January – December 2020
Alright: I decided to try and catch up with the journalling. And to stand any chance, I thought it’s best to tackle 2020 in one go. So, here we go.
Of course, the defining thing last year was the COVID-19 pandemic (and it still is this year).
When the first lockdown was happening mid-March, it was new to everyone. We were really careful in the beginning. But as temperatures rose, and the virus was barely spreading – well, in comparison to this past winter anyway – restrictions were lifted, and summer actually felt pretty “normal”. So, we went on various camping trips – long and short. We concentrated on Germany, though, to avoid having to deal with any border-crossings or having to acquaint ourselves with Covid-Numbers and restrictions in other countries.
Generally, we could afford not to be super-careful. Meaning, we did occasionally meet with people. Even indoors. But still, we did not see many people compared to a non-pandemic year. We both worked from the home office pretty much exclusively. And we had much less private get-togethers, too. But we simple didn’t want to see no-one. And it was good the way it was. We were privileged for sure to be in this position.
So, yes, of course it was a frustrating year. But objectively not terrible for us.
Anyways: photography wise I mainly photographed alongside whatever I was happening to be doing. Which mostly means photos of family activities, of course.
Unfortunately I lost almost two full rolls from my Yashica FR-1, because I wasn’t paying close enough attention: the winding mechanism wasn’t working properly and failed to advance the film. So quite a few activities were not recorded during summer. But I think the images in this entry are still plenty, anyway.
So here are 2020’s images. It’s one big scroll. Some infos are in the captions. And there are a lot this time.
I start with an image I took 10 days into 2020. I think it works well as both an introduction to this post and as a summary for year one of the pandemic:
I found trees.
I found a car.
Zoe discovered headphones. And of course the flat still partly looked like we just moved in.
On a trip with her new “bike”.
When we still regularly took the tram…
…to visit the swimming pool.
When you could still visit the aquarium.
When the flea market was still open.
…and people had “Sektfrühstück”.
When playgrounds were still open.
And cafés.
And their indoor playgrounds.
When you could still eat at restaurants.
Or go to pubs.
And meet there with people.
When you could still go to concerts.
…or exhibitions.
When I could still work from cafés.
In February, playgrounds were still open.
And the Rhine had its annual high water.
One guitar got new strings.
Haven’t seen Tim in years. So this was nice. But it was the last time I had dinner at a restaurant. This was the end of February.
Haven’t seen Timo even longer. This was the last evening at a pub beginning of March.
Then Merkel gave her speech. Lockdown was happening.
Playgrounds were closed. So we went elsewhere.
Into the woods for example.
Exploring the neighbourhood.
Tried a swing someone made.
Went to the beach.
Carried branches.
Went to another beach.
Saw sheep.
I tried on my first mask.
Then we made a first camping trip. And went hiking.
And saw a tractor.
And explored.
Father daughter hiking selfie.
Lunch break.
Back in Düsseldorf. A brief meeting outside.
A huge turnout at the local BLM protest. Don’t know if this was a good idea during a pandemic. But the local incidence was relatively low. And this was outside.
I saw a vending machine.
Then: summer holiday started. Camping of course.
We spent a few days on a farm campground.
…near the Loreley. (Down there was not our campground.)
And I found another vending machine.
We visited a castle.
We made it to Garmisch.
And went for another hike.
Marvelled at those mountains.
Another lunch break.
Rode a gondola.
Saw the river.
More mountain appreciation.
Another vending machine. “Only in Bavaria…”, I guess.
Drove back north and spent some more time at another campground.
Found one more vending machine. And a post box.
Back in Düsseldorf, new buildings had been built.
The tiny extinction rebellion had a protest.
Jens Spahn goes vegan.
We visited the fun fair.
Which this year was taking place at the grounds of the trade fair. To be able to control visitor numbers.
Remake.
Indeed, not many people there.
I bought a basketball and went playing. At some point the baskets were taken down, though, so I couldn’t anymore.
Mum and Zoe played a different ball game.
Another (hot) camping weekend.
“Housing should be affordable”.
We saw a wild boar. Sleeping. Behind a fence.
Splashed about in a stream.
..with friends.
At mum’s birthday.
I built a pedalboard. And tried it in the practice room, too.
Laurenz in side light.
Zoe in a bag.
Playing pandemic.
Yes! More holiday. More camping.
The best spots are those where you can hang the hammock.
More hiking in the woods.
With company.
I found a derelict hut.
Morning in the camper.
More hiking.
I saw another tree.
The duck (aka. “Die Ente”) is always accompanying us.
At the “Teufelsschlucht”.
How about another vending machine?
Or dinosaurs?
Met up with more friends.
Tried a playground. (Restrictions were lifted during summer.)
More hiking.
Is this photo trying to tell me something?
You know the drill by now, I guess.
Back in Düsseldorf once again.
I was witness to an “illegal” haircut.
When the flea market was still open in September. I think this was one of the last weekends it was.
“Nervenkitzel und Spannung”
Oh! Yes! More camping! Hehe.
They had this giant jumping pillow.
I found another car.
I made another self-portrait with mask.
New signs in the city.
Riding the tram with Laurenz.
Riding the train to Bonn to see co-workers and the office. I did this twice in September. Then it was all home office again.
And I found more cars there.
One more.
We had guests. Zoe’s cousins.
Best friends.
Sina came by to take some family photos.
Playing games with her other cousins.
Is there anything better than watching your child peacefully asleep?
We dared to have a birthday-breakfast at a Restaurant. Indoors.
Another walk through the neighbourhood.
Went shopping with masks on.
Zoe and her Instax.
Had take-away ice cream.
Had quesadillas.
I got the lights on my bike fixed.
Peppa.
Halloween
Mask-bowl.
Rope swinging.
Shot my new Yashica Super 2000 SLR (which I purchased as a replacement for the FR-1).
…at the botanical gardens.
You couldn’t go inside the buildings. So I only got a glimpse.
Unmistakably Düsseldorf.
Our hood.
The work Xmas party was online this year.
Riding the bike through town.
Empty street on the ride back.
The camper and some beets.
A brief visit.
Mum and Zoe in the woods.
Making…
…a Lebkuchenhaus.
Riding a horse.
Just an ordinary pandemic street scene.
Baking with grandma.
Tree shopping.
Xmas.
Now with better sized headphones.
Remote greetings.
It’s over soon.
I got a Horizon S3 Pro panoramic camera for Christmas.
Zoe got a bike.
Meeting family.
We had guests on new year’s.
The End!