The last month of the year arrived swiftly and frankly, flew by with me barely noticing it was December. It seems that even when you don’t focus on the holidays, it still flies by. To return to the beginning of December, is started off with a frosty outing to a valley we visited once before with Miles. Even back then, the frost made it so memorable that I knew we had to go back. Right in time for a few photos of this charming floral crown that fit in perfectly with all the frost. While I adore how photos taken during frosty mornings look like, they’re probably the hardest ones to take. I can bear the cold for about 10-15 minutes before throwing on my gloves. But the end result always makes up for any difficulty while shooting these photos
The following weekend, we decided to go something Christmas-related. I had been wanting to visit the Reinhardstein castle during Christmastime for years now and we finally got a chance to do that this December. It’s the only castle that I know around here that actually looks and feels like a medieval castle. Wall tapestries cover old stone walls and narrow windows open up to a beautiful valley. The day we visited, it had been raining so there was a fog covering the valley. It made for the perfect moody Christmas atmosphere. And best of all, certain rooms looked straight out of Hogwarts! The only downside is that it isn’t possible to wander through the castle at one’s own pace. But overall, the decorations were beautiful and unique. And I wouldn’t mind going back next August for a guided visit by candlelight where you listen to tales and legends!
As Christmas was nearing, we went to pick some evergreens in the forest and brought them back home for decoration. And I set about making paper stars to add some Christmas charm to the interior. Still, we seemed to be spending more time outside than inside. Even though we lacked light most of the time when taking photos, it was still nice to get out there. Usually, the December cold defeats both of us rather quickly but this year, it was quite bearable so we took plenty of photos. One week before the holidays, I spent an entire day in Brussels. A day that included a museum exhibition, tea at my favorite place and seeing Marriage Story at the cinema. Basically, all of my favorite things in one day!
This year, I didn’t get into the Christmas spirit at all. Usually, I like to rewatch a couple of old movies right before Christmas but not this year. I’m not exactly sure why; maybe because of our trip to Amsterdam right before the holidays, maybe because Christmas matters less when I’m away from my family. Either way, I liked that we didn’t stress over any plans and that we exchanged gifts a week before the holidays. We were able to enjoy Amsterdam and its museums, which were fascinating! On the whole, it was nice to revisit the city after three long years and I might just dedicate a separate blog post to it. Suffice to say, we loved everything about it and we’re already looking forward to revisiting it in the near future!
For the rest of the holidays, we simply relaxed and enjoyed doing nothing, for a change. I managed to complete my Goodreads reading challenge and finished off the year with the last Harry Potter installment. We spent the last day of the year in the company of friends and puppies. It’s ridiculous to think that not only was this the last month of the year, but also the last month of the decade. I rarely stop to think about such things because frankly, it’s a bit overwhelming. So instead, I look forward to everything awaiting us next year because the mere idea of it all makes me happy now!
