really tough though. They tired me out tremendously and even now I notice the difference, although it is getting less noticeable.