Den Haag

First work trip in 5 and a bit years; first flight in 5 years; and all just planned before a cost-saving travel freeze was announced. I've had a few short trips to the Hague, but managed this time to factor in the UK Bank Holiday, so there was time from arriving mid-afternoon to indulge in being a tourist.

The Mauritshuis was supposed to be visited on the last trip, those 5 years ago, but the fates conspired against it. So this time, staying in a hotel just 100 yards from it, I was able to wander round and take in some of the astounding art (the Girl with the Pearl Earring is in a huge Vermeer exhibition in Amsterdam at the moment, but that wasn't my main aim, which instead was the utterly beautiful, but heartbreaking, Goldfinch).

Still plenty time to hire a bike and find myself loving a cycle to and from the beach (oh man, we have so much to learn in this country), and a wander round the streets to find a restaurant (going for Surinamese in the end, instead of staying at the beach for a burger, which proved to be a very good choice indeed).

Pity it's to the office tomorrow for board meetings, but there's also a chance to quickly catch up with some people face to face for the first time, and meet a few people I've only ever known through a computer screen.