Dear family and friends,
It is the end of November 2020 and time for a reflection of this incredibly bizarre year, a year of absolute extremes. Hugo asked me not to talk about Corona. I agree with that, but unfortunately, I can't get around it. We've seen friends lose their jobs, we've got friends who got Corona, but luckily, didn't get extremely sick. We also have friends who are sick (not corona related) and are even more vulnerable because of this. Last but not least, we have Rob's parents in old age, and clearly, we do worry about them. Plus, our kids are especially worried about me. My chemotherapy in 2017 has flattened my immune system and I've now found myself categorised into the risk group, although I feel as healthy as can be. So, with everything I do, I am very urgently reminded, especially by Jack and Hugo, to be careful, to wash hands, to wear the facemask and to keep my distance physically, especially the latter is not easy always, but after a few months of practice this is getting better and better. Everyone got hit by Covid-19. In March we flew Noa and Hugo from Canada BC and UK respectively back home, because alone is alone, in a small room or in an empty house. Noa flew from Kamloops to Calgary in an empty plane, how weird is that. They joined Jack and Ailsa and dog Zara in Zoeterwoude. We are so pleased that we made the decision to keep our house a long time ago. Now it really is a safe haven for the children.
Also, two major events were cancelled, the first Dutch Grand Prix of formula 1 in Zandvoort and the Eurovision Song Contest, where I would have hosted Austria as a delegation host. Let's say; "new round, new opportunities in 2021".
The studies of Jack, Noa and Hugo continued online from Zoeterwoude. Noa would have originally flown home a month later, as her studies finished at the end of April. This year the exams were also done online. Hugo was due to fly in as well, but he was done later in the summer. Both now have a bachelor's degree, but got it without having the chance to say goodbye to their fellow students and friends. We would take Loes and our children on a nice trip to Canada to be at Noa's graduation in June. On the way back we would have had a stop-over of a few days in Iceland, but of course this didn't happen either. Both countries are not running away, we will get there again, but we missed the opportunity to see Noa's spot and that feels a bit sour.
Rob and I served the total lockdown in Lagos together. That started on March 18th and on July 2nd we then left for the Netherlands for the summer holidays, although Rob continued to work a lot from the Boterbloemlaan. It was very intense those first weeks of the lockdown in Lagos. Rob had his work all day, going from meeting to meeting, being continuously connected to his colleagues one way or another. I suddenly somehow had to fill my days with something. Since we kept Glory with us and sent our drivers, Ali and Yinka, home, there wasn't much for me to do in the house. I just continued training with my Personal trainer Favour via FaceTime, and I still do. I also taught myself how to crochet via youtube. I've crocheted a lot of bedspreads and scarves; I love doing it, which is something I never expected from myself, it’s called the new yoga. Together Rob and I walked or cycled around Banana Island at the end of the day, we saw a lot of people on the streets then. After dinner we played the game "again and again", Glory then served tea and coffee and went home. After playing games we sat on the couch to watch a series on Netflix and Rob would be working next to me, this all helped to get us through the days.
In the summer, Robin ended up with an orthopedic doctor because of hip complaints. For those of you that don't know, Robin had a hip luxation that was discovered when she was 18 months old. She had multiple hip surgeries on her right hip at a young age. Now it turned out the condition of not only her right hip, but also of the left one is in such poor condition that major surgery would have to be performed on both sides. A major operation with long rehabilitation and entailed many risks. She went to a hip surgeon with her boyfriend Armin. He was not allowed in because of Covid-19, but he told the doctor that his girlfriend is Dutch and doesn't speak German very well and that he had to go with her. A little white lie, but cleverly played here, two hear more than one. There the risks were again mentioned and suggested further research with various scans. This took place at the beginning of November and it was mutually agreed on with the doctor that in her case it was best to wait until she is 40+ and then she can get two new hips. She is now 27 and is too young to get a hip replacement as they have a lifespan of 15/20 years. You might be thinking, “oh but now she can’t do anything at all”, you’re wrong. She runs, but also cycles almost daily in the hills of Bad Gleichenberg or on her indoor bike and she also swims. She has always dreamed of doing a Triathlon and this dream was turned into a reality this year. At the end of August, she did a Sprint Triathlon. Cycling and swimming go well, but running is more difficult for her and she isn’t very quick. She did it though, and we're all so proud of that. This shows so much willpower to fight something like this with two bad hips. She then did two relay Triathlons with her boyfriend Armin and a friend. Robin swam, Armin cycled and Eva ran. Due to this lifestyle the doctors also made the decision to continue with a lot of exercise and try to hold on. She has days when she can't get out of the car, but she also has good days. Count your blessings, we say.
This summer also brought us other both ups as well as deep downs. We returned to the area where we had gone skiing in February to continue our house hunt for a dream chalet in the mountains of Austria to a more specific and concrete area. On Sunday the 16th of August we took the mountain bikes into the mountains at Bad Kleinkirchheim in Carinthia. Just after noon we continued our descent, it was spectacular, but certainly not without danger. And so Noa had a very nasty fall, I can still hear her screaming. She was the last on the descent of the four of us. Rob and Hugo led the way, then I followed and then Noa. I ran up to her and immediately saw how terribly wrong it was. Her elbow was clearly fully dislocated. Sometimes the gods favour you. The two men who cycled behind us were from the Czech Republic and were both trauma doctors. With another Austrian from a nearby ski hut she was in good hands, but it was clear that there would still be plenty of work for the hospital. She was placed on the terrace and an ambulance was called. That was going to take a while because he had to come all the way up the mountain. Meanwhile, another accident happened near us which was apparently more serious, as a helicopter had to come for it. So, Noa went to the hospital of Klagenfurt by helicopter instead. We had to drive our bikes down and then drive another hour to Klagenfurt. At the hospital, Covid-19 only allowed for one visitor. Noa had to have surgery, she had dislocated her elbow, but had also broken the bone in multiple places and tore ligaments. Two days later, she had surgery and everything was reattached with screws. She had some kind of cast that she could put on and take off as needed. The next morning, a physiotherapist stood at her bedside and told her to move her arm. Noa looked around the room and said she definitely had the wrong patient in front of her, because she had just had surgery the previous day. But no, she really had to go to start her physio work the day after the surgery, moving around with a just broken and operated elbow seems pretty scary to me. Noa spent a week in the hospital. She hasn't got all of the movement abilities of her elbow back yet. Her screws seem to be sticking out more and more so these will be removed at some point in 2021. The timing of her accident was unfortunate, although these things cannot be planned, of course. The week after her accident, she was supposed to start her new studies at a hotel school in Lucerne. After her bachelor's degree, she actually wanted to work in the hotel world, but Covid-19 put a stop to that. So, she went looking for a follow-up study. A master's degree in Hospitality and Event Management. The first month she followed everything online from Zoeterwoude. I was able to take care of her there, but she was determined to do everything on her own as quickly as possible.
While Noa was in the hospital and our holiday plans therefore had to be adjusted a bit, we went to do more house-seeing. Noa had already seen a house on paper that looked very promising. However, Rob and I were a lot more skeptical until we walked into the house in Patergassen to see the house on Monday the 17th of August, with Robin, who had joined us and Hugo. The house felt so good and special, so two days later we went for a second and more critical viewing but the feeling of finding our dream home only became clearer. So, it happened, in a not-so-nice year there was still a bright spot with the purchase of our beautiful ski lodge in the mountains.
Jack and Ailsa are still busy finishing their theses, they needed a little more time. In the meantime, Jack found a finance traineeship, he will start at the ANWB on January 2nd 2021. He's so happy with that and we are happy for him. At a time when many layoffs are happening, and only very little traineeships are offered, we thought it was very impressive that he managed to get one. Then we have two kids who are studying. Hugo started a Master's in Leiden, but unfortunately in the Covid-19 way and so from Zoeterwoude and as of the 5th of November from the mountains in Austria. As Cruyff used to say; "every disadvantage has its advantage." Due to the classes being online, it doesn't matter where in the world you are.
Rob has been alone in Lagos since September 12th of this year. I was left behind to take care of Robin if she had surgery, which didn't happen. Noa needed my help and both my doctor in Vienna and the Heineken doctor said that because of Covid-19 I should not go to Lagos. I can tell you, this will not be repeated, whatever the dangers are, I'm going where Rob goes. It was most definitely not easy for him. Throughout the week it goes well, as his work keeps him busy. But on top of Covid-19 the #ENDSARS movement also took place in Lagos. Fortunately, Rob came to Austria at the beginning of December. Jack passed his driving test early December in one go and will then join us as well half of December. Ailsa is probably going to visit her parents in Scotland, but things are changing every day, so at the time of this writing that is unfortunately still unclear.
On behalf of all of us, I would like to wish you a very healthy 2021 from the bottom of my heart, that we can somehow leave Covid-19 behind us and return to a normal or at least a more normal life again, in which we can hug and cuddle each other, because keeping our distance is currently very important, but for me it is clear that we must also be able to hug each other.
Let’s hope the terms and conditions are going to be much better for 2021.
Merry Christmas and once again all the best wishes for the New Year.
Rob & Viv, Robin & Armin, Jack & Ailsa,
Noa and Hugo and our four-legged family member Ayo.
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