Meanwhile in Brighton...

Ashlynn’s New Year’s Eve didn’t feature as many fireworks, but much more partying when she headed with Sophie down to Brighton to stay with Hannah, their old elementary school buddy.

 

New Year’s Eve...

Unlikely to be a surprise that Ashlynn left Holland before New Year’s Eve so she could spend the holiday with Sophie in England instead. Veronica stayed home to join us for a nice dinner...

…and to watch the illegal fireworks, banned once again due to coronavirus. As these photos show, lots of folks didn’t care about the ban as there were lots of big fireworks shot off from midnight until after 1 a.m.

 

Christmas in V-town...

We had a big feast for Christmas Eve...

…followed by a low-key morning opening presents.

Veronica proudly wearing her new cow apron...

…while she and Ashlynn made their traditional cinnamon rolls. 

We took a long walk, another Christmas tradition.

Once again, there were some kooky decorations in the village.

That evening we had fondue... 

…and played games.

 

Our Love Tree...

Veronica and Brett took on the task of putting together our tree on December 9...

…but only put on the lights...

...as we were waiting until Ashlynn arrived on the 21st so we could decorate it as a family. 

Our family decoration for 2021 was very apropos, complete with toilet paper, masks, the coronavirus and Brett. 

This was the first time since 2018 that we were all together to reminisce about the wonderful trips that led us to buy the decorations. 

 

Thirty Years of Hashing...

Although officially the 30th anniversary of my first hash was on December 27, I celebrated this milestone by haring the December FILTH on the 18th. Opee helped me pre-lay the trail from Voorschoten Station. While he threw a tennis ball to make his flour dollops, I used a squeeze bottle so I didn’t have to chase a ball. In my other hand was a water bottle.  

Comes Too Soon ran ahead of me during the hash, so could help Opee man the beer break with special craft beers bought at the local gourmet grocery store.

We had a nice group willing to brave the cold temps to join in the celebration. 

We did another stop at the bar in the village...

….and a gluhwijn stop in the woods at the park downtown. 

Then we hosted everyone back at our house for a chili dinner. It was our biggest crowd in the house since before the pandemic started. Glad we managed to pull it off.
 

Random City Lights...

There were lots of other lights to be seen around Amsterdam, including the giant Christmas tree at Dam Square...

…and lots of interesting buildings.

We passed by the Dutch Holocuast Memorial of Names, that opened in September 2021, bearing the names of the 102,000 victims from the Netherlands who weren’t properly buried. 
 

More Light Installations...

The inflatable Bunch of Tulips was a kitschy way to depict a historical and touristy symbol of the Netherlands.

Van Gogh’s Starry Night came to life through 1,400 acrylic tubes lit by small LED bulbs. In a previous edition, it was hung up high, so it was nice to be able to see the tubes up close.

Passing boats caused movement in the water which in turn made the butterflies in Butterfly Effect rise and fall.   

Drawn in Light was a metal mobile depicting a typical Amsterdam canal house and elements surrounding it.

This bed in Not Yet My Story looked very inviting despite being in the middle of a canal. 

While reading about Bridge Over the Rainbow, it was fascinating to learn that Descartes was the first person to scientifically explain the rainbow while living in Amsterdam in 1636. 

The imposing pillars of this bridge made the street artist Frankey think of Star Wars. Instead of giving Darth Vader a light saber, Darth Fisher had a fishing pole

Laundry, an everyday item, took center stage above a houseboat in Neighborhood.