Shuffling around Haarlem - Happy New Year

 

So with our trusty hero Carys leaving the 3 invalids to struggle on through New Years Eve, she fell victim to the same bug and by the morning of New Years Day it had claimed a full house of Williams.

Without going into detail it was not the most malevolent of viruses but we all felt very weak and certain parts of our digestive system not functioning as one would like.

With some careful planning,timing and management we were able to achieve 3 outings during the day so it was not a dead loss.

The first involved Chrissi and I getting some late morning fresh air and walking along the canal to the famous windmill of these parts, deadriaan, next to a boatyard (apparently) and rebuilt in modern times having succumbed to a fire in the 1930s.  We could see the remnants of last nights celebrations on the streets (fireworks, not the other kind) and on some generally empty streets was able to enjoy a pleasant enough stroll and taking in one or 2 landmarks of the backstreets of Haarlem, the philarmonic concert venue, Simon and Garfunkel played there once we heard at a later date!

Needed a bit of a lie down after than, food still out of the question, but with it being day 1 of Run Every Day January, I had to make that a priority. Why? Makes no sense to most, makes every sense to my running buds.  Permitted myself (its within the rules) to do the bare minimum if necessary but actually a gentle jog was generally quite relaxing and soothing.  The surrounds of the canal as I manouvered away from the town centre was a good environment for both mind and body, and I was pleased with a sensible 5k.

Needed a bit of a lie down after that, and began to consider what food may be possible in the evening. With all of us at different stages, food not even a consideration for Carys. Chrissi did consider it, joined Bryn on a walk as we picked off various backstreet cafes, but none appealed to us, and they sent her running in the opposite direction. So Bryn and I ended up in Mcdonalds, the banana milkshake the medicine I needed. And for the second year in succession the only food I could consume on New Years Day was a Mcdonalds. Last year was because of a hangover, no such fun led to this situation this time.  But the gentle streets of Haarlem were our fiends, the flag of the Netherlands lighting our way.

And that my friends, was that, made the best of things, but knowing we could get a bit more done on our last day if we took it sensible; and to find out about that, and the last day of our travels, you will need to wait one more day.