10th – 13th of October – Eindhoven

There were no flights directly to Eindhoven so instead I flew into Amsterdam and then took the train 1½ hours to Eindhoven with a change in Rotterdam. It made getting back and forth a bit more complicated but the trains were on time and it was a comfortable ride, so there was no issue. Arriving in Eindhoven it took less than 10 minutes to locate my hotel where I checked in and claiming my room that turned out to overlook the finishing area of the race, and soon after I left to go to the Technical University where I picked up my bib and shirt. As it was getting late and dark I wandered about for a bit and realized that the city seemed to enjoy Italian and Japanese food, so I ended up in a ramen place where I started off with some Takoyaki before having a delicious bowl of ramen. Not having any desserts (what?!) I left and had a quick visit to a kiosk to bring some back home to the hotel. You can’t have dinner without dessert when you’re on vacation!

 

A striking photo.

The next day I had a walk outside the center of the city and realized how correct it was when reading on travelling sites saying that Eindhoven isn’t really a tourist destination. I therefore returned to the center where I spent time visiting the DAF and Philips museum. The former had a bunch of vehicles presented from throughout the history of the company and while there was no real walkthrough of the history of the company itself the descriptive plaques for the vehicles combined gave a fairly good overview of the company, too. The Philips museum focused on the company’s foundation, the light bulb, the later years’ development of hospital technology and more recently the implementation of AI. The average consumer only see a fraction of what Philips do – and the home appliance divisions have mostly been sold off or split into other companies; focus now is health technology (ultrasound, respiratory care, radiography and lots of other fancy stuff). They have also helped found – among other things – ASML which is one of the world’s main suppliers to semiconductor industries around the world, supplying equipment for chip production. It’s some serious high-tech stuff, and together with numerous other high tech industries in the city it has made Eindhoven a major tech hubs in Europe.

One of the vehicles that participated in the Paris-Dakar rally. 

 

Derp. 

The starting area was only a 10 minute walk from the hotel, on the opposite side of the station, on Montgomerylaan. While the street was wide they only used on side for the runners which meant that the starting area was stretched quite a bit. But all was good and we were off on time – just before the starting line we were squeezed together to half width and while annoying and stopping the flow it meant that it helped spreading the runners over a larger distance, loosening up the group and not having a too crowded start. 

The course generally consisted of long stretches with not too many turns which meant it was easy to get into a zen mood without having to focus on constant making turns and positioning yourself optimally. It wasn’t until around 30km we started making more regular turns. Going north on Montgomerylaan we made our first turn down Winston Churchilllaan, circling around Luytelaer before returning west and going up along Henri Dunantpark. From here we headed west until we ran south down along the airport until reaching the High Tech Campus which we circled (the place seemed huge!) before taking a quick nip down into Voldijn before returning north and finishing in the city center, almost right outside my hotel.

The cheering was limited along the course, you met them in groups near stations and intersections, but getting back into the city the energy was high. Also, the last couple of hundred meters we merged with the half-marathon course which suddenly made otherwise nice conditions very cramped. It was manageable considering the relative short distance and you could distract yourself with the onlookers. Unfortunately I didn’t quite avoid the hand-on-shoulder push-you-aside runner a few meters before the finish line – hurray for you, you gained 3 seconds! (he turned out to be a double-dick as he was also the type that just completely stopped the second he crossed the line).

I managed to finish in 3:53:43, a very respectable time, my 4^th fastest marathon time. I came in as 2340 out of 4356 overall (top 53,72%), 2065 out of 3635 men (top 56,81%) and 331 out of 501 M40 (top 66,07%). A surprisingly fast group of runners I would have thought my relative result would have been better. I was a very flat course, though, with 48m up and a little less down over the entire course.

Getting back to the hotel was a completely different challenge, though. I could look right up at it but we got channeled past, split up in half and full runners, and we, the full marathoners had out exit in front of the station. Getting back to the hotel was wild. It was crowded getting out because of all the +1s waiting for runners, and then getting across 18 Septemberplein was nearly impossible as that was where the half marathoners exited, and that was a significantly bigger group of people with their +1s waiting. The down Hermanus Boexstraat which turned out to be the last stretch of the half marathon meaning the sidewalks were packed. It took me close to an hour walking the 1km back to the hotel. It was absolutely maddening.

Had a shower (it was a bathtub with a shower – it’s never fun getting into one of them after a run) before going out and had a pile of fries before settling in in my room and only moving again to go out for dinner.

The following day was spent in the hotel before leaving for the station and taking the trains back to Amsterdam and flying home.

Full album can be seen here.

11th – Going home

I was planning on sleeping in today and skipping breakfast at the hotel to grab lunch somewhere in Leiden instead. A few minutes past 10, the time the breakfast is served until, I got a call to my room from the reception making sure that I didn’t want breakfast as they hadn’t seen me during the morning. Never had that happen to me before (granted, I don’t skip breakfast at hotels very often, either) but that was a quirky bit of unexpected service.

I had a gentle walk around on sore legs, took a canal tour to rest my legs, grabbed some lunch and walked a bit more. It wasn’t very inconvenient that my flight wasn’t until early evening, but it was either that or in the morning, and I preferred sleeping in. 

Grabbing the train to the airport I went through security and found out that the lounge was closed so I couldn’t even sit there and relax while I waited – that was not what I had hoped for. So I camped at a café near the gate before finally being able to board and return home. The flight ended up getting delayed maybe half an hour which meant that I didn’t arrive home until midnight. Bah.

Leiden is very proud of being the birthplace of Rembrandt.

Overall it was a great trip, and feeling of that helped along by what I consider a successful run on the Sunday. I also really enjoyed it being out of season and people not really travelling as much yet as before which meant that there was plenty of room to just be yourself at the museums I ended up visiting. Made the entire thing so much more pleasant. And I'll be honest; I might prefer having my own photos filling my walls, but if I'd somehow get my hands on a Rembrandt I would definitely make room for it, even if it required me to sacrifice a few photos.

Full album from the trip can be found here.

10th – Leiden Marathon

The reason why I came here in the first place – the Leiden Marathon. The start (and nearby finish) was just a few minutes’ walk from the hotel which made everything a bit easier. The morning started pretty chilly at around 8°C but the forecasts promised warmer weather within 1-2 hours after the start topping up at around 13-15°C so I wasn’t really worried despite being a bit cold in just shorts and a t-shirt.

There were 3 starting groups and being placed in the last one I had no hopes of placing well when finishing. We were all sent off as planned at 1000 and after some frustrating narrow sections in town (no wider than 2 meters) and a few kilometers we reached the city limits and things opened up.

Throughout the run between the towns we passed through assigned mostly to cycling paths that seem to connect everything around here. The paths were everywhere from 1-1½ and 3-4 meters wide, and while it was narrow at times, because there were only 588 starters and as soon as we left Leiden we started getting spread out, it was never really an issue. 

Throughout the run, whenever there could be the slightest doubt where to go there would be marshals pointing the way so despite the limited signage there was never a risk of turning the wrong way. When passing through towns the main intersections were fenced in to lead us along, but as soon as we were out in the open there were nothing that could prevent non-racers to move about. That wasn’t really an issue, either, though, as all the locals seemed very respectful and supportive of the race and racers. There was the occasional biker that wanted to use the bike paths that we were running on, but they were few and far between. 

The long flat stretches between towns were nice, the towns seemed like the all were placed a couple of meters above everything else so whenever we were closing in on the next town we would be exposed to a short and steep (felt steep, at least) incline, and leaving we got a similar decline. And the numerous bridges across the canals (and a couple of tunnels) meant there were no shortage of short and intense ups and downs.

Returning to Leiden on the last few kilometers there was a lot of support along the way in form of onlookers. It probably also helped that we passed by multiple bars with outdoor serving that made the mood of the run even better. Getting closer to the end the course was completely fenced in and limiting the space to pass and be passed, and passing over the last few bridges we merged with the end of the 5- and 10km runs, squeezed together on 3 meters’ width and finally crossed the finish line. 

Crossing the finish line. Unfortunately there were no official photographers along the course.

I crossed the line in 3:55:48, 14 seconds slower than my PR. The PR was during the Boston virtual run, looking at traditional runs I beat my previous PR with 1:59. I finished as no. 292/577 overall and 247/463 among men which put me in top 50,6% and 53,3%, respectively. Fastest runner did it in 2:33:06, slowest in 6:06:52. Overall I was happy with the result, so I guess the run could be considered a success.

Despite it was a 5-minute walk from the hotel to the finish line, it was a 15-minute walk the opposite way. Weird. I have a room on the second floor of the hotel that doesn’t have an elevator and only steep stairs. That was no fun. A much needed shower and good rest afterwards I finished off with dinner at one of the nearby steak restaurants.

9th – Leiden

I was planning on having a rest day with only a short walk around in Leiden – I chose to stay away from the many museums and just wander around for a bit. The weather had cleared up and it was a good day to have a walk along the canals.

Molen de Valk (The falcon mill) from 1743.

I went by a small Italian place to book a table for tonight before going to Burcht van Leiden, the remains of a tower in the middle of the city. It wasn’t overly tall, but if it hadn’t been surrounded by the many trees you would still have had a great view over the city. Instead you mostly just saw tree tops. 

From there I went to pick up my t-shirt and number for the run tomorrow and made sure I knew the way from the hotel to the starting area. A 10-minute walk between a marathon and hotel is pretty nice.

Go right to go to Garenmarkt, turn left to... go the other direction? Duh! There were several of this sign around the cities, I am not sure if they meant anything but the obvious.

I ended up spending some time walking through the day’s market (there is one every Wednesday and Saturday) that was located along the canals. It was a quite large market and there was a big mix of cheeses, breads, candy, chocolate, fish and other. 

Around mid-afternoon I returned to the hotel and kicked back for the rest of the day before going out for dinner. A delicious dinner, but for some reason my cards didn’t work there so I had to run out and grab some money from a nearby ATM. Whoopsie!

7th – 8th – Amsterdam

I spent the following two days going to Amsterdam to take in the city. I had been recommended to have a look at the Rijksmuseum so that was my first stop on my tour. I had planned on spending a few hours looking around before continuing on, but when I left I had spent more than 5½ hours just walking around. With a small number of statues but primarily paintings it was surprisingly interesting, but personally I was the most impressed by the 1600-1700 floor. Plenty of classics by many more local painters that was seen in Mauritshuis together with numerous Dutch and Flemish painters. The density of artists in the Netherlands is – or has been – quite impressive. Van Gogh, Vermeer, Rembrandt, van de Velde are probably among the better known, but they were a mere fraction of the total collection. The Night Watch by Rembrandt is probably the best known at the museum and they are currently working on restoring it to its former glory. During the painting’s earlier years, the painting had been moved and because the new location had less space, they had removed parts of the painting to make it fit. They are now currently in the works of restoring the lost parts, basing themselves mainly – as I understood – on a smaller copy made before it had been “adjusted”. A lot of computerwork, AI, and three employees with a microscope were set in motion as part of the restoring process. 

The Night Watch, 1642, Rembrandt

A copy of the original The Night Watch, before it was cropped.

The library in the Rijksmuseum.

Militia Company of District VIII under the Command of Captain Roelof Bicker, 1643, Bartholomeus van der Helst.

Leaving the museum I circled the center following the canals, passing Anne Frank’s house, before finally finding the right road that brought me back to the station to get back to Leiden.

On returning to Amsterdam on my second day there I did a quick pass past the royal palace before heading East, opposite the Rijksmuseum. I didn’t have anything planned so I decided to just have a walk around, trying to get myself lost in the many narrow streets among old buildings, endless bicycles and the occasional sweet aroma hanging in the air.

I found myself at a new part on the roof of Nemo, the city’s technical science museum. From here you could see along the rooftops towards the center and towering Oude Kerk (“Old Church”).

View from the roof of Nemo.

After a short break I continued on and shortly after passed by the Versetsmuseum (Defense Museum). It was different compared to other similar WW2 museums in that they solely showed the war through the eyes of the civilians and ignored the actual armies and fighting that didn’t directly involve civilians. From here I continued, passed by the botanical garden without even noticing, and after a bit of confusion I ended up in front of Rembrandt’s house museum. I realized that the museum wasn’t about his paintings but rather how life was when he grew up and the effect he had on his students’ and others’ paintings so I ended up skipping it. With a bit more zig-zagging I found myself passing through the red light district (being daytime there was nothing obvious going on), continued confusing myself before finally finding my way back to the station and on a train back to Leiden.

I hadn’t been able to get dinner until 2000 the previous nights, so returning to Leiden at 1730 today I thought I’d be able to get something to eat a bit earlier. Yet, all the places I had a look at turned out to be popular and fully booked. So it still turned into 1930 before I found a nice small place that made some delicious burgers. 

If I want to be able to get a pasta dinner tomorrow so I can still manage to get some relaxation and good sleep before the run on Sunday I’ll probably need to book a table in advance to be sure to have somewhere to go.

5th – 6th of October – Departure and The Hague

It feels weird.

More than a year since last I traveled, before that 8 months since last, and before that it had been 10+ years of 1-6 visits to the airport annually. So being back after all that time felt weird – but also good, it has been missed, in spite of all the negative things one could say about an airport. And in contrast to last time where the airport was almost desolate it was clear that people are now able to travel again. Far from the old-fashioned rush before the lockdowns, but things are clearly starting to get back to normal again. 

It feels weird – but also really good – to be back.

The flight to Amsterdam was uneventful, it was a small plane so the 1½ meters distancing went out the window when we got seated. From Amsterdam it was a short train ride to Leiden where I, after spending a moment trying to figure out what side of the station to exit, easily found my hotel where I’ll be staying the coming week. On the 15 minutes’ walk I passed by an all-you-can-eat sushi place and two Argentinian steak houses, so I clearly found a good location.

View from my room.

After a very good night’s sleep I woke up and grabbed breakfast right before the closed, after which around 1015 I left the hotel and headed back to the station where I grabbed a train to The Hague. From here I did a full day of walking and looking around before returning to the station in the evening around 1900 and returned to Leiden.

Getting my bearings I zig-zagged around until I reached Vredespalais (Peace Palace) before circling back and spending a few hours at Mauritshuis, an art museum with multiple Dutch and Flemish painters (rather; works by said painters), Vermeer and Rembrandt probably being the best known of them. Among many other notable pieces it is also here the Girl With A Pearl Earring is located – probably by far the best known of all the paintings there, but to me the painting with the best PR team. Looking at the many other works hanging here it seems almost borderline boring. But I guess I am not a real art connoisseur and have no idea what I’m talking about. 

Vredespalais.

The Anatomy Lesson of Dr Nicolaes Tulp, 1632, Rembrandt.

Girl with a Pearl Earring, 1665, Vermeer.

Trying to figure out what to do next I learnt that MC Escher was Dutch and a museum about him and his works was only a few minutes’ walk from Mauritshuis, so that was naturally my next stop. It was quite an interesting visit, and it turns out that the pictures he is actually known for (impossible stairs, endless waterfall, etc.) are only a small fraction of what he ended up producing throughout his life. He started off with a lot of naturalistic drawings, many from and of the Amalfi coast, and continued on to self-portraits of various kinds, and further onto having mirrors, tessellation, and negative space being a big part of his works. This museum was absolutely worth the 1½ hours I ended up spending there!

One of Escher's first attempts at an impossible picture.

Tessellation.

It looks normal at first sight.

On the way back to the station I stopped by an enclosure where some dear were roaming and I got to talking with an elderly local. He recommended me to go and see the Huis ten Bosch (royal palace) which could be seen – albeit at a distance – and the Japanese garden nearby. The 10 minutes’ walk he said it would take to get there was closer to half an hour, and while it was a nice looking palace it was a long distance away from behind the fencing. And the garden nearby might have been nice but it was closed when I made it there and I have no idea. 

Back in Leiden I had dinner at a pancake place; mustard soup for starters, a bacon, ham, cheese and mushroom pancake for the main course, and a Dutch waffle for dessert. The pancake was 40cm – if not more – across, and the dish was made with a pancake as base, topping on that and another pancake’s worth of batter on top. 1 single pancake (which technically probably was 2) might not sound like much, but it was quite filling which was helped along by the generous amounts of cheese which was, I suspect, thick slices of cheese and not shredded cheese spread out.

The Chicago replacement

With my spot on the Chicago marathon in October being postponed to next year I was saved from having to put myself another marathon – voluntarily, even! But I then also realized that my training for the marathon would go to waste, and that bothered me. All that running for nothing?

Obviously a solution had to be found, and found it was! I looked through lists of current marathons in the immediate neighborhood and found a few that looked interesting, and after a few days I had found the one to go with.

5^th – 11^th of October

The winner of my search ended up being Leiden Marathon, located between Rotterdam and Amsterdam. I'm spending a bit extra time there than I usually do for a normal extended weekend as there are good train connections to Amsterdam, Rotterdam, The Hague and Utrecht so I am hoping that I get some time to see at least some of those, too, while I'm there. The run is on the Sunday the 10^th so I'll have plenty of time to have a look around. It's apparently a small run, the last few years 7-800 people participated, and I suspect the number will likely be lower this year. 

Another run, another marathon, but with the location in mind, no matter how bad the weather is or how bad the run goes, I think I can be fairly sure that the course will be guaranteed flat the entire way. It'll be fun!