{"id":63,"date":"2025-05-06T20:26:53","date_gmt":"2025-05-06T18:26:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/?page_id=63"},"modified":"2025-06-09T18:09:52","modified_gmt":"2025-06-09T16:09:52","slug":"about","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/about\/","title":{"rendered":"About Marnix"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For my 60th birthday, I decided to give myself a sabbatical: a year of walking through Europe.
\nThe idea of walking 10,000 kilometres appealed to me \u2014 mostly without a plan, with only two strict conditions: I didn\u2019t want it to be too cold, and I didn\u2019t want it to be too hot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why did I want to do this? Just because. There wasn\u2019t a clear reason. It was a deep, authentic urge that came from within \u2014 a call I simply couldn\u2019t ignore, even though it took me years to actually follow through on the idea. It took quite a bit of courage to step into the unknown and take that very first step. Above all, I was curious about what such a journey would do to me mentally. That inner journey was what interested me most. The physical challenge didn\u2019t worry me much. Over the past ten years, I\u2019ve done a lot of walking \u2014 before that, not a single step \u2014 and by now I\u2019ve gained plenty of long-distance hiking experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And so it happened: on May 1st, 2024, I closed the door behind me and hit the road. In the end, it turned into a nine-month journey, covering over 5,500 kilometres. Yes, I returned early \u2014 I didn\u2019t complete the full year. Not because I didn\u2019t enjoy it \u2014 quite the opposite. It was truly an extraordinary experience. But after three-quarters of a year, it became crystal clear to me: this is the life I want to live from now on. A nomadic life on foot, as a writer in barefoot shoes*, with all my belongings in my faithful hiking cart, Wheelie \u2014 and off I go.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n

 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

ON THE ROAD, I AM HOME.<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Marnix (2024)<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Past<\/span><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

A brief overview: I graduated from HEAO (Higher Economic and Administrative Education) with a major in Commercial Economics and International Marketing. I then lived and worked in Spain for almost ten years, employed by two international companies. After returning to the Netherlands and exploring different roles in the financial sector, I started my own coaching and training business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Present<\/span><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Personal life: I live alone and have a son (born in 2001) and a daughter (born in 2003).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Job: I work 32 hours a week in a management support role at a large organization that provides care for refugees. I\u2019m lucky enough to go out every other week for four days with my tent, to escape from the bureaucracy, the meetings, and the Excel sheets \u2014 and to prepare myself for the future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Passions: Long-distance hiking and writing. These are the two passions I want to combine in the life I envision.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Future<\/span><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019ve given myself a year to get everything in order so I can hit the road for good. For that, I still need to figure out how to sustain myself financially while on the move, to make this dream come true. Unfortunately, I don\u2019t have millions in the bank \u2014 but luckily, I don\u2019t need them. I don\u2019t need much to be happy: my little tent, good food, a beautiful trail, and occasionally a bit of comfort \u2014 a shower, a washing machine, a short break \u2014 that\u2019s more than enough.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

*Barefoot shoes: I firmly believe that conventional footwear does more harm than good in the long run. That\u2019s why I always, and consciously, wear barefoot shoes \u2014 for the health of my feet, and my whole bod<\/em>y. These pictures are from Vivobarefoot<\/a>. <\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

  For my 60th birthday, I decided to give myself a sabbatical: a year of walking through Europe. The idea of walking 10,000 kilometres appealed to me \u2014 mostly without a plan, with only two… More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-63","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"yoast_head":"\nAbout Marnix - FOOTSTEPS OF FREEDOM<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/about\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"About Marnix - FOOTSTEPS OF FREEDOM\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"  For my 60th birthday, I decided to give myself a sabbatical: a year of walking through Europe. The idea of walking 10,000 kilometres appealed to me \u2014 mostly without a plan, with only two… More\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/about\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"FOOTSTEPS OF FREEDOM\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-06-09T16:09:52+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Marnix-kar-Spanje.jpeg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1600\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\\\/en\\\/about\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\\\/en\\\/about\\\/\",\"name\":\"About Marnix - FOOTSTEPS OF FREEDOM\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\\\/en\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\\\/en\\\/about\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\\\/en\\\/about\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/05\\\/Marnix-kar-Spanje-768x1024.jpeg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-05-06T18:26:53+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-06-09T16:09:52+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\\\/en\\\/about\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\\\/en\\\/about\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\\\/en\\\/about\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/05\\\/Marnix-kar-Spanje-768x1024.jpeg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/05\\\/Marnix-kar-Spanje-768x1024.jpeg\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\\\/en\\\/about\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\\\/en\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"About Marnix\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\\\/en\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\\\/en\\\/\",\"name\":\"FOOTSTEPS OF FREEDOM\",\"description\":\"Hiking & writing\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/3378b8c210d8e714eabad2dc1764e0db\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\\\/en\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":[\"Person\",\"Organization\"],\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/3378b8c210d8e714eabad2dc1764e0db\",\"name\":\"Marnix van der Lijn\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/05\\\/logo_fof.svg\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/05\\\/logo_fof.svg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/05\\\/logo_fof.svg\",\"width\":1160,\"height\":250,\"caption\":\"Marnix van der Lijn\"},\"logo\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/05\\\/logo_fof.svg\"},\"description\":\"Ik ben Marnix (1964), schrijver, langeafstandswandelaar en minimalist in hart en nieren. Na een loopbaan in de commerci\u00eble wereld, coaching en training, en jarenlange inzet in de vluchtelingenopvang, koos ik op mijn zestigste voor een radicale wending: ik gaf mezelf een sabbatical en trok de wereld in \u2013 te voet. Wat begon als een plan om 10.000 kilometer door Europa te wandelen, groeide uit tot iets veel groters: een nieuwe manier van leven. In negen maanden legde ik meer dan 5.500 kilometer af, met alleen mijn tent, schrijfboek, wandelkar (die ik liefdevol \u2018Wheelie\u2019 noem) en mijn barefoot schoenen. Al lopend ontdekte ik dat dit mijn pad is: een nomadisch bestaan, schrijvend onderweg. Ik geloof in het ritme van de voeten, in eenvoud, traagheid en aanwezigheid. Reizen zonder haast, leven met weinig, en onderweg de verhalen vangen die zich aandienen. Mijn missie? De schoonheid van vertraging, vrijheid en verbondenheid tastbaar maken in woorden. Ik b\u00e9n onderweg. En daar voel ik me thuis.\",\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.instagram.com\\\/marnix_footsteps_of_freedom\\\/\"]}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"About Marnix - FOOTSTEPS OF FREEDOM","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/about\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"About Marnix - FOOTSTEPS OF FREEDOM","og_description":"  For my 60th birthday, I decided to give myself a sabbatical: a year of walking through Europe. The idea of walking 10,000 kilometres appealed to me \u2014 mostly without a plan, with only two… More","og_url":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/about\/","og_site_name":"FOOTSTEPS OF FREEDOM","article_modified_time":"2025-06-09T16:09:52+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1200,"height":1600,"url":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Marnix-kar-Spanje.jpeg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/about\/","url":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/about\/","name":"About Marnix - FOOTSTEPS OF FREEDOM","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/about\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/about\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Marnix-kar-Spanje-768x1024.jpeg","datePublished":"2025-05-06T18:26:53+00:00","dateModified":"2025-06-09T16:09:52+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/about\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/about\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/about\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Marnix-kar-Spanje-768x1024.jpeg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Marnix-kar-Spanje-768x1024.jpeg"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/about\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"About Marnix"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/#website","url":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/","name":"FOOTSTEPS OF FREEDOM","description":"Hiking & writing","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/3378b8c210d8e714eabad2dc1764e0db"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":["Person","Organization"],"@id":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/3378b8c210d8e714eabad2dc1764e0db","name":"Marnix van der Lijn","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/logo_fof.svg","url":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/logo_fof.svg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/logo_fof.svg","width":1160,"height":250,"caption":"Marnix van der Lijn"},"logo":{"@id":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/logo_fof.svg"},"description":"Ik ben Marnix (1964), schrijver, langeafstandswandelaar en minimalist in hart en nieren. Na een loopbaan in de commerci\u00eble wereld, coaching en training, en jarenlange inzet in de vluchtelingenopvang, koos ik op mijn zestigste voor een radicale wending: ik gaf mezelf een sabbatical en trok de wereld in \u2013 te voet. Wat begon als een plan om 10.000 kilometer door Europa te wandelen, groeide uit tot iets veel groters: een nieuwe manier van leven. In negen maanden legde ik meer dan 5.500 kilometer af, met alleen mijn tent, schrijfboek, wandelkar (die ik liefdevol \u2018Wheelie\u2019 noem) en mijn barefoot schoenen. Al lopend ontdekte ik dat dit mijn pad is: een nomadisch bestaan, schrijvend onderweg. Ik geloof in het ritme van de voeten, in eenvoud, traagheid en aanwezigheid. Reizen zonder haast, leven met weinig, en onderweg de verhalen vangen die zich aandienen. Mijn missie? De schoonheid van vertraging, vrijheid en verbondenheid tastbaar maken in woorden. Ik b\u00e9n onderweg. En daar voel ik me thuis.","sameAs":["https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/marnix_footsteps_of_freedom\/"]}]}},"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":194,"url":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/cookie-policy\/","url_meta":{"origin":63,"position":0},"title":"Cookie Policy","author":"admin","date":"9 May 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"This page provides comprehensive information about how we use cookies on our website to enhance your browsing experience, improve website performance, and deliver personalized content. Cookies are small text files that are stored on your device when you visit our site. They help us understand how visitors interact with our\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":1344,"url":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/successfully-subscribed-to-newsletter\/","url_meta":{"origin":63,"position":1},"title":"Successfully subscribed to newsletter","author":"Marnix van der Lijn","date":"7 June 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"[mailpoet_page]","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":65,"url":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/es\/acerca-de\/","url_meta":{"origin":63,"position":2},"title":"Acerca de Marnix","author":"admin","date":"6 May 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Para mi 60 cumplea\u00f1os decid\u00ed hacerme un regalo especial: un a\u00f1o sab\u00e1tico, caminando por Europa. Se me ocurri\u00f3 que estar\u00eda bien recorrer 10.000 kil\u00f3metros a pie, sin un plan fijo, con solo dos condiciones: no pasar demasiado fr\u00edo\u2026 ni demasiado calor. \u00bfY por qu\u00e9 quise hacer esto? \u00a1Pues porque s\u00ed!\u2026","rel":"","context":"Similar post","block_context":{"text":"Similar post","link":""},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Marnix-kar-Spanje-150x150.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Marnix-kar-Spanje-150x150.jpeg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Marnix-kar-Spanje-150x150.jpeg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Marnix-kar-Spanje-150x150.jpeg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/Marnix-kar-Spanje-150x150.jpeg?resize=1050%2C600&ssl=1 3x"},"classes":[]}],"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/63","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=63"}],"version-history":[{"count":12,"href":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/63\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1637,"href":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/63\/revisions\/1637"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/footstepsoffreedom.nl\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=63"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}