Vacation on an Island

I love islands. The feeling of being close to the sea everywhere, the air, the wind, the smell… I even think I would like to live on an island - perhaps that is why I am so much attracted by New Zealand? In any case, it is always good for me to be on an island, and right now I am spending a week on Heligoland with a friend of mine. 

Helgoland is Germany’s only island in the High Sea, all others are so close to the shore that they don’t qualify for that. 

There are several kinds of seals, sea lions etc. around, and they tend to be curious.
Frequently they are the ones who don't obey the rule to keep a minimum of
30m distance...

It's a paradise for bird watchers, too, and I am amazed at
the numbers of huge tele-lenses I see people carrying around.
Made me even more pleased with the results I get from
my little pocket-size camera that I use for my photos and
that is very light weight!

So there is quite a bit of Duty Free Shopping, even lots, which also attracts Day tourists - they are the only drawback to being here. But we are finding our way around them.

We have developed rituals very quickly, and we are having a wonderful time. I go for a morning run almost every morning (skipped today because of the weather, though) - around the island counter clock-wise once, and clock-wise to get back, then I stop at the bakery.

At low tide, we go beach combing, and we have become expert sea-glass-spotters.

I admit to developing a kind of addiction to this... didn't think I could still feel
such greed.

We are amazed at how different the harvest is on different beaches. And there is lots of glass around. Makes you think more about the micro-plastic problem so much being talked about, too, but we are on vacation.

We have gone swimming (water temperature: 15 degrees centigrade).

And we drink lots of tea and knit. I just finished a white jacket that I made in brioche stitch, from handspun yarn, and I had only started it in March, so that was a quick finish. 

Cutting the last thread

Today is much cooler, too, so this comes in very handy.