Witweg: Snow!

In this part of the world it seems more and more exceptional to have snow in winter. So far we just had a sprinkling of snow one day in January. And it was extremely local. In the street where I live everything was covered in a nice layer of snow, giving bare tree branches that delicate lacy look. I went for a walk through the parks in and surrounding our village, and they were splendid. It wasn’t hoar frost as some people suggested, but real snow. When I had to go out in the afternoon, I discovered how local it was! The nearest towns and villages were completely bare, not even one single white speck to be seen. It was peculiarly local, and stayed in this street for several days. Nobody believed us, us being my neighbours and me.

My garden in January when we had a very local snow fall

A walk in the local parks

Friday night however, we had the first – and probably the last – real snow fall. It was magical when I woke up Sunday morning and everything was covered in a thick blanket of pure white and fluffy snow. A pity I had to dig out the car and clear the driveway before being able to go out to sing. But with 12 centimetres of snow and a huge heap of snow blocking the wheels of my car, I could not but disrupt the virginal snow.

The garden this morning

In the afternoon I went for a long walk in one of the rather varied estates consisting of parks, farmland and wooded areas near my home. Since the estate belongs to the Royal family, fortunately it can’t be turned into housing estates. It forms a beautiful green belt and barrier between two large urban areas. The snow was already melting, but it was still beautiful and special. There is a place where children went tobogganing, but I avoided that and tried to enjoy the quieter fields and paths, the trees with their white linings as well as the fields with flocks of geese and some stray herons. Except for the shrill cries of birds and fowls all sound was muffled by the snow.