Lake life in Finland

TURN ON THE MUSIC AND LET THE DREAMS FLY

I will share you some impressions from my holiday in Finland by the lake Nuasjärvi.

Without any noise,

pure circulation of days 

Touch of the wind and a secret movement of the growth, almost invisible life.

The more I started to follow the Nature, the more details I started to see  

during every single second.

It's a relief, 

You start to forget the unnecessary things and find back your creativity and focus.

I will miss these views and people in Finland, but with a fresh energy from the holiday I'm enjoying my home and life in Amsterdam.

See you next summer LAKE ~~~~~

Still not easy to find the words after all the silence...and that's just fine. 

 

Windy Sotkamo & peace of mind

Finally we are in Finland. It was not so simple this time, just because of the changing regulations and the unstable corona-situation in Europe. There are so much negative news that the situation feels even worse than it really is. After all the safety checks, tests and being fully injected, we are safe and sound in the middle of nowhere in Kainuu. I stop following the news now for two weeks and only listen to the trees and waves. The whole July was very warm in Finland, but now it is much cooler. We missed the heat wave this time. No worries, we will warm up the wooden sauna every day.

It is relaxing to watch this view. The changes of the light, the colors and the direction of the wind. So refreshing and taking all the extra hustle out of our heads. Just focusing on the natural day rhythm and maybe inventing some new habits, being creative by really not doing so much. 

The little island is waiting for our visit one of these days. It has been a bit stormy during the last two days. The calm pictures are from our first day here. There is a covered fire place in this tiny island. We will go there with the rowing boat when it's sunny later this week.

Fire 

coffee

sausages

mustard

good company 

My son wanted to stay fit on our holiday. I'm quite proud how he build his own GYM on the beach. He was there working hard for an hour this morning.

 

 

Mosquitos and small walks around the woods. We collected some nice wild flowers with my daughter. We have to be creative to get the kids out in these grey days. This afternoon we will admire the views in Vuokatti, even visit to a local supermarket is like an adventure :)). Late summer greetings from Suomi!

Dutch green in Delden

We made a spontaneous weekend trip to Delden, a small town in the East part of Holland (Overijssel/Twente). There are many historical places and Castles in this part of Holland and such pretty little towns like Delden. We did not walk so much in the centre and the shopping streets, we were more countryside orientated this time. The prettiest part was just wandering around the forest paths near the local Castle and make decisions where to turn, what path to take. Luckily it was not raining and we could have a lunch on a terrace at the Hotel and be outdoors the rest of the day. 

Our children didn't like our plans for longer walks and didn't want to join us this time. A weekend by the grandmother was more inviting for them. The grandmother already had her two injections against covid-19 and feels now more free to meet the family members. Win win situation for everyone: more time to with the grandchildren for her and more time for the parents to do something together. 

A famous Twickel castle is surrounded with a huge green area of parks and old farming areas (4300 hectares). The farmers were in old times renting their land from the owners of a castle. The castle grew from a house (family Twickelo bought the original house in 1347) to a castle during the generations of Twickelo family. The last private owner (Marie Barones van Heeckeren van Wassenaer)  brought the castle with the estate under the rule of Twickle Foundation, but she decided that someone had to live in the castle and it had to stay as a central point of a dynamic country estate. At the moment there is also a family living, keeping the historical place connected to our time. 

You can visit the park and admire the architecture and all the interesting plants. There is a visiting centre with a nice museum shop and also a kitchen garden near the castle. It is possible to buy vegetables, fruit, flowers and plants from the kitchen garden twice a week.

Such a nice park around the castle.

Oranjerie, a winter storage for citrus trees. 

a map of the castle gardens.

Idyllic houses in beautiful environment.

We passed the old North Mill during our afternoon walk. The mill is over 650 years old and the volunteers are now taking care of this beautiful spot. When the mill is open, it is possible to watch the mill "working" and see how the flour is made. We will come back to this area in other season and learn some more about the history. The museums were closed during our visit, but slowly the cultural places are getting open to audience again.

A view from our evening snack terrace. The beautiful old town house of Delden to admire on the opposite side.

Snacks in town in the evening and a elegant breakfast in our room in the morning. 

Our Hotel was a little bit side from the centre, but the green areas were near. We did not mind a little walking and admiring the local houses and gardens.

Our Hotel with restaurant. 

The forests were full of rododendrons.

I was enthousiast about our small trip. I really liked some of the old farm houses we saw. The typical black and white colors of the wooden parts around the windows are showing these houses belong to the estate of Twickel. It would have been nice to see those houses from the inside as well. It was an inspiring weekend and I almost wanted to move to the countryside.

Peaceful walking paths around the estate.

the Water tower 

A big fallen tree near the Castle.

It is getting easier to travel and see places. I will soon get my first covid injection and the second one just before I'm visiting my family in Finland this summer.

I am glad the restaurants, not just the terraces, will be open on 5th of June. The museums and cinemas, theaters and other attractions will be open again. It will be more inspring to visit some sights, towns and nature areas as well. We can be more free and plan a little bit ahead or just enjoy the moment and what's possible right now. The high school kids can also go to school every day for these last few weeks before the summer holiday, they just have to do a covid test at home twice a week (if they want). It is nice, but there is also some extra pressure with the last testweek coming. It will be sunny and clear during the next, few days. Looking forward to have a picnic in the sun and meet some friends.

Happy morning in Hortus Botanicus

This spring has been cooler than normal. We had many cloudy and rainy days, but luckily also regular warm greetings from the sun:). It has been "a must" to stop in every sunny spot on the streets during the walks and feel the rays of light on our faces for a little moment.

 There has been some impatience in the air: when can we sit on a terrace and visit all the beautiful monuments and museums. Luckily from this week on it's possible to eat and drink outdoors in restaurants and bars from early morning until 8pm. I was enthusiastic when it was possible to book a ticket to Botanical Garden of Amsterdam,

Hortus Botanicus 

I hope it's soon possible to visit also some museums. 

I was not the only person with a big smile on my face this morning. I saw so many positive people today in the garden. Many camera's taking pictures of the colorful flowers and green views. Two photo sessions for wedding pictures, young love captured in a soft morning light. A grandfather walking around with his grand child, admiring the wonders of a new spring and the growth. I felt like home in this place, enjoyed the green hug of the garden. I am a big fan of botanical gardens and this is still one of my favorite places in Amsterdam. 

I admire and respect the people who are taking care of these places full of history and old plants.. so much knowledge behind the scenes. My sister is a biologist and a gardener. It's a hard work to maintain so many different sort of plants, but such a nice opportunity to take care the beautiful places and follow the growth.

  

 

I was inspired of my visit this morning. I will soon go back and go into the flower shop of Hortus as well. They have wonderful books and gifts there and nice flowers of course. It was good to see some life in this corner of the town. It is a nice place to relax, see some details, listen to birds and really forget that you live in a City. There is enough of space and the walking routes are marked, the covid-measurements are well planned.

The weekend is coming. I promised to go shopping with my daughter. We went many times to second hand shops lately to find some cool hoodies and T-shirts for her. Funny deja vu from my own youth all these Guns n Roses logos and other familiar prints. One of our favorite shop is Kilo sale near the new British school in  Amsterdam South. Much cheaper than the vintage shops in shopping streets. It's nice that teenagers are aware of the prices and also see the ecological point. It is fun to walk around with her.

Wishing a good spring time!! I just decided to be more active in here, much more to see and to tell after a long winter. We have to try to enjoy the days, so many thing are already possible at the moment in the Netherlands. I know the news from many other countries in the world are not so good at the moment and I also hope the pandemic will be more fair taken care of...with extra support to poor countries.

Now I'll turn on the TV and will watch the Eurovision song contest. It's organized this year in Rotterdam and Finland is performing this eve in semifinals. Something light and colorful to watch and finalize my nice day.