Storm

With a load of vaccines coming for the Netherlands and the promise of Dutch minister Hugo de Jonge that everybody will have their first shot of the vaccine by June, there is a good chance that a lot of restrictions will be lifted before the summer. So I thought it would be fun to already think about how I would spend my summer post lockdown or even post Covid times.

You’ve probably already guessed the first one and that is … Partying! The last time I had a big party feels like ages ago, so that is probably the first thing I will be doing when it’s allowed again. With this one there is only one goal: the more the better.

The second one ties into this, but I think an excellent way to catch up on missed or postponed parties is by going to festivals. Currently, I only have tickets for Paaspop, which is a 3-kilometer bike ride away from where I live, but I’ll try to go to more. Getting tickets for everyone in my friend group will be a challenge, but I’m optimistic.

The third thing I want to do, if my bank account allows it, is to travel to faraway places. I had a few trips lined before the pandemic which didn’t go through, unfortunately. Going to Asia would be super cool, because of the food and the amazing scenery there, but with the virus, it’s probably not realistic. I also would like to try some backpacking or ‘off the beaten track’ traveling, which I have never done before. Road tripping Europe will hopefully be possible this summer.

The fourth one might be a bit contradictory, but I’d like to be a tourist in my own country. Not being able to travel made me realize that you don’t necessarily have to travel thousands of kilometers to visit cool places, they might be in your own backyard. Visiting some old Dutch cities and places I’ve never been before while leveraging my ov-kaart sounds like music to my ears.

The last one is to enjoy summer by going outside more. During lockdown I often find myself looking at a screen the whole day, and with cold winter weather outside, I stay inside most of the time. So compensating that with lying at the beach, swimming or just chilling in the sun with friends is something I’ll look forwards to.

These were some of my personal activities I’ll be doing when all the restrictions are lifted, for now, I think I just have to be patient and try to stick to the rules and I really hope the restrictions are indeed lifted and not postponed because production issues of the vaccines we are currently having. What are you going to do when the restrictions are lifted? Let me know in the comments!