The Cold North Sea, Day 2

One of the goals for this trip was to relax and rest. That is what this day turned into.

I felt fine when I woke up. Within half an hour my intestines made their presence known, and I will spare you the details. I finally felt well enough by midday to go for a walk, then took a nap when Norbert walked out to the beach later on.

His latest hobby is restoring old radios, and he brought one with him, so he was happy to stay in and work on that.

We took another walk in the afternoon, despite the cold, the wind and the drizzle.

Wanted to eat at The Grill this evening, but like so much else here, it was closed today. So we ended up at Pizza & Pasta. Norbert had lasagne which he said was bland and I had spaghetti bolognese which was fine.

Watching Germany playing GB in football (soccer) this evening.

Have felt better all afternoon, so tomorrow will hopefully be good again.

The Cold North Sea, Day One

Monday, 18 November

We both got up early enough to see Lucas before he left for school at 7 a.m. Later Norbert made a last-minute grocery store run.

We left the house at about 11:15. The Netherlands has done a lot of work on their highways and the trip was very smooth and easy.

The weather is nothing to praise, except to say it was dry. Gray all day, with the car lights turning themselves on. Only about 6°C.

Along the way and near the coast we saw hundreds if not thousands of water birds, both in the water and flying in swarms. Fascinating! There were also many, many swans. I love them so much and it is so wonderful to see them in the wild.

We stopped at the outlook tower so Norbert could eat a sandwich, then continued on to the park, arriving shortly after 2. Checked in with our e-ticket in about 2 minutes flat. Parked and walked into the park. Arranged for WIFI for the week. Had a coffee.

We then got the car again and drove to our bungalow. It is a bit hard to find, quite near the Market Place, but on the other hand also very secluded, which is nice. Unpacked and rested a bit. Also stopped in the park's grocery store to get the necessities: fireplace logs, beer and chips!

Then we walked to the beach, about one km each way. COLD! And windy! 

My nose and sinuses have been a bit iffy all day, so I bundled up like an Eskimo. 

Still ran through half a package of tissues, though. 

Wonderful fresh, crisp salt air. 

 Back to the bungalow about 5 p.m. Another rest and then dinner.

Tonight they are having the “Welcome Night” with a '70s and '80s musical theme. We haven't yet decided if we will go or not but the music would be good... I think it is also a clue as to the age range of the people here now … the only children here are pre-school age, the rest of us are getting on the years....

Time flies....

.... when you're having fun! That's the old saying, and it sure holds true for me.

Having a blast with my "retirement" and staying as busy as I want. Getting lots of baking done, and re-acquainting myself with sewing. (I am appalled at how much I have forgotten!)

Two weeks from today Norbert and I take off for five days at the North Sea.  If the weather is good, there will be lots of long walks and bike rides. If not, there will be lots of days curled up in our bungalow reading and relaxing! Sounds like win-win to me.

After that Advent starts, and involves lots of Christmas markets and bazaars. So lovely to have the time to go to them, and not have to work on weekends, so I can get to those bazaars. As to the big German Christmas markets, Aachen and Cologne are are "must-do"s this year.

Apart from that, it is time to start rooting through everything in the house and decide whether it still deserves a place in our life or not. How on earth does one accummulate so much stuff, and why is it so easy to just hang on to it?  Time to get merciless!

The last of the fudge brownie muffins has just disappeared, so it is time for something more. Got some bananas on sale last week, so it looks like banana muffins are on the menu. Personally I hate bananas but my two guys eat them.

Also slowly gathering Christmas presents to send to the US -- really need to get a move on with that. Won't be as many this year :-(

No real news here, sorry about that.