We’ve finally made it, the guest house project back at the farm has come a long way and the build out is nearly finished – time for a vacation. We’ve arrived safely on the island of Texel in the North Sea yesterday afternoon without much of a hassle. The night before we left it looked uncertain we could make the crossing as major storms and heavy swells were in the forecast. The ferry was canceled for a few hours in the morning, but everything was back to normal by the time we arrived.

We have moved into our guest bungalow and are pleasantly surprised by how cozy and nice it is. Plenty of space for a newfie to stretch out. We did have to move two single beds together in the downstairs bedroom, since the master bedroom is upstairs which has a really steep spiral staircase – definitely a danger to Ayla. Since Ayla always sleeps in our bedroom when we are on vacation we had to improvise.


Today we took Ayla on two long walks, both about 90 minutes. She loved running through the dunes (most of them have leash requirements, but a few areas allow off-leash). The temperature on heavy winds here are perfect for Newfoundlands. Thanks to LL Bean and their fabulous jakets we are quite comfortable too, even with the occasional rain showers.


On the way back from the evening walk, Ayla was a very very bad girl. We where already inside the vacation park where our bungalow is when Ayla spotted a rabbit. She took off like a bat out of hell, pulling the leash from my hand and nearly pulling me off my feet. Thankfully there is no traffic in the park, but we where kind of worried. We chased after her and thankfully she soon lost interest in the rabbit. Bunny 1 – Stupid Newfie 0. Her chase lasted for about 4 blocks and we still had a 10 minute walk home and we are glad to report that we have a very tired Newfie on our hands. Vacation is rough work afterall.


All the fresh ocean air is making us a bit tired too. Meanwhile we are relaxing in front of an open fireplace and will soon start making some dinner. A great first day of vacation for all.