Mapping a Corn Maze with a GPS watch

The entrance to the maïsdoolhof: La Vuelta themed

A few weeks ago I did a corn maze with a friend. In honor of La Vuelta that recently passed nearby, the maze was Vuelta/bike themed. I turned on my Garmin watch to see if I would be able to see the pattern in our path.

The goal of the maze was to find all the numbered posts and their associated letter. Once you found all (or enough) of the letters, you can rearrange them to discover the phrase. We were able to find all but two letters, couldn’t guess the phrase, and turned to the cheat sheet to find the last two.

The elevated platform didn’t offer much help for solving the maze

Disclaimer: this post is decidedly not in the software section. We just enjoyed wandering the maze and took no optimal routes!

Our path from the Garmin GPS on the actual maze

As you can see, it didn’t record the path very well. Unfortunately the resolution was not high enough to make out much of the maze. I had left the Garmin on its default of “Smart Recording.” However, “Every Second Recording” might have yielded higher resolution and better results.

Guus Meeuwis’ “Brabant” Lyrics Translation

Brabant

Living in Noord-Brabant it’s hard to avoid songs from Guus Meeuwis, especially “Brabant”. And I like the song. To practice my Dutch, I tried to translate “Brabant” to English. While I first made this translation a couple years ago, the lyrics seem more poignant in the middle of the pandemic and lockdowns.

Translation to English

A warm hat on my head
My collar stands up
It is ice cold here
But fortunately dry

The days here are short
The nights begin early
The people are stiff
And there is only one pub

As I walk to my hotel
After a dark day
I feel my house key
Deep in my pocket

[Chorus]
I walk here alone
In a city too still
I have never really suffered
From homesickness
But the people are sleeping
The world is closing
Then I think of Brabant
Because there the lights are still on

I miss the warmth
Of a neighborhood pub
The conversation of people
With a soft g

I even miss the complaining
About everything and nothing
If only those in Brabant
Were as proud as a Frisian

In the South full of sun
I live together with you
That is why I so
Love Brabanders

[Chorus]

The Peel and The Kempen
And The Meierij
But the best part of Brabant
Is you, that is you

[Chorus]

[Chorus]