Tag: Martijn

An Isle and an Inn

Published on 30 June 2025

Last full day of my trip, but I was not about to slow down! On this Monday’s schedule: a visit to the Isle of Bute, and my last run in Scotland for a while…

After breakfast at Social Bite—I really appreciate what they are doing for the less fortunate—I still had time for a coffee at Riverhill Coffee Bar, before catching my ScotRail train in Glasgow Central.

I had to get to get onto a ferry in Wemyss Bay, but its train station actually was an attraction in itself!

The CalMac ferry brought me from Wemyss Bay to Rothesay, on the Isle of Bute. It was quite windy on deck, so some people might have seen more of me than I intended! The risks of wearing a kilt…

The Bute Museum is a cute little museum, but you don’t need much more than half an hour to see everything. That meant I had to some time left to visit Bonnie Bling, a jewellery maker also serving coffee from the local Isle of Bute Coffee roasters.

After that Rothesay Castle finally reopened after its lunch break. Once again I was confronted with Norwegian king Hakon… In the courtyard they were even flying the Norwegian flag, alongside the Saltire and the Buteshire flag!

After escaping from the prison pit, I headed to the Bute Yard. It’s a magnificent space, but a bit empty on a Monday afternoon, and no food vendors. Luckily the bar of the Bute Brew Co. was open, so I enjoyed a couple of their beers.

After returning to the mainland, I skipped a train to have some fish & chips from Macari’s, a place that came highly recommended to me. No place to eat in inside, but luckily the seagulls left me in piece.

Back in Glasgow I had just enough time to get changed in the hotel, and take the beloved subway—finally, because they were on strike when I wanted to use it—to Inn Deep.

There I met up with the Glasgow H3—for the third time already—to run and drink with them alongside the river Kelvin and beyond.

Since I still had all my packing to do, after the last beer at Inn Deep, I then went straight back to the hotel.

The New Town

The New Town

Published on 25 June 2025

Wednesday was another travel day—although just the train from Aberdeen to Edinburgh—and another hashing day, with The New Town hash this time.

The day started a bit earlier than expected, since I had to go to the NorthLink Ferries terminal to pick up some haberdashery (hashing gear) that didn’t make it to the event in time. Back in the hotel with my loot, I enjoyed breakfast there, and then finished packing.

Well before my train was due to depart, I went to Aberdeen station to relax a bit in the First Class Lounge.

It would take the ScotRail train about 2h20 to take me from Aberdeen to Edinburgh Waverley, but on board as well there was an unlimited supply of water and shortbread. And great sea views for a large part of it!

After arrival, I went straight to the hotel Hub by Premier Inn in Rose Street, and after a cup of tea in the lobby, I could already check myself in.

For my coffee I didn’t go too far. I actually had even visited Wellington Coffee before!

Completely new, however, was BrewDog Edinburgh Waverley, a franchise bar in the main train station. I took me a while to find it, but while The Shaw OG hot dog was really nice, the beer choice was rather disappointing. It really is a bar where you’d only go to kill some time while waiting for your train, not a beer geek destination…

Time to change again, and hop on a bus to get to the start of this week’s The New Town H3 run. Nice turnout, great trail!

Back in the centre and back in my MacLaren kilt, I had a couple of beers at the Fierce Bar.

After a quick late night dinner at Jollibee, the last stop was at Vessel, a restaurant and bar run by Pilot.

Shetland Simmer Dim Hash

Shetland Simmer Dim Hash

Published on 22 June 2025

This weekend was all about the main event of my trip, the Shetland Simmer Dim Hash! A hostel full of hashers running and walking on both Shetland proper and Bressay, and getting a taste of local culture, food, and beer!

After a restful night and a nice breakfast in the Magnus’ Lounge on the Hrossey, all the hashers gathered in the lobby to debark together. In the arrivals hall we were greeted by some local hashers—although only one of them actually lived on the island—and fiddle music.

There was a coach already waiting to take us to the hostel to quickly drop off our baggage, and then on to the start of trail, a good hour’s drive away.

I’m sure a run around Lerwick would have have been lovely, but Saturday’s trail was just stunning! The weather was very un-Scottish as well, since it was incredibly sunny, albeit quite windy, and the bogs invariably soggy…

After trail we had the opportunity to visit the Hillswick Wildlife Sanctuary, which was hosting a grey seal, and the caretakers passionately told us all about it. Others were crazy enough to take a dip in the cold sea…

We then had a sandwich lunch and circle at the nearby St Magnus Bay Hotel—also serving local beers—after which the coach took us back to Lerwick so we could get settled in our rooms. It had been a while since I had shared a room with ten other guys!

By sheer coincidence, just before we were about to leave for dinner, the Lerwick Midsummer Carnival parade passed right by our hostel. As so much on Shetland, it was very Viking themed!

Dinner and the rest of the evening program would take place at the nearby Lerwick Town Hall. The main hall was beautiful, with a wooden vaulted ceiling, and stained glass windows, many of them featuring Norwegian monarchs.

The dinner buffet was excellent—lamb pie made with local lamb—the beer aplenty—cask and keg from the local Lerwick Brewery—and the ceilidh—I even brought my dancing ghillies for it—a lot of fun for everyone!

Since it was overcast and rainy by then—we even had a thunderstorm that night—the ‘dim’ was a bit darker than it usually is… It still was a very short night, though!

Hangover Trail

As is customary at events like this, there was a hangover trail on Sunday morning—even though my hangover was less severe than on Saturday morning… Less customary was the trail length: even longer than the Saturday trail! Since I would need my trail shoes by Monday evening again, and I prefer them to be dry, I decided to do the walk.

For this trail we actually had to cross the water, as it was on Bressay. Considering the weather—mostly wet and misty—this had been a smart choice to not run today, as they most definitely would have gotten even wetter… As nice as the beach at the ‘swim stop’ looked, I couldn’t be tempted to go in the water! I did get to see a seal in its natural habitat, though!

After trail we had another marvellous lunch: I just couldn’t stay away from the buttered bannock with slices of lamb…And again: Lerwick Brewery beer on cask!

Then we had to run to catch the ferry to Lerwick again, where we had another drink together, before picking up our bags and the ride to the NorthLink ferry terminal.

Once on the Hjaltland, I enjoyed another dinner in the Magnus Lounge, before joining the other hashers in the front bar for the last couple of beers.

Simmer Dim Trip

Simmer Dim Trip

Published on 17 June 2025

Finally! Another ‘big trip’! Not unexpectedly it’s to Scotland again, but with a very specific goal: experience the shortest night of the year—Simmer Dim—on Shetland. As usual, the first day is all about getting to Scotland: 1287 km in under 21 hours, including over 7 hours in London…

Faithfully filling out all those questionnaires from Eurostar meant I had gathered enough points to upgrade to Eurostar Plus. There’s no lounge access included in that class, but in Brussels that’s usually not really needed anyway. For me the most important advantage of class upgrades are the solo seats. On trains to London however, Plus actually includes a light meal and drinks as well! On the menu today: roast beef bowl with horseradish and lovage potato salad, green beans and courgettes, apricot Bakewell. I also got to try the Two Tribes beer Nomad, brewed exclusively for Eurostar.

A wheelie bag, with a kilt roll and a backpack strapped to it, on the tiled platform of a Brussels metro station.

After arrival—just seven minutes late—I first headed to Hoppers for the second part of my lunch. Not that I didn’t enjoy the food on the train, but it was just a light meal, and definitely not enough for what was about to come… Also, Hoppers had been on my to-do list ever since I saw the founder as a guest chef on the Sorted YouTube channel. So I had an egg hopper, the Lankan chicken kari, tomato chutney, pol sambol, and seeni sambol, all of that with a Toddy Ale by SALT.

Big snifter glass with beer on a wooden table, a brass plate behind it.

Differently sized bowls with food on a table.

I wouldn’t stray too far from the train stations today, but still, taking my big wheelie bag—with a kilt roll and a smaller backpack strapped to it—would be quite annoying. So it was time to store my bag at what turned out to be the cutest Nannybag location I ever used. The lady running the shop calling me ‘dear’ all the time reinforced this sentiment even further…

Wheelie bag, with on top of it a yellow luggage tag with the number 08

After that I had some time to relax a bit and have the first decent coffee in days, at Store St Espresso.

Inside view, a customer at the wooden counter

From there it was just a five minute walk to The Queen’s Head. I’ve been to this bar a couple of times—probably already my very first time in London—but the beer menu never disappoints! To soak up a bit of the beer before my last stop, I finished off with a Mr. Barrick’s pork pie.

Classic pub facade, wooden tables in front

Beer on the bar, bar stools and people sitting at tables in the background

Dimple mug with dark beer on the bar, pump clip in the background

Then it was time to retrieve my bag while the shop was still open—even though the nice lady gave me clear instructions on what to do if it was closed—and head to my traditional pre-sleeper stop: the Euston Tap! It was sweltering inside, so after my first half, I ordered a pint to take outside.

19th century gatehouse, stones engraved with destinations of trains leaving from Euston station, drinking after work people in front of it

Glass of beer on a table, with taps mounted to a copper plated wall behind it

A glass of beer balancing on a fence railing, the Euston Tap and its terrace in the background

Derelict 19th century gatehouse, stones engraved with destinations of trains leaving from Euston station

I didn’t stay too long, since I hadn’t tested the new Caledonian Sleeper lounge yet. It’s definitely nice they have a space of their own now: you already get your room key card—pre-activated, so no messing about with double-tapping—and an announcement when it’s time to board. And of course all the shortbread and Irn-Bru—and coffee and tea—you can stomach! The lounge was quite busy, but I still found a seat.

When I was finally on board, I quickly dropped my bag in my room, filled out the breakfast card, and headed to the Club Car, for my traditional whisky and Scottish cheese plate. After my second dram, I decided it was time to go to bed, and spend most of the 914 km to Inverness sleeping. After all, breakfast will be served at 7:15…

Tumbler with whisky, the mini bottle next to it

So for now, time to take off my trousers and stash them away for the next two weeks, and get some sleep!

Bonus! A little video of my Caledonian Sleeper experience!

Beer Lovers’ Marathon 2025

Published on 18 May 2025

I did it again! The Beer Lovers’ Marathon that is… Sans wig this time, but with a homemade blue balmoral bonnet with a red toorie, embodying Tintin in his The Black Island album.

The theme of the Beer Lovers’ Marathon this year was “Belgian Comics”, so that’s why I gave my best interpretation of Tintin in his album “The Black Island”, or as it’s called in Gaelic “An T-Eilan Dubh”: kilted—obviously—wearing a blue balmoral bonnet with a red toorie, and a blue, long-sleeved running shirt, with the album cover printed on the back.

My first attempt at this marathon was in 2022, and it definitely went better this time: more than half an hour faster! I still had to walk the last bit, but I managed to run most of it this time. I actually already started feeling my right knee from about kilometer 20, and my left knee started acting up soon after that.

After climbing the 374-step Montagne de Bueren staircase, and the nasty climb following that—around the 11th beer stop at 34,4 km, Saint Nitouche—my my knees told me that, if I still wanted to use them after that day, I’d better stop running…

I tried a little jog every once in a while, but the signal my knees gave me was clear: don’t overdo it… Even after slowing down, the pacemaker with the “10 minutes until the bar closes” sign never caught up with me, and all seventeen beer stops on the course were still serving beer by the time I reached them.

In despite of the pain, I still ran the final 100 meters from the last beer stop to the finish. You can’t finish a marathon walking, can you? In the end, I finished 1152th, of 2274 finishers in total, so not too shabby at all!

(See this run on Strava)