Reflecting in December...

We had several days in December with low or no winds, so I was able to capture some reflection shots on our dog walks and runs. 

Captured this shot of the pedestrian and bike bridge to Vlietland from the turnaround spot on one of our runs.

Loved seeing these reflections on the street where we used to live.

Was pleasantly surprised to see a reflection of a dramatic sunset in this shop’s windows.

My last reflection shot of 2020 was taken on New Year’s Eve. 

 

Craft Beer Run Challenge...

We weren’t as dedicated as Reinhardt and Inga about doing the run challenges, but we did manage to take Kati on several runs on some beautiful winter days.

One of those rare days with pink puffy clouds.

Lots of folks commented about our matching FILTH buffs.

 

Pandemic Holiday Celebrations...

Santa made a few appearances in Voorschoten this year...

…including on the shopping street.

Non-essential stores were finally ordered closed starting on December 14 (they could reopen with strict restrictions on March 16). Strangely enough, this shop was allowed to be open because they serve as our post office, but they could only do post office duties so they covered their merchandise. This meant we could buy a stamp, but not an envelope. 

Since the beginning of December, most Friday evenings we join the Brussels Manneke Piss H3 Drinking Night for a Zoom video call. On December 18, there was an extra call as a replacement for the usual BMPH3 Christmas Party. There was a very entertaining slide show shown about the past year at the hash and then we started dancing. Opee got up on the table because he missed getting to dance on the bar like at last year’s party.

Since it was still Hanukkah, he donned the yarmulke from the Sir Walter’s H3 Hanukkah Hash that I co-hared twice with two other Jewish hashers.
 

Last Dunes Walk of 2020...

December 18 was a crisp clear day, perfect for our walk in the Wassenaar dunes with Terri.

To mix things up a bit, we headed to the beach, where we came across a dog walker.

Loved our crazy long shadows on the beach...

…and on the dunes.

Construction continued beside the Atlantic Wall. 
 

Virtual Tree Trimming...

After dinner we finally decorated our trees. 

I’ve taken to calling ours a Love Tree because so many of our ornaments bring back fond memories of times together and exploring the world. 

Jimmy made us homemade mulled wine, which was tastier and less sweet than the usual gluhwijn that we buy at the grocery store.

I love how these photos look so old-fashioned and modern at the same time. 

Here’s our 2020 family ornament, which sums up the year pretty well: the four of us are wearing masks, the zeroes in the year are shaped like the coronamvirus, there’s hand sanitizer and the banner is on toilet paper.

True confession: we kept our tree up until early March to bring extra light and cheer into the darkness of winter.

 

Hanukkah...

On December 17, we had a virtual celebration with the girls starting with the lighting of the Hanukkah candles. I had made kugel, a noodle and spinach casserole...

…and Jimmy made potato latkes (pancakes).

Our beer for the advent calendar that night was a pale ale called Polka by a Swedish brewery. Wasn’t thrilled with the hints of peppermint, but liked how the label looked with the Hanukkah candles. 

We were very thankful for modern technology that allowed us to be together while apart.

 

Last Bits of Art...

When we exited the museum, it was dark outside, which highlighted the cool neon lights on the ceiling in the entrance hall...

…and the whale in the nearby Natural History Museum. 

The evening sky, mostly due to light pollution, was quite lovely...

...and the Art Depot was even more dramatic.

Due to its height, we could see reflections of further away buildings that we couldn’t normally see from the ground.

We happened upon this sculpture in a small park which appeared quite dramatic in the dark...

…and saw some Christmas lights across from the train station...

…and in front of Rotterdam Centraal Station.