Bridges in Luxembourg...

Since the races didn’t start until the evening, we had much of the day to explore the city. We started with walking back to the big elevator to see the view in the daylight. Along the way to the viewpoint, we took some photos inside.

If you look carefully, you can see the Kneipp pools just to the left of the tree in front of the church.

As we continued our walk, we could see the bridge behind the elevator that would be on the last leg of the races.

Further along, we got Ashlynn to pose. Behind her is the bridge that has a pedestrian walkway under the roadway...

...with lovely viewpoints along the way. 

A Weekend in Luxembourg...

Jimmy hadn’t run a marathon since 2005, but couldn’t resist Lisa’s invitation to join her in Luxembourg for a night marathon. It was also the perfect opportunity for a short family holiday and a chance for the girls to run their first half marathon. Jimmy, Ashlynn and I borrowed a friend’s car and arrived first, so we picked up everyone’s run numbers. 

Unlike other races, the end was going to be inside the conference center and was limited to participants.

Veronica flew in from London after work and we picked her up at the airport. As always, the girls were happy to be reunited.

We took a walk around that evening and discovered that a big elevator had been installed since our last visit in 2006 to connect the upper and lower parts of the city.

Jimmy and Ashlynn couldn’t resist taking off their shoes and rolling up their trousers when we came across a Kneipp cold water pool. Named after a German priest from the 19th century, this form of hydrotherapy supposedly has curative powers.

Veronica and I weren’t wearing the right clothes, so we stood dry and warm on the sidelines.

Ironically, the fellow that joined them was instrumental in helping to raise funds to renovate the pools that were originally built over a natural spring in 1931 as part of the public wash-house.

Scheveningen Beach...

After I spent the afternoon with Leigh and Mike in Amsterdam, the three of us met Jimmy in The Hague for some sangria before heading to Scheveningen Beach. 

It was a beautiful night for dinner at the beach. I was thrilled to hear that Leigh and Mike were really enjoying exploring Holland, so hopefully will come visit again.

I once again failed to take photos of our group, but got some cool shots of the pier...

...the Ferris wheel...

 

...and the Kurhaus. 

Also got a nice shot of the Plein and skyline.

Leigh and Mike’s First Visit...

We were so thrilled that Leigh and Mike were finally able to visit us. Of course, we took them to Leiden, our favorite Dutch city. The De Valk Windmill was decorated for May 5th, Liberation Day from World War II. We started with a visit to its Windmill Museum...

...and then visited De Put Windmill...

...where we had this great view.

What a surprise when we started climbing down from the windmill and discovered that it was being rotated.

The weather was perfect for a wander around town and lunch outside.

Ashlynn joined us for lunch; if you look closely, you can see her in the left lens.

Poor Mike had to deal with his bag not arriving for the first two days. I joked that it had gone walk-about to Rome and, ironically, I was right. He was relieved to finally be reunited with his clothes.

Spring Training....

My next training walks included going around Scheveningen Harbor with Terri where we spotted Marge Simpson in a house’s second story window.

It was cool to come across a company that takes kids to hunt for trash and then uses what they found to make art projects.

Another day I went with Carlin and Kent from Wassenaar Beach to Katwijk.

 This sandy dune makes for some good hill training.

After seeing this cute van, we couldn’t resist trying the associated beach hut, where we had a tasty lunch.

On yet another walk, I went with Carlin and Kent to Leiden. 

On the way home, we spotted this cute phone booth in a lovely front garden of a house.

Spring Hashing...

Two days after King’s Day, we were back in Amsterdam when Lisa hared the FILTH Hash from her house. We were spoiled with microbrews at the Foodhallen for the beer break.

We couldn’t resist posing with this creepy statue in Vondelpark. Jimmy was optimistic by wearing shorts on that chilly evening.

One week later, we were very excited to bring along my sister, Leigh, and her husband, Mike, who were visiting for the first time from California, to eastern Amsterdam for their first hash. They’re a little hard to spot in the back row, but Ashlynn’s easy to spot in the front. Not sure where Kati was when we took this, but she had a great time at her first Puppy Hash.

 At least we did get a few family shots.

More King’s Day Sightings...

A father and daughter pee together on one side of this fancy pop-up urinal, while Tony the Tiger pees on the other side.

The things my husband talks me into (in case you’re curious, I’m just pretending). 

This colorful guy posed for my camera...

...and this Dutch guy who likes Philadelphia posed with Lisa, whose hash name is Philly Buster. 

Looks like this fellow stood in for King Willem-Alexander, who was busy in another city celebrating his birthday.

Ashlynn popped into Bob’s later than evening for a catnap before heading with some friends to a DJ event until the wee hours of the morning.

Norah was surprisingly alert and active on our train ride home.