The camping - one of three in a row where mostly people from Groningen and surroundings keep a second home to spend their free time in trailers or sometimes very elaborately built bungalows and tiny, as well as not-so-tiny, houses - is very quiet and if you don't own a boat or are a fishing enthusiast, there is very little else to do than just relax. Every once in a while, I will do some gardening - mostly consisting of getting rid of horsetail so that it doesn't overgrow and keeps anything else from growing around our trailer. I'll also make some half-hearted attempts at keeping the hedge in some kind of shape, but other than that, I leave the patches of earth around the trailer to nature. The result is actually quite pleasant, with lots of wild flowers, strawberries and weeds.
It's Billie Stormzy's second time here, but he's much more aware now than he was five months ago, the last time we were here all together. Now, however, he's still sleeping as I make my way to Paviljoen Pool, a large restaurant facing the water - the only one at this side of the lake and we're lucky it's located not more than a few metres away from our trailer. Tastefully decorated in some kind of sailing style - canvas pillows, wooden furniture, rowing materials on the walls - this restaurant had only just reopened when we bought our trailer here. Two enthusiastic, chatty young guys run the place and have great plans for its future. The pandemic must have hit them hard, but now their terrace is packed whenever the sun's out, so business seems to be running well. While Billie Stormzy is having his afternoon nap in the trailer - my partner is taking care of him today - his big sister, Rihanna Gaga, and I decide to spend some time at the terrace. She takes an orange juice, I have a latte macchiato - I've been coming here every day so far and they know how I like it: with oatmilk and an extra shot of espresso. We're expecting guests. During the weeks leading up to our holidays, I was very busy hiring new colleagues: two assistant professors to replace a few colleagues who have left our team, as well as a bunch of temporal lecturers. One of our new assistant professors is in Groningen these days to see if she'd like to move here and today we're meeting in person for the first time, all selection having taken place online.
When she arrives, there's a pleasant surprise for my daughter: my colleague has two girls of nine and five years old - good playmates for Rihanna Gaga. She's also brought her husband and parents, so we're a large gathering. My colleague's Italian, her husband Spanish, but her daughters have grown up in Germany and speak both German and English, which allows them to communicate quite well with Rihanna Gaga. We take a walk around the camping and I show them around a bit, after which we sit down for lunch.
The lunch menu is promising, offering salads, pastas and soups. I'm trying to cut down on my eating a bit in order to loose some of the kilos I gained during the Covid-19 lockdown, when gyms were closed and especially during the early weeks, I snacked too much. That means: no more snacking and modest meals. As I normally only eat a sandwich for lunch, I pick the creamy tomato soup that comes with two slices of bread. Our guests pick club sandwiches (served attractively on a round bagel) and there's fries and 'krokets' for the kids. The staff has arranged a large table for us to sit around and put up parasols against the strong sun.
Food is brought and my partner joins us with Billie Stormzy, who has just woken up and is still a bit drowsy. I put him on my lap and eat my soup, which is nice and tasty. The bread is good too: fresh and with a rural taste, without being too sour. Everybody else enjoys their food, too, and the atmosphere is pleasant and chatty. I speak mostly with my new colleague - it's a nice way to get to know a new co-worker - and the girls really hit it off. Rihanna Gaga, is acting like a real host, bringing toys from the trailer for the other two to play with and really engaging very well with them. Once they've finished their food, they're off to play at a nearby playground.
Soon, Billie Stormzy's had enough from sitting on my lap and dives to the ground. I put him down and he immediately crawls to the most dangerous spot for him: a staircase leading down from the raised terrace. He insists on trying to negotiate the stairs by himself - it's no use trying to dissuade him to do so, so instead I sit down on the staircase and hold him so that he doesn't fall down the stairs. Stubbornly, he keeps going down step by step, oblivious to the fact that it's only me holding him whenever the descent is too steep for his small body that keeps him from seriously hurting himself. It takes him a long time to tire from this, but then he crawls up the stairs again and starts exploring the terrace.
The girls return, excitedly. The older daughter of my colleagues says there's a chance to swim here and can she please go into the water? I soon find out this wasn't her own idea, but Rihanna Gaga suggested she'd ask. This is quite shrewd of Billie Stormzy's big sister: she's been trying to convince me to go swimming with her for a few days now, but so far it's been a bit too cloudy for my taste. Now, however, it's so hot that I concede. Let's go swimming! My colleague agrees and gets her kids' bathing suits from her car, after which Rihanna Gaga takes them to the trailer to change. A little bit later, I pay and go change myself as well, after which we walk to a pier from where we can dive in. Billie Stormzy will try the water too, but when he's in he immediately starts crying inconsolably - the water is probably too cold for him.
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