My partner and I invited ourselves to a trip on his father’s sailing boat yesterday. It was hello again to the Haringvliet in the south of Rotterdam – for us the first and probably only time this year. It seemed like the best thing to do in this weather.  

It actually felt like the warmest day so far this year – it was practically Mediterranean! When we got there at 3 p.m. it was the height of the afternoon and it was steaming. Even in shorts, I felt overdressed. Once we got on the water, it got a lot better.

It did get a little hazy because of my special dietary supplement of prescription codeine, and coupled with the heat, I felt quite sleepy for most of the time and didn’t get very much into the onboard conversations. Ever the understanding hosts, my partner’s parents didn’t seem to mind. After a few hours on the water, and with the sun a bit more bearable, we slowly made our way back to port, bought some local Chinese food, and had a great, satisfying dinner on the water.
We left at the magic hour and called it a summer day more than well spent.