Marathon Número UNO

Greetings friends! Today I write to you from the land of tulips and wooden shoes! That would be The Netherlands for those of you still scratching your noggins. And as much as I'd love to inform you about all of my exciting adventures in this beautiful country, I unfortunately must report that the only wild and crazy story i have to tell from my layover in Amsterdam International Airport, is that yes, I did in fact order a Wild Blueberry muffin from Starbucks. Gasp!

According to my mom, only boring people get bored. Emotionally unstable, borderline insane, slightly narcissistic, call me what you will, but boring? Never! So with seven hours at my disposal I figured I'd be some what constructive and write a little catch up post. Today I'll be writing old school VHS style as I rewind to my very first marathon. Tales from my most recent trip to Tanzania will be coming soon. Like at some point within the next year.

I'm not exactly sure when I decided I was running the Walt Disney World Marathon, but after completing three half marathons, trying my hand...er legs at a full just seemed to be the logical next step. Perhaps using the word "logical" to describe anything related to running 26.2 miles would be slightly inaccurate. 

I began training for the marathon in September and loosely followed the Hal Higdon training plan, while using a four minute run one minute walk approach. I am not a crazy fast runner, and am more of an "it's about the journey rather than the destination" kind of girl, so I'm definitely a fan of the run/walk approach at this point in my life.

My training overall went fairly well. The biggest obstical to sticking with my schedule was the weather. Naturally, I would move back to Illinois only to be greeted by the coldest winter in a 20 year history. I did complete many long runs in below freezing temperatures, but its just not nearly as enjoyable as doing so in 60 degree weather. Luckily, I was able to escape the frozen tundra during the week following Christmas, and completed my longest training run, 20 miles, on the beautiful beaches of Fort Myers, Florida. 

After spending a mere one week back in Illinois, my fan club, AKA my friend Casey, and I flew to Orlando two days before the marathon. After a quick night's sleep, Casey, my friend Lita, who currently lives in Orlando and works for Disney, and I ventured into Magic Kingdom to spend a few hours playing in the park with one of my favorite families, The Zanolla's, who were also vacationing from Illinois. 

Casey, myself, Donald, Lita, and the Zanolla Clan

After a fun filled morning of roller coaster riding and character meeting, we were treated to an excellent lunch at one of the newest restaurants in Magic Kingdom, Be Our Guest, which is themed around the movie Beauty and The Beast. We even tried the grey stuff, yep, it was delicious! 

We said our goodbyes and headed to Disney's ESPN Wide World of Sports where the race expo was held. The face expo was very large and well organized, but because I was so anxious to return to our hotel room and get to sleep, we did not spend much time doddling there. I signed my life away, received my race bib and complimentary shirt,and away we went. 

I whole heartedly hereby promise to not sue Disney in the very likely case that I die while running. 

Once back in our hotel, Disney's Art of Animation, I took one last shot at stocking up on carbohydrates   and chowed down on a ginormous pizza. And ice cream. Carb loading, I'll miss you the most. 

At 3:00 AM my alarm sounded and with that I threw on my snazzy race day apparel, and caught a bus to the start line. I would be lying like a rug if I said I wasn't nervous, but I gave myself permission to be the tractor on the interstate, and go as slowly as I'd like. My only objective of the day was to finish. I knew I could do that. 

At around 6:00 AM Mickey Mouse led a countdown, fireworks were blasted into the sky, and my corral was released. Miles 1-3 were filled with me repeating this profound mantra in my head, "Holy #%^}, I'm running a marathon!"

Very motivational!

Before the race, Casey, Lita, and I planned out a few spots where they would meet me, one of those being in front of the castle at Magic Kingdom. The first five miles were easy, and the anticipation of seeing the duo made the miles fly by. 

Stopping To Quickly Say Hello and Bust An Awkward Move

I continued onward with the knowledge that I have already ran half marathons before. I was in familiar territory and was strong enough to keep running. Once I hit mile 13, I switched over to game on mode and inserted my earphones. At mile 19 my personal cheerleaders showed up again, and I was super stoked to see them. 

I never really faced the mental wall that so many runners speak of, but mile 22 seemed to contain the most amount of pure suckage. At that point I was hot, my feet hurt, and my watch freaked out and shut off. It was the old so close, yet so far away feeling. Regardless, I powered through and crossed the finish line in 5:04:17.

Obviously, running it sub five hours would have been awesome, but that's just not how this cookie crumbled. Next time! 

After the race I entered into a beautiful coma and remained lifeless in my glorious hotel bed for several hours. That evening we returned to Magic Kingdom where I proceeded to limp around in absolute bliss. The night ended the way every night would if I ruled the world: with ice cream, fireworks, and friends!

So there you have it, marathon number one in the books. Special thanks to the various random strangers along the course who gave me pretzels, Twizlers, and that beautiful soaking wet hand towel that I shamelessly draped over my head for an entire mile. And if just wouldn't be fair to not acknowledge the precious Vaseline on a stick that was handed to me from the medical tent at mile 19. You saved my ass, and I mean that in the most literal way possible. 

Have a good one, folks! 

Traveling To Tanzania

Hello from Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania! After completing thirty hours of travel, I can official declare that I am sleep deprived, smell like a dirty sock, and just drank a freshly squeezed mango juice that I may or may not end up regretting tomorrow. Ahhh, international travel...it's good to be back! 

My journey started out in Chicago and from there my congested nasal passages and I flew to Atlanta. After shedding a few tears from the sheer pain my well timed head cold inflicted on my ears, I said a silent prayer of forgiveness for all the suck it up, butter cup looks I'd given passengers who were crying over a little ear ache during my days of being an attentive flight attendant. My bad. 

After a short layover, I boarded my flight from Atlanta to Amsterdam, Netherlands with my newly purchased Earplanes, a fancy earplug that equalize the pressure on either side of the eardrum, in tow. The Delta flight was fairly uneventful, as I mostly just read my book, and observed the flight attendants being yelled at by various passengers for not having a specific meal on board, magically being able to create enough space for their oversized carry on, nor controlling global warming. I then sat gleefully in my seat and felt beyond thankful that I no longer wear the uniform. 

Thanks to my Earplanes, the desent into Amsterdam was way less painful. HALILUIER! My flight from Amaterdam actually stopped in Kilimanjaro first before continuing onto Dar Es Salaam, the destination where my cousin and I arranged to meet, so the boarding area for the flight was filled with tourists who intend to climb the mountain. Apparently, roughly ninety percent of the passengers on my flight had met up weeks ago and planned to wear zip off pants and their hiking boots today. I definitely didn't get the memo, and felt like such a mountain climbing poser in my yoga pants and old running shoes. 

What All The Cool Kids Were Wearing

I've done a lot of dumb stuff in my lifetime. Like the time I paid a pretty penny to travel 12 hours on a legitiment banana boat in Thailand. Or the time I went sightseeing on the back of an old dude's moterbike in Uganda. Or even last week when I left the lights on in my car, which ran the battery dead, and locked my keys in my car while it was running, all within a 12 hour period! So as you can see, common sense isn't always quite so common for me, but occasionally I use that noggin of mine for more than just a blond hair holder and come up with a really good idea. Such is the case when I booked the hotel that I am staying in tonight. 

Although my cheapskate self was very tempted to book a hotel room that cost 18 US Dollars, and grab a taxi at the airport, I decided to spend a few extra George Washington's and book a hotel that had very safe reviews, as well as their own shuttle service. When I stepped outside of the Dar Es Salaam Airport at 11:30 PM, I was very relieved to see my suit wearing driver holding up a sign with my name on it. Note to self: traveling  as a solo female in Africa is a very different experience than traveling to five star hotels, in prearranged coach buses, with the safety of 17 other airline crew members. 

The ride to my hotel was exciting and made me once again experience the high I get from discovering a new city for the first time. Women carrying large baskets on their heads. Babies toddling behind their mothers, barefoot. Groups of men carelessly, sitting along the road visiting in white plastic chairs. So different. So cool. 

View From My Hotel Room

And now that I'm safe and secure in my hotel and exaustion is in full effect, I believe it's time for this girl to hit the hay. Either that or lay awake for the next three hours watching CNN with English subtitles. Oh jetleg, you tricky little trick!