Training by the Numbers

Despite having purchased a new pair of running shoes at the end of January, I recently found myself in need of another. This was bit of a challenge in Madrid, where the average height, and consequently foot size, is notably smaller than in Canada. After some intensive searching, I finally found exactly what I was looking for - a duplicate of my current shoes!
I was scrolling through the data from my Garmin and found the culprit... I hadn't done the math on my program so was surprised when I saw the totals. In March I ran 319 km which took 1,670 minutes or almost 28 hours. I also burned over 20,000 calories! In total, I will have run 991 km since beginning my training in January (not including the 42.2 km on race day). This equates to approximately 83 hours of running. No wonder my shoes needed to be retired!

Studying Spanish

After being a teacher for a while it is refreshing to sit on the other side of the desk and be a student again. I have enrolled in Spanish language classes in Madrid. I study for about four hours a day, plus homework, with two excellent teachers. My favourite teacher is Lola. She has mastered the ability to keep me on the edge of discomfort as I struggle through verbs and vocab. I'm both scared of her and want to please her at the same time, so I study hard not to mess up. But, unfortunately, this is hard work and I make lots of mistakes. My Spanish is definitely improving though and the more I learn the more encouraged I am. I also do language exchanges with English language learners in Madrid. We meet up for a drink and exchange Spanish and English conversation. It is another way for me to enjoy my learning, to meet people, and get to know Spain.

A Typical European Day

 

The sun rises and sets late in Spain which probably explains why Spaniards seems to run on a different clock. Luckily, despite only being in Madrid a couple weeks, we have adapted quite well to the European lifestyle. Paul spends weekday mornings at Spanish school. I enjoy getting up with the sun then heading out for a run along the river. Most apartments are lovely, historical buildings, with mailboxes in the locked foyer. So each morning every buzzer is set off repeatedly by mail and flyer distributers until someone lets them in. The kitchen in our apartment is compact but adequate. The most notable differences are the lack of microwave and inclusion of a washing machine. Laundry is hung from the clothes line outside our bedroom window. Paul and I eat lunch between two and three, after he returns from classes. Most afternoons I make my way down the narrow cobblestone side streets to the grocery store, vegetable market and bakery. Spain is still a largely cash-based society. Bigger stores accept credit card, but even the local grocery store has a 12€ (~$20) minimum. Our living room features traditional balcony doors, which we open most afternoons. Cities are obviously more densely populated than small town Ontario. As a result, conversations of passers-by, neighbours' music or programs waft into the apartment with the fresh air, which makes Paul feel as though he's in a European movie! Typically, we eat dinner between eight and nine, though later at restaurants as many don't open until after then. Jenn

 

Easter in Madrid

Thursday to Sunday this week was Easter, or Semana Santa, in Madrid. Madrid is popular for its Easter processions which make there way through the old parts of the city. These are very old traditions in this very old Roman Catholic city. We also discovered another holiday tradition at our local bakery, which is a minute walk away. The special Easter desserts are called torrijas. They are delicious French toast like desserts. more photos

First Impressions of Madrid

It took some time, but I'm finally feeling like myself again. There were a number of days that I felt an almost overwhelming urge to go to bed at 4 in the afternoon - which in Madrid, is barely after lunch! The city seems to run on a late schedule. More than once we have heard 7 or 8 pm referred to as 'afternoon'. We were also asked at 10:30 pm one night what our dinner plans were.
Besides the daily schedule, Madrid is quite different from Sydney. The language barrier is obviously a challenge. I've been doing a lot of pointing and gesturing, which has generally been getting the job done. Madrid is a very lively city, even more so than Sydney. Drinks out are much cheaper, which is great - and probably explains why people seem to go out every night of the week! The old buildings are interesting and really pretty. However, the city is not as neat and polished as Sydney or what we're used to in Canada. We went for a walk today past the Royal Palace: it was enormous and incredibly grand, but also grimy. There are lots of dogs around, but 'Madrilenos' seem to have the same attitude about picking up after them as the French, which is that many don't! Jenn

A day in Dubai

I had one day to see the Middle Eastern city of Dubai. Dubai is a sprawling city of countless highways, towering sky scrapers, hot desert sun, and a permanent hazy sky. Middle Eastern oil wealth flows into Dubai and has built the world's tallest structure the 2722 ft. Burj Khalifa, which I saw up close. Dubai is a strange place - being very westernized while holding onto some of its traditional Middle Eastern roots. I walked through one of its many mega malls spotting a Tim Hortons and a skating rink. Thankfully, I made it to the traditional old town as well and experienced the interesting street life and historic buildings of this desert city. After a half day of exploring Jenn's flight arrived and we prepared for our last leg into Madrid. More Dubai Photos

In Transit....

I'm sitting here in the Sydney airport with a perfect view of the city in the distance and my plane prepping for the 12 hour flight to Dubai. Jenn and I have been forced to travel alone for the next 24 hours. It turns out that I did not have the tourist visa that I thought I did to stay in Australia. Upon our trip to New Zealand it was discovered that I had accidentally overstayed my tourist visa and my penalty was a 3 year ban from Australia. So, I had to change my flight to Dubai for today so that I could re-enter Australia, in transit, to catch a different flight to Dubai. Jenn and I will meet there on Tuesday and travel together to Spain. The kicker is that I cannot go back into Sydney to pick up my luggage and all of my stuff. I have a carry on bag from New Zealand, but that's it. Jenn promised to pack my tennis racquet. No worries, as they say down under. Happy spring to all of you back home.

NZ road trip part II

Paul and I were impressed by the beautiful landscape of the South Island. There are many large mountains providing breathtaking views of the surrounding valleys and seas. However, these also made driving an interesting experience. I was surprised that nearly all country roads have a 100 km/hr speed limit. Even if you're driving up a mountain, around a hairpin turn (with no guardrail) or over a single lane bridge. Kiwi motorists appeared up for the challenge though.

During our trip we also discovered that there really are sheep everywhere in New Zealand. We visited several parks where we had to open farm gates or climb stairs over fences (and watch our step!) during our hikes. New Zealand embraces this image - walking through the jetway to board our plane, we were surrounded by a panoramic photo of a sheep farm complete with an audio recording of sheep baaing.

New Zealand road trip

Our New Zealand trip started in Christchurch, on the South Island. We visited the nearby coastal town of Akaroa via a mountain top road giving us great views of the turquoise bays below. We drove north to the Nelson Lakes region where we hiked around a crystal clear lake with huge fresh water eels. I still went for a quick swim. We reached the North tip of the South Island and explored the ocean side national park, Abel Tasman, where we hiked and kayaked - spotting a sun bathing fur seal. We stayed each night at b & bs, which gave us a chance to meet some friendly hosts and get great tips on must see local gems. It was a fitting end to our adventures down under. more NZ photos

Leaving Sydney

In the weeks before leaving Sydney, Paul and I talked a lot about what we'd miss most about the city. This gave us some trouble as there are so many things to love about Sydney. The most obvious answer is the perfect weather - nearly every day was warm and sunny (sorry to those who suffered through this year's harsh Canadian winter!). We also loved the lively feel of the city - there are always people out and about, as well as different events and festivals happening. We'll miss the many and large parks, where we spent countless hours exercising, relaxing and socializing. We also really enjoyed exploring the city on foot and by bike, bus and ferry. As wonderful as all those things are, our experience would not have been the same if not for the people we met and friends we've made. Goodbye Sydney, we'll miss you!