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Global Citizens

~ a blog for Tourists, Expats and Locals

Global Citizens

Tag Archives: to do lists

The art of keeping busy

20 Monday Apr 2020

Posted by katti in Belgium, blog

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Tags

boredom, covid-19, lock down, lock down in belgium, look at the bright side, make the best of it, reset button, to do lists

What happens when all of a sudden you can no longer do what you are used to, what you are expected to, what you have to? Especially when this ‘all of a sudden’ really didn’t give you time to adapt or prepare!

That’s exactly how it went in Argentina. Now you were in one place and the next you had 4 hours get ready before the country went into total (total!) lockdown.

In Belgium things didn’t move this fast, thanks to the indecisiveness of our government, and the rules aren’t that strict, but still, in just a few days time many, not all, but a vast majority of people, was either working from home or put on technical unemployment, and all of sudden you find yourself at home, day in, day out, together with your closest family.

Day in, day out.

After 2 weeks in complete boredom in Argentina, where we were stuck in the house and couldn’t go out for walks nor to the food stores, where internet through our phones was so bad that it didn’t even allow video calls, where we couldn’t buy anything online to keep us busy, with no TV and no movies we could download, Belgium lock down seemed a treat to us. There is no place like home, where your family is, where your computer is, where work is, where you can find a zillion things to do. Where even spring cleaning seemed like fun!

Even though we work form home, there is still a lot of time to enjoy the situation, as nobody is stuck in traffic, no appointments, no meetings where we must go to. Everything is done from our home.

Time to eat all together -just the family of course-, to go for a walk in streets where for a change cars have been replaced by pedestrians and bikers -all at a safe distance-. There is no longer a rush hour, nobody rushes as even a visit to the supermarket takes time, and there is nothing to do at home anyway. No deadlines to be reached. The speed button of the whole world has been turned down. Life has become slow. Slower than during holidays even, where we want to see things, visit things, do things.

It’s time to reflect. Were we living in the right way? Was that speed necessary? Were these never ending long to do lists really needed? It’s now time to make a different to do list, of fun things that we never thought of because we didn’t have the time anyway. No time to make the list, no time to think of what we would really want to do, and not time to do those things either. Things for now, and for when life goes back to normal.

But, do we want life to become normal again? Do we want to go back to what it was?

It’s as if the reset button has been pushed, and we have to fill in the void. It’s challenging but at the same time it’s fun.

Lists

01 Wednesday Jul 2015

Posted by katti in do & go, General

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

film scenes, men in quilt, scotch whiskey, scotland, to do lists, visit scotland, william lawsons whiskey commercial

I think everyone has a list of places he or she wants to visit in his or her life. Historical places, see the land where your favorite tv show or movie was filmed, hear say : about everyone you know has been there and loved it. London Paris New York, New Zealand, Patagonia, Bora Bora… 
I am quite sure that Scotland figures high in many a list. It is a country rich in history : you could stay in the same place for days and visit castles around you, or travel around and see one every single day. Its nature, at least in the north, is mainly unspoiled and in a way it resembles some parts in Patagonia, but then without the sun and the wind. Several places have definitely been used in various movies. It is full of water, lochs or seas, so plenty of opportunity to do water sports. And if you enjoy some Scottish heritage that tastes good, there are plenty of whiskey distilleries to visit. 
If only the weather were a bit more cooperative, but then I would imagine it way too crowded to be fun. Many a time we told each other that this is probably a great place in summer, until we realized we actually are in summer. The wild landscapes go perfectly with low dark clouds and the sun coming out just occasionally, but it’s the lack of agreeable temperatures that withholds you from getting in a true summer spirit. Temperatures between 7 and 14C are more like Buenos Aires winter temperatures then what we expect in summer. On the over hand, days are so long it hardly gets dark at night, so however cloudy it is, you are sure to get enough light in a day. 
While Europe is suffering and sighing under a terrible heat wave, temperatures towards 40 and more, tennis players almost killing themselves on the main court in Wimbledon in 40 degrees, northern Scotland will get a mere 22 degrees. A perfect place for heat haters. 
But whatever the weather, Scotland is Scotland, and actually should be on everyone’s to do list. Lots to see, lots to do, good food, and great people (if only you understand what they say).

Although my biggest disappointment being not having seen any of the William-Lawson’s-whiskey-commercial men in quilts. Do they only exist in dreams? 😁
William Lawson’s whiskey commercial men in quilts

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