Beijing Half Marathon

I left school with some of the other teachers and together we went to the airport. Simon, Bo and Don (two kids also running the race) took a different flight directly into Tianjin. I went with Tim, Amy (a different Amy), Alice, Bonnie and Lindi. We arrived about two hours in advance. Check-in was no problem, and security was fine as well. We boarded the plane, but we ended up waiting on the plane, in our uncomfortable plane seats for ONE HOUR while staying parked at the gate. The airlines said it was because of bad weather between Shanghai and Beijing. If this was the case I don’t know why they made us board the plane and sit in a sardine can for an extra hour. The food was eh, and there was a lot of turbulence, but we finally arrived at the Beijing International airport around 7:30pm. Our driver met us there and we got in a van to go to Tianjin, an area outside of Beijing (in a different province), about a two hour drive away. Most of us slept in the van. We arrived at our hotel around 10:30pm. We were exhausted, and I was super nervous about the race tomorrow. Simon (my roommate and fellow SCIS teacher) greeted us with the two kids (Bo and Don) he was chaperoning. We got settled into our rooms which were in a courtyard area. The beds were hard and comfortable, but I didn’t get to sleep until about midnight.

The reason we directly took a van into Tianjin, and settled into a hotel that was a 5 minute walk from the race site is because the alternative was to stay in Beijing Friday night, wake up at 2:30 to catch a 3am bus to Tianjin, THEN run 2+ hours. So we decided to pay a little extra and stay in the area near the Great Wall of China/race site.

6:30am- The view from out hotel courtyard

More 6:30/6:45am courtyard awesomeness.

Race spectators(?) We saw these people on our way to the start line.

I ate some food in the morning, and also drank some Gatorade and water (fuel and hydration are both really important), and after I dressed I brought myself, my camera and my ipod down to the race site around 7am. There I saw my good friend Sarah, who also came from Shanghai to run the half marathon! She was also with my friend Caroline, who I ran with about two weeks ago. I met some of Sarah’s hash runner friends, and we chit-chatted until the race began. I missed the “warm up” at 6:30am, but I did a little bit of stretching before my 7:45am start. There were 3 groups that started before I did, but Sarah and I started the race off together, and ran together for most of the race.

Sarah F. and I are thinking, "What have we gotten ourselves into!?"

Simon, "This is my 100th marathon. I run these races for run because I'm a robot," G.

Caroline and I are ready for the race!

Umm, your leg muscles are more important than your biceps. I'm all show here.

Legs

The racers

Some of the Hash racers and I (I'll hopefully try a hash race soon!)

The pistol went off, the crowd cheered, and the runners began to move forward down the path and under the overhang/gate entrance. We ran straight for about 30 feet and I yelled out, “Okay, I’m tired. Race over I’m done!” and many people around me laughed. Swiftly we turned right and started running on a road that ran along a “river” or “stream”. There was a random island in the middle with a bronze sculpture of a dragon, and farther along there was a water slide (?).

Run! Run! Run!

"Ahhh!"

The random water slide

Don't ask me about the horse on the side of the road. There were a few camels too.

We continued along the path, turned right and ran over a bridge, and ran through an elaborate gate. There began our first ascent upwards. We were on a similar road, but it had a slight upward angle and curved around along the mountain/hill. It was supposed to rain on Saturday in Tianjin, but luckily it did not. Originally I was worried about taking my iPod and camera, but luckily it barely drizzled!

The gate

The road upwards

I'm not on the wall quite yet!

ANOTHER gate

Finally, salvation! The entrance to the GREAT WALL OF CHINA!

After about 30 minutes (maybe 5-6k) we arrived at the entrance to the Great Wall of China. Excited as Sarah and I were, at the entrance to the Wall we were greeted with steep uneven stairs that everyone was walking. There were so many people going up the stairs that, even despite the danger of trying to run it, you physically were forced to walk up. After 5+ minutes of stairs, we went saw different stairs that were more even, but with a larger depth to them.

The official entrance!

Stairs

I'm here running on the Great Wall!!

View while running on the Wall

The Great Wall consists of paths that go up and down, and dispersed among the stairs and paths are guard towers. These previously served as entry posts to protect the land from foreign invaders. Included on the wall (and in the guard towers) are small openings for archers to shoot arrows. While listening to music (at a point I was really tired) "Born to Run" came on, by Bruce Springsteen! IT WAS PERFECT TIMING FOR THE PERFECT SONG! That just made me run faster and harder.

Up and down, up and down.

If by this picture, you can't figure out where I am, then I feel bad for you!

Like I wrote earlier, some parts of the wall were so narrow and crowded that we (once again) were forced to walk. Red unstable cloth railings managed to help with balance at parts, but I found the “Walk slowly” signs quite amusing, considering they set up a RUNNING race on sections of wall that tell people that it’s not safe to run.

My favorite picture in the bunch. Notice that the sign is askew.

I'm still smiling!

I spent about 45 minutes (6k? maybe more?) running on the Great Wall. Words cannot explain what a surreal experience it was for me. I thought it would be impossible to trump my previous (and first trip) to the wall at Simatai, but this was absolutely breathtaking. What made the experience even more special was that I was running the longest distance I have ever run in my life along one of the 7 wonders of the world.

Breathtaking.

Amazing!

After we went downhill, and down a winding side path, we ran a different (and more forgiving) section of the wall. I met a guy from Italy who was working in Beijing. I ran with him for about 25 minutes. We went back through the main gate (where the race began) and down the same road with the dragon water slide. We went even farther past down a dirt part, across a bridge (at this point we had parted), and I ran into and through a village. Every time I came across a person who was running in the opposite direction of me, I cheered him/her on! The result would be their smile, which would make me run harder. I was feeling tired and lagging, but then "AlwaysLook on the Bright Side of Life" by Monty Python started to play and that was my musical perk that helped me keep going! At the end of the village part of the run, I hit the 17k marker (a little over 10 miles) and that was the longest I had ever run!!!!!!!!!!!

Running through the village

Some (questionable?) farmland

17k! 10.54 miles! YES!!

I finally went back up the same road (that I ran two times). The unfortunate thing about it is that the race organization did not monitor traffic, so there were many cars and gross trucks that would slowly drive down the street, stare at us, and the result would be horrible car fumes in one’s face. Go figure. The view was still pretty amazing though.

Despite the cars, I still saw some great landscapes.

In the last 4k of the race, I miraculously go a second wind. Despite my tired legs, I went faster and faster until I crossed the finish line. I completed the race in 2:44:15. I was 68^th overall in the half marathon runners (out of at least 200 I think), and I was 9^th in my age group (20-29 year olds). Overall it was amazing experience. I had some trouble breathing after, but I stretched a bit, had some water, got some food in me and was (and still am!) happy!

Here I am experiencing the biggest rush and sense of accomplishment EVER!

Some of the guys I go riding with came to! In the back are Marko, his wife, Mark, and Ola. Front are a woman (related to Ola I think, and Marko's son)
My medal totally deserved a kiss!

Later sometime this week I will write more about how I spent Sunday in Beijing!!

Why biking rocks

Almost every Sunday I have joined a group of men to go cycling. Before China I hadn’t really been on a bike since I was about 14 years old, but the opportunities to bike here are vast, visually interesting and fun!

When I began, I was a bit hesitant to join them. The group is mostly men and women rarely join them in the rides, plus all the guys are about 10-30 years older than me, but I digress. At the beginning of my time at SCIS, this was one of the first groups to welcome me with open arms. I have improved as a biker, gotten a new appreciation for cycling, I engage in a healthy social activity regularly, and it’s good for my health!
The regular distance that we ride varies, but we usually bike between 35-50k per ride. I think I wrote about it before, but it’s worth saying again: I’ve even ridden to the coast and back! (That was about 60k). It’s incredibly rewarding to be able to travel just by using myself- without using a subway, cab, bus, car, truck, etc. There are some cycling veterans/experts who ride with us and are familiar with the area, so each ride is an adventure. As the year comes to a close, and I only have 4 or 5 more rides left, I feel sad, but empowered that I tried something new, enjoyed it, learned/experienced a lot, and found a new hobby that I enjoy.

In March and April I missed lots of biking for two reasons: My Mom visited me for two weeks and I began to run outside more and more. I was in a biking withdrawal until two weeks ago. On 5-11 we went biking to the Huangpu river. We took a ferry across and biked through Puxi, then took another ferry back and biked through Pudong back home. We went past some scenic places including a (nuclear?) power plant, construction for a new bridge, and we saw many industrial boats. Included in our trip was an ice cream stop. Enjoy these pictures:

I’m a bit sad I won’t be biking on Sunday this weekend because that’s one less ride that I have in my remaining time here, BUT I will be in Beijing this weekend! I’m going to Beijing to run a half marathon ON THE GREAT WALL OF CHINA! Wish me luck!

Pajamas

So one thing that (until recently) has baffled me are people randomly walking down the street in fleece pajamas. You would see people wearing silly designed fleece pajamas at nice stores, at the supermarket, anywhere really. I never wondered why. I just thought it was a "fashion statement".

A friend told me that people who leisurely wear pajamas around like that do not have a job. It's not that they are unemployed, but the cheesy fleece pajamas are a status symbol that the person is financially secure as to not need to work. This makes me look at the cartoon pajamas in a whole new light.

But I still think it's quite silly.

May Holiday

My trip to the Philippines

Sunday (4/27)

On Sunday I woke up and spent most of the morning packing and straightening up the house. For some reason I need to have a clean house/room/whatever before I go away on holiday. (Now I’m using the term “on holiday” because I’ve been influenced by my UK/Australian friends!)

Planning the trip proved to be quite time consuming. Since the last week of April/first week of May is a national holiday, many flights were already booked. Alfreda and I contacted many travel agencies to see if they could get us a flight to the Philippines, and despite paying an arm and a leg for the flight, the trip was totally worth it.

I traveled with my friends who teach at the international school near mine- Abi, Anne Marie, Alfreda, Sabrina and Sheridan. I have never traveled with this number of people before, and this was the first time I paid for a trip all on my own with my own earnings as well! We left for the airport around 1pm, and our flight left to go to Manila at 4pm. We got into Manila at around 7pm, but we had to stay on the plane an extra 30+ minutes after landing because the “International” Manila airport did not have anyone working at the customs counter. Why they had no one working at the customs counter is beyond me. When we finally walked off the plane (down a little set of stairs), we took a bus to the customs place, where they had about 4 people working to let 300+ people into the country. What a waste of time!

When we FINALLY got through customs, we got our luggage and asked how to get to our hotel. We stayed at the Manila Airport hotel because we wanted something close to the hotel because our flight to Catlitclan. I asked the lady at the information counter how far away it was, and she said we could rent a bus thing for like 150 pesos/person. I asked her how much a cab is and she said it started at like 50 or 100 pesos, but then when I asked if we could walk there, she said yes. So instead of paying money we walked. It took us about 15-20 minutes, and we should have just gone in a cab because who knew how safe it was for us to lug our luggage around for over 1k.

The hotel was unimpressive, but it served its need. We ate dinner at the “restaurant” next door but I just had french fries. We had a wakeup call at 4 in the morning, which should be called “stupid o’clock”. Our breakfast was questionable, so we just packed up our stuff and went to the airport. They tried asking if we wanted the shuttle for 300 pesos/person, but we just asked for two cabs. Unfortunately our cab driver was a jerk and he never reset the meter to zero, and we paid way too much (150 pesos, which was still only like $4) to drive about 5 minutes. I just hate it when people do that to you. I kept telling him to set the meter but he pretended that he did not understand what I was saying. But Filipinos are known for being bilingual or even trilingual with English, Tagalog, other dialects, and sometimes Spanish and Mandarin.

ANYWAY, we got to the airport, checked in and we had to pay extra if our baggage was over 10kg. My suitcase was like 11kg, but some people were like 8-9kg over the limit. The plane flight was okay. On our flight from Shanghai (in the new terminal 2!) to Manila I had an aisle seat in the emergency row. The flight from Manila to Catlitclan was also on an emergency row, but the plane was TINY. So tiny that there were only four seats per row, 30 rows on the plane, and the plane did not have retractable wheels, but instead a propeller on each side with the wheels below.

The Catlitclan airport (and a tiny plane!)

Loading our luggage onto the boat

On the boat


Off the boat, and onto our hotel!

Arriving in Catlitclan was really cool. We walked down 10 stairs to the ground, and there was no luggage conveyor belt. Instead they just put the luggage from the plane onto a cart, wheeled the cart to a table area, and put the suitcases on that table. You had to show your baggage claim ticket to take the luggage outside of the airport. Also, we had to pay a 200 peso airport tax when we went from Manila to Catlitclan.

When we left the airport, a woman from the hotel met us. We had to pay a 50 peso environment tax fee, and then our luggage we went inside a small mini-van for a 10 minute ride to the coast. Men then took our luggage onto a boat, and we boarded the boat to go to Boracay island. The boat ride was amazing- the skies were a bright blue (even at 7:30am) and the water was a clear crisp turquoise. You could easily see at least 40 feet down. When we arrived in Boracay, our luggage was put on top of a small car/truck thing, and we crammed ourselves in the back. After another 15 minute car ride, we arrived at our hotel, weary and excited. One of the two rooms were available so we just dumped all of our stuff inside. The room was comfortable, spacious and enjoyable. We had a small balcony right on the first floor, and less than 5 feet away was the bar. 10 feet from the bar were beach chairs, and 10 feet from the chairs was the ocean. We went to the bar and ordered breakfast- I had huevas mejicanas which was scrambled eggs with tomato, onions, sweet peppers and spices. It also included coffee/tea, homemade bread, and something else- all for about $4 or $5. We then returned to the room and spent the rest of the day on the beach. There was a good amount of seaweed but it is different from the Jersey shore. The seaweed in New Jersey is dark, large, clumpy and it clammy when it touches your skin. The seaweed in Boracay (at least at this time of year) was in small slices, bright green, and didn’t stick to your body as much. Despite the very salty seawater, Sheridan brought a good pair of snorkeling goggles so we could see so many types of fish in only 5 foot deep water!! About 15 feet out (depending on the tide) was this huge rock formation, part of which had a staircase leading to a small shrine to Mary. When you snorkeled to other parts of around the rocks there I discovered a school of at least 500+ tiny silver fish! In another area I saw a school of even TINIER black fish with a white and black stripes! Marine life is SO AMAZING.

View of Boracay and Catlitclan from the boat

On Monday (4/28) I spent most of the day on the beach, but I also went for a walk along the beach with Sheridan and Sabrina, and we explored other parts of the island. I got pricing from about 10+ scuba diving/water sport places to get an idea of cost to scuba dive, snorkel, parasail, waterski, etc. We also stopped for ice cream, but at that point Sabrina wasn’t feeling well so she and Sheridan went back to the hotel and I explored further down on the island. Our hotel was on the White Beach, but it was about a 10-15 minute walk from the downtown/main area of Boracay island called dmall, which included restaurants, shops, water sports-related stores, bars, clubs, etc. It was actually quite refreshing being away from the central noise and hubbub of the main area.

That night we ate an okay dinner on the beach, and we returned to the hotel where I used my free drink ticket toe get something to drink. We went to sleep early since we had been awake since 4am.

On Tuesday I woke up around 6am. I quietly got ready to go for a run on the beach and I went outside to see the weather. When I came back inside (only 5 or 10 minutes later) both Sheridan and Sabrina were awake. I felt terrible that morning (either from the one drink from Monday night, I was dehydrated, or I still had a lingering sinus problem so I was really stuffy that morning), so we all fell back asleep. When we woke, our hotel provided breakfast and I had an omelet (tomatoes and onions), tea, bread, and some baked beans. I also had a mango or papaya shake which was TO DIE FOR. Alfreda arranged a scuba diving refresher course (she is already certified) so she left for this place called Scuba world and went diving from 10am-1pm. I sat on the beach all day, went swimming, read, and looked at fish. I brought my iPod with me which was the most AMAZING thing to have on the beach.

Boracay White Beach in the daytime

Later in the afternoon Sabrina and I went for a run. We went away from dmall and the center part of the island. Instead we ran on the beach to the other end where the rock cliffs edged out into the sea and you couldn’t run along the beach anymore. Earlier on Monday afternoon we saw some Italians. One had taken a picture of me when my umbrella almost attacked me when a gust of wind flew by, and I was annoyed because enough people in China stare at me. I forget if it was Monday or Tuesday night, but Sabrina and I spoke to them using her excellent French, and my poor Spanish/Italian. Alessandro spoke English but Stefano and Andrea’s English was not as strong. It was amazing how we could actually have a conversation, and I could understand more Italian than I could speak. I told them I may be working in Trieste next year which would be wonderful! For dinner we had a terrible meal. The service was so slow and they messed up almost everyone’s orders. The owner finally gave us a round of drinks for free. We had drinks at a nearby bar, but around 9pm it started down pouring so we had to wait a bit before returning home.

Wednesday I decided to go scuba diving. Based on Alfreda’s recommendation, I went to Scuba world and did the beginner/intro course. I watched a video with this other person named John (from Korea), then we put on our gear and went into the water right off the beach. It was only 4 feet deep. There, with our instructor Yamil, we practiced inflating and deflating our BCD (Buoyancy Control Device), we used the breathing device, and looked at the regulator (which shows how much air you have left). We practiced putting our heads in the water and breathing, taking the breathing thing out of our mouths, putting it back in, taking it out of our mouths and using the instructor’s backup breathing device, etc. There is an entire underwater language you use, including “ascend, descend, out of air, stop, slow down, problem, ear problem, let me see your regulator, etc.” We rehearsed some of these signals underwater too!

Finally after 20-30 minutes of practicing, we hauled our (HEAVY) tanks and equipment to the boat, and the boat took us out to the dive site. The dive site was called Angol. There was a buoy with a rope that went down to the sea floor, and we grabbed the rope with one hand and used our fingers to pinch our nostrils (and breath out) in order to equalize the pressure on our respiratory system while underwater. I had a lot of problems descending by Yamil was very patient and once I was down all the way I didn’t have any problems. You just need to be careful when you descend, listen to your body, and take your time.

The underwater world was incredible. I have never seen anything quite like it. When we finally descended we just stayed on the seafloor and we were all kneeling, when suddenly about 150-200 medium sized black fish (from out of nowhere!) just started swimming around us. It was a completely surreal experience. I saw an eel, parrot fish, angelfish, neon blue starfish and who knows what else! There were even fish that had neon pink, blue and yellow on them! It was amazing to see such strange colors in a natural environment. After about 30 minutes we came back up to the surface and took a boat ride back to shore. I spent the rest of the day hanging out on the beach, reading, and swimming. Sheridan, Sabrina, Abi and Anne Marie tried jet skiing, but I just wanted to relax! Wednesday night we had some drinks with the Italians at the hotel’s bar, and I saw my friend Iñigo from work! He is from Manila. He and his girlfriend were in Boracay for several days and I got to see them briefly on Wednesday night. We then had a late dinner, and went to a bar, and then I walked home along the beach.

Sheridan and I

Abi and I

Delicious Blue Marlin

Ciao, Italia!

Thursday was really enjoyable! I had breakfast and just sat on the beach most of the day, but I also went to the dmall area with Sheridan, Sabrina and Abi where we had a really great lunch at the Lemon Café. It had wonderful sandwiches, and I tried a pineapple mint shake which was refreshing and tasty. We shopped around a bit and when I returned I played scopa with the Italian guys. While I played cards Sheridan, Sabrina, and Abi tried parasailing. The three of them, Andrea, Alessandro, and Stefano, are from Milano. Scopa is an Italian game that Kosta had taught me in the summer of 2003 and re-taught me in the summer of 2007. The guys wanted me to bet rounds of drinks with them, but originally I said no. That is, until I realized I kept winning. I won three rounds of the game. I even switched partners to make it more fair, but whatever partner I had, we still won! The last round ended early because we got all of the diamonds, which means (that despite the score) you automatically win! I think it’s called a “Napoleoni” or something.

That night we met Alfreda’s father, who lives in Hong Kong. He got some time off from work and went to Boracay to see his daughter. We had dinner with him in a restaurant by the sea, with lots of fresh fish. He treated us which was REALLY generous! Following that we had a drink a bar and came home.

Boracay sunset, 2

Boracay sunset, 2

Thursday was really enjoyable! I had breakfast and just sat on the beach most of the day, but I also went to the dmall area with Sheridan, Sabrina and Abi where we had a really great lunch at the Lemon Café. It had wonderful sandwiches, and I tried a pineapple mint shake which was refreshing and tasty. We shopped around a bit and when I returned I played scopa with the Italian guys. While I played cards Sheridan, Sabrina, and Abi tried parasailing. The three of them, Andrea, Alessandro, and Stefano, are from Milano. Scopa is an Italian game that Kosta had taught me in the summer of 2003 and re-taught me in the summer of 2007. The guys wanted me to bet rounds of drinks with them, but originally I said no. That is, until I realized I kept winning. I won three rounds of the game. I even switched partners to make it more fair, but whatever partner I had, we still won! The last round ended early because we got all of the diamonds, which means (that despite the score) you automatically win! I think it’s called a “Napoleoni” or something.

That night we met Alfreda’s father, who lives in Hong Kong. He got some time off from work and went to Boracay to see his daughter. We had dinner with him in a restaurant by the sea, with lots of fresh fish. He treated us which was REALLY generous! Following that we had a drink a bar and came home.

Which lobster do you want?

Gutting my hand chosen fish at the fish market, Friday night.

Friday Sabrina did the intro scuba diving course, and we arrived at the Scuba World around 10:30, but had to wait until at least 12:00pm to go out scuba diving. Sheridan couldn’t scuba dive because of a previous injury, but I went with Sabrina, Anne Marie and Alfreda. Sheridan went snorkeling. The boat went to a place called Crocodile Island, and the coral and fish life was even more amazing than at Angol! When we returned Sheridan, Anne Marie, Alfreda, Sabrina and I once again ate lunch at Lemon Café, then I sat on the beach some more. I then went for a 45 minute run up and down the beach, took a shower, and got a massage at our hotel in a little hut RIGHT ON THE BEACH. The lady used this really thick oil and the hour long massage was SO RELAXING. I just was lying down on the mattress while the waves crashed against the sea, the sun set, and I had just finished a long demanding run. (Running on the sand is quite difficult!) Then the group (and Alfreda’s Dad) went to a fish market where we hand picked our fish, purchased them, and went to a local restaurant next to the fish market where they prepared it for us. We had prawns, crab, snapper fish, and maybe 2 or 3 other fish! What a delicious way to end the night. We then walked back, and various people split up. After Anne Marie bought her boyfriend Rak a gift, we walked slowly back to the hotel, during which we were greeted by a quaint fireworks display on the sea. I say quaint because it wasn’t as big in comparison to the fireworks I’ve seen in China, but it was enjoyable just the same.

All in all I had a fabulous time. We had to get up at 5am on Saturday morning to catch both our flights, and despite being tired when I got home to Shanghai (around 3:30pm), I was (and still am) quite happy and content.

View from my hotel balcony, 5:30am Saturday morning.