Even though it is a cold month, December is nevertheless one of my favourites of the year: it is festive and feels very cosy, and the holidays, even though they were different this year, are, at the very least, a nice break! On top of it, the days start getting longer, and the new year approaching always brings some hope.
My favourite things about this month:
- The festive vibe: even though there weren’t Christmas markets in Belgium this year, the streets and shops were still nicely decorated, as well as individual houses. In my own flat, I put up cute fairy lights everywhere – you never have too much of them – and streamed a fireplace video from Youtube almost all the time, it was so cosy!
- Indulging… in gingerbread cookies, spiced drinks and festive biscuits. You can obviously do this all year round, but I was extra motivated this month – and it also made my home smell amazing, which is always a good thing. The holidays also gave me more time to read and relax – something I really needed!
- Green December: I’ve talked about it in this post, and will do a review at the end of the month. Being more mindful of the climate and trying to live a more sustainable life, I became more conscious of the impact some of our daily activities have on the planet. It definitely inspired me to take more action for the new year (and beyond)!
My latest trips and adventures
- Even though we couldn’t really travel much this year, I still managed to go to Ghent for a day, and I loved it! It really made me realise how much I value everything that comes with discovering a new place, even one that is less than one hour away! It is a gorgeous town and I highly encourage you to visit it if you are in Belgium one day – or check out my blog post!
- Considering my whole family is spread out all around the world, I obviously couldn’t see all of them – even on regular years it is not easy – but I am very thankful for the technology we have nowadays that helps us feel connected and close to one another. I could luckily see my mum, and enjoy the days off with her!
Hobbies and distractions:
- I recently finished The Shadow of the Wind, a novel by Spanish writer Carlos Ruis Záfon, and loved it! I will try to post a review about it in the New Year so I won’t say too much here but it involves old family secrets, a mysterious author, captivating books and love stories. It is funny, suspenseful and easy to read. I highly recommend it!
- I finally continued watching Money Heist on Netflix and it is as good as I remembered. I know I’m very late but I’m enjoying it very much! I also finished watching Cable Girls, which is another Spanish series and, even though I really liked the entertaining series, wasn’t very convinced about its finale.
General thoughts:
December is for me a month for resetting and reflecting, especially this year. I tried as much as possible to keep my loved ones close and reconnect to the things I like the most, to prepare for this new year. I will talk about it more in depth in my upcoming yearly review, but I have tried, throughout December, to pave the way for a fresh and clean start in January, with easy and mundane things such as updating my external hard drive… let’s see if I make it work!
Looking forward to:
- Starting fresh for the New Year! It may sound a bit cliché, but New Year is of course a time to start new. With the terrible year we’ve had, I’m hopeful that 2021 will bring everyone more joy!
- Nothing else, really. I’ll try not to get my hopes up about the amount of traveling we’ll be able to do next year, but I am already looking forward to spring and summer… 😁
How was December for you? What are you looking forward to?
In case you missed it:
Christmas markets in Vienna
– Discovering Ghent
Sunny Days with Juliette 
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