I have been to Leiden many times now but never knew that the symbol for the city was two keys. And on top of that they are the keys to heaven. This is one of the discoveries you can make if you follow the Leidse Loper, which is a loop around town going past many attractions including Pieterskerk.
It is rather austere inside and out especially compared to the ornate churches in Bavaria.
Canals are one of the may modes of transport and on a sunny day a great way to see the city. Bikes are another and there is also plenty of public transport. Leave the car at home if you can. Its not much fun driving in Dutch cities. You need to be able to navigate narrow one way roads with lots of bike riders and pedestrians. Then there is the parking. Not fast or fun.
So after many hours of exploring the city we walked back to the playing hall, only 2km by foot, had Linner ( a meal I invented between lunch and dinner ) and went back to the flat.
Somehow after sightseeing all day with the family I was not able to settle into my game (excuse number 465) and just played moves for a while and then lashed out against a well protected position. Talk about playing the rating. On move 25 my opponent played the crushing Bc4 and...offered a draw. Half a point more than I deserved.
On the weekends the games start at 1pm, rather than 7pm on weekdays.
Time to settle into the tournament and start thinking :-)
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