The end of the year is almost here and I can hardly believe how fast it's whipped by. I think I'm like many in not being able to grasp the speed at which this year has disappeared, but, in truth, it started like any other in so far as we began with winter, which then morphed into a beautiful spring. After that, though, the weather was anything but normal for our part of the world. We had a beautiful, dry spring and a wonderful hot, dry summer. The only downside was the lack of water in the canals, which limited our faring, as it has done on numerous occasions in the past years. However, what the water shortages resulted in was a particularly lovely slow cruise in September, which Koos and I enjoyed immensely.
Autumn was also gorgeous with colours the like of which I haven't seen in a long time. We spent some of both October and November in France and were amazed at the beauty of the hues the trees offered us. Since then, though, the world has reverted to its usual seasonal grey murk and both the latter part of November and early December have put us firmly back in our northern European place. Luckily, I've been immersed in work, which has kept me distracted from the gloom. I've also been busy (as you might remember) cramming for my VHF radio exam, which I'm thrilled to say I passed last Thursday.
So now we've begun the last two weeks of 2025 and before we know it, 2026 will be upon us. Tomorrow, I am going to London to see my family and at the weekend, we'll be heading down to the Crumbly Cottage Mk II to spend the Christmas holiday there.
I'm hoping I might get to write another blog before the end of the year, but for now, I'll finish this one with a few of the photos I've enjoyed most from this year's highlights.
I'm not giving them captions, but they are in chronological order and reflect how blessed we are to spend time in such beautiful environs in the Netherlands, Belgium and France.
Have a good week allemaal, and I hope I can close the year off with another post before the holiday begins.
