Tree hugging

Hippies, yoghurt-eating tree huggers, the socks & sandals brigade… it is a long time since we associated these sorts of epithets with Wageningen students. And now for anyone who regrets this, there is the perfect outing. On Saturday 13 October an attempt will be made to get into the Guinness Book of Records with a world record for tree hugging. The spectacle starts at 14.00 hours in Doorn, near Utrecht. There will be all sorts of games for children too. The event seems to aim primarily at interesting children in nature, but the young at heart of any age are also welcome. And why not, after all? Who wouldn’t want to wrap their arms around an old friend who withstands wind and weather and whose battered bark feels so lovely against your cheek? Ahem. Afterwards you can enjoy a pleasant walk in the wooded ridge that runs through Utrecht province. You can also pay a visit to Doorn’s stately home, where the German Kaiser Wilhelm II spent his last days in exile after World War I. Be on time; the museum closes at 17.00.