Back to the Homeland

Arrived in Eidhoven this morning! A few things have changed, but generally it's exactly the same as it was 11 years ago when I first visited. Dad was excited to back to the city where he grew up and I was excited for a few other things - namely fries & Dutch mayo, the PSV Stadium, biking and going to the soccer field where Mark and I used to juggle soccer balls. First thing's first, though, get a coffee and snack at the train station restaurant.

Although Eidhoven isn't very well known outside of the Netherlands, it is actually a fair size city and has quite a bustling night life. Our hotel was located in the Marketplace, which is where all the action happens. I knew that we were going to have a busy week, though, and I really wanted to get at least a bit of biking in so Dad and I dropped off our bags at the hotel and made our way to the bike rental shop to get a couple of bikes for the afternoon.

We did a biking tour of the neighborhood where Dad grew up, passing the PSV Stadium then making our way to Sportlaan where Grandma used to live and where Mark and I use to play soccer and where we once helped the PSV team get a stuck ball out from a tree haha...it's funny the little things you remember from your childhood. We visited Dad's old friend, Jan Roos, who invited us in for coffee and showed us around his very interesting house. He collects scrap metal and makes all sorts of things by hand, including toy trucks and full-size four wheelers for his grandchildren. It was amazing! We then biked for about an hour past windmills and farmland to the town of Veldhoven (a Jackson family tradition) to go to the small friterie next to the church for fries and mayo.

After that we made our way back into Eidhoven and caught the late show of True Grit and went to a true Dutch bar for a couple drinks. I love Dutch bars - they have so much character and are always filled with friendly people.

K time for bed,

xoxo
Alexis