A no-deal Brexit is looming on January 1st and on the highways here in The Netherlands, on the ferry routes from England, I saw these signs the other day…

Now in addition, with a new Corona virus strain in the UK appearing, the EU is blocking all travel from the UK and the UK is more isolated now than ever. In our family group chat my brother in London feels more locked in than ever. “For now, we’re not coming off the island” he is saying, accompanied by some dramatic smilies. My aunt replied with “The UK is now completely cut off! Very radical (as in painful). Be careful.”
For the more cynical amongst us, I guess Brexit has started early and it’s heartbreaking to see the UK become even more isolated from their neighbours now that even all goods have been halted at the borders. I hope something can be done, it was already going to be very difficult with (no-deal) Brexit, these new bans make it even more impossible. I hope my brother, niece and friends and readers in the UK will be OK. All of them/you are very much in my thoughts.
As for this new corona virus strain, which is even more infectious than the original virus, it has also been detected in The Netherlands. So far, reports say that only two people in Amsterdam (one of whom had not been to the UK recently) have been diagnosed with it. We are already in strict lockdown (no curfews as yet, but in all other aspects it’s strict) until January 19th, I wonder if this new strain will be cause for measures to become even stricter or prolongued here. This past year has already been a year in isolation, I wonder if, despite the vaccinations that are coming, the year 2021 will continue to be the same. The thought is very depressing.