Via Gladiola: the street where, after four days of walking, you are treated to a festive welcome with gladioli by thousands of walking fans. In 2020, Nijmegen’s Sint Annastraat, which is the street’s actual name, got a drastic makeover. The two service roads on either side were turned into bike paths, while the central reservations were altered and given greenery, making the road safer to cross for cyclists and pedestrians.

Themed on the normally annual entry on Via Gladiola that the city had to do without for two years for obvious reasons, the upgrade made 4Days Marches walkers a year-round feature. At a number of pedestrian crossings, the red and green people are no longer regular people indicating whether it’s safe to cross, they are actual 4Days Marches walkers! The red man standing still is holding a bunch of gladioli, the well-known flowers that are traditionally handed out during the entry on Friday. And the green woman walking with a cap and ponytail carries a small flag and a rucksack. It is all perfectly in sync with the 4Days Marches!

And that is not the only tribute to Via Gladiola you will now find along the final stretch of the route. If you look closely, you’ll notice there’s something different about the street lights. Can you see it? The gladiolus itself has also been immortalised in the street scene!

All these playful nods to the 4Days Marches were the idea of the Nijmegen local council project manager in charge of the reconstruction of Sint Annastraat. A beautiful homage to our event and appreciation for the achievements of all those walkers!