Paris Trip Report - day 3, part 1

Started off day 3 with another lovely petit dejeuner. It was a cool morning, so we sat in a cafe that had heaters. Just lovely.

We walked to the Arc de Triomphe.
It's a long walk to the top.


I made it!



worth it for the views!



Traffic!

Strolled the Champs Elysees
Are you tired of my purple scarf yet? I am!

We strolled and shopped. Popped into Mont Blanc and Petite Bateau, among others. Picked up a toy train for Liam on the street for about 3E that spelled his name. On the recommendation of the fodors.com message boards, we stopped in at Laduree for some macaroons.



These are not ordinary macaroons, nor is there any coconut involved. They come in many flavors and the only word that can describe them is heavenly. Nathan took a few shots before being admonished by the salesperson. Who knew?!

We also stopped in at Angelina's Cafe for what can only be described as the best hot chocolate on earth. Angelina's is a traditional tea house - quite fancy, but it appears to also be quite touristy. I ordered the regular hot chocolate and Nathan got the white hot chocolate and a pastry. On this cool afternoon, it was the perfect snack to warm our bellies. So rich, I couldn't even take a bite of Nathan's pastry. We each had our little pot of hot chocolate and then an additional little pot of fresh whipped cream. This was definitely the day of sweets.

We walked all the way down to the Tuileries where the flowers were in bloom.


The spot where all the beheadings took place via the guillotine!






More to come on Day 3... the D'Orsay and best falafels in the world...

Paris Trip Report - Day 2

After getting some rest and bathing (did I mention our hotel did not have a stand up shower, only a bath tub?) we were ready to hit the pavement for Day 2 in Paris. We started the day with petit dejeneur which quickly became my favorite meal of the day - croissant, baguette w/ butter and jam, fresh orange juice and a nice steaming mug of cafe au lait. I still miss it. Nathan and I keep trying to re-create it, but alas it does not quite hit the mark. The French women are all so thin and gorgeous I cannot see how this is a typical breakfast!

The plan for Day 2 was to take the metro to near the Marmottan Museum - this is dedicated mainly to Monet. We'd thankfully been given some metro tickets in advance, but still had to buy more - took about 4 attempts to finally get it right. Ugh, it is sometimes so difficult to be in a place where you don't speak the language. Definitely out of our comfort zones, but we persevered. We got a little lost on the way to the museum, but really didn't care because we got to see more of Paris!



It was worth all of the walking to get there - takes you through Monet's career. Really beautiful. We also walked through some great Parisian neighborhoods, which I would equate to Manhattan's upper East side. Lots of kids, nannies, parks, bugaboos, etc.

Tired feet already!

We then walked to the Eiffel Tower. Finally, the first glimpse of this city's famous symbol:







Jules Verne Restaurant - need to make a reservation 6 mos. in advance!

It was mobbed there, we decided to come back in the evening to make the trek up the tower.
We took a break at the park next to the tower to regroup. Yes, I am reading Rick Steves.




On Rick's recommendation, I was very excited to visit Rue Cler, but it ended up being a major disappointment. I think we were off in the timing, it just didn't seem "alive". We had lunch at Cafe PTT - the only thing that was memorable was our waitress, who was annoyed with us because we didn't speak French.

En route to the next stop, we had a chocolate break...


Went to Napoleon's tomb at the Hotel des Invalides...








Went to the Rodin - absolutely beautiful museum and gardens. This is where Rodin lived and it just blew me away. He used to move his sculptures around his gardens - the first lawn ornaments?



My favorite - not by Rodin but his mistress Camille



The roses were out in full bloom.


We went back to the hotel to clean up for dinner at Le Grand Colbert. This is the French bistro from the movie "Something's Gotta Give" with Diane Keaton and Jack Nicholson. I know, I'm kind of a dork for seeking it out, right? I did have the roast chicken and it was a great experience - loved the food and the service again great. Very handsome and attentive waiters! We should have a picture of us here, but the ladies sitting next to us were lacking in camera skills. And day 2 comes to a close...

Paris Trip Report - Day 1

I guess I need to change the name of my blog since the race is over, although I will continue to run throughout 2007 (and beyond)!

About 10 days after the Charlottesville race, Nathan and I headed to Paris without Liam for an urban adventure. With all of the time I spent training for the race, I hadn't left myself much time to plan Paris to the nth degree like I had done for our Italy trip in 2004. Oh well, that's what the plane ride is for, right?

The flights and transfers went smoothly. By the time we arrived, I was in desperate need of a shower and a couple more hours of sleep, but alas, it was not meant to be. We took a cab to the Hotel de la Bretonerrie in the Marais district where the front desk told us our room would be ready by 1 pm. Huh? It was about 8:30 am Paris time. We were tired and dirty and ... oh well, we rolled with it, because really, what else could we do?

In need of a shower!

Like my kicks?

We quickly re-grouped the "bag situation" and headed out to explore the closest sights.

Thankfully, it was a beautiful morning. We headed to Notre Dame on the island - free entry and very beautiful.







Next we headed to the Pompidou Centre where we got to view some modern art...



We headed back to the hotel to check in and get some rest. I was in severe need of a nap, so Nathan headed to the Louvre w/o me.



After resting, we headed to the Bastille area for dinner at Brasserie Bofinger. We were unsure if our reservation was good, as the reply email translated to "we are happy to receive your reservation" but no confirmation. It ended up being no problem and we happily sat down to dinner. We got the three courses - Nathan had oysters, lamb, and ?. Tina had a salmon terrine, duck, and "floating island" - a meringue type of dessert. It was a really wonderful meal, impeccable service, etc. I loved how we were there for a couple of hours and the place really came alive. Watching other people and the French customs was a lot of fun. And so our first day in Paris came to a close.

charlottesville half marathon race report

We headed to Charlottesville on a beautiful Friday afternoon. Our hearts were and are still heavy with grief from the shootings that had occurred at VT on Monday. As I mentioned in a previous post, I decided to run the 1/2 marathon to support and in honor of the Hokies. Here is a picture of the back of the shirt I made to wear in the race:



We left early enough that Nathan got in a quick visit to Monticello while Liam and I checked into our hotel and grabbed a few zzzzz's. We went downtown to pick up my race packet and search for some dinner. I had a minor heart attack when they couldn't find my packet and then found it in the marathon pile... and were unsure if I'd be DQ'ed for doing the half marathon instead. I have to say (not to complain, OK I will) it was not the best organized event. Dinner was overpriced and forgettable, but our bellies were filled. We found a gelato stand and indulged. After wandering around the pedestrian mall and watching bubbles and street performers, we headed back to the hotel to get some sleep. Oh, did I mention they changed the start time to 6:30?!

Yeah, that was a bit of a shock and disappointment that was announced about a week or so before the race. The previous start time had been 7:30 - still early! I was up at 4:00 AM and dozed until 5:00. Even though the weather forecast was in the high 70's for the day, it was a dark and chilly morning...





Yes, my son is eating Wheat Thins for breakfast!

I'm excited?

I spent the entire 15 minutes of extra time at the start line waiting in line for the port a potties - no surprise there. Then I headed toward the back of the pack with my peeps - the slow pokes. :) In hindsight, I probably could have started farther up, but with my unpredictable injury I didn't want to get in anybody's way, soooo... I didn't even hear the start gun (or whatever) go off, we all just started moving like a herd of sheep, though a small one.

The hills started almost immediately. We ran through the downtown and university area - very beautiful and historic campus setting. Old, obviously. Nathan and I had planned to meet at miles 3 and 10, so I knew I didn't have too far to go before getting a boost of inspiration. I don't know if it was due to the early start time, but there was very little crowd support save the race officials and motorcycle cops (they didn't seem to happy to be working, either!). The roads were not fully closed either, so it was kind of hard for some of the runners to find their safe boundaries. I ran the first three miles probably slower than I would have under normal circumstances. My shin was OK, just OK but I certainly wasn't pushing myself. Seeing Liam and Nathan was so great, but I think Liam was confused (and sad) when I just kept running!



I also knew that I wouldn't see them for a while, so I was trying to think of other mental games to play to pass the time. I had my shuffle on, but instead of listening to it, I decided to enjoy the entire experience, the beautiful morning, and scenery. Around mile 4 the shin started flaring up. I was concerned, but continued to push onward. I felt good, although I was freezing. I couldn't really feel my legs, forearms, and my hands were like ice blocks. I got a very pleasant surprise around mile 5 when Nathan and Liam re-appeared, though it seemed they were followed by hills of gargantuan proportions every time I saw them! We were running through some beautiful country - golf course and then a wooded area. I was running alongside another gentleman, kind of lost in my thoughts when two deer crossed literally RIGHT in front of me. I screamed, "Oh my God!" It wasn't like cute Bambi deer - in the instant they passed me I thought they were wolves! haha, kind of funny now that I look back on it. I think with all of the recent "gunman" talk, it is safe to say I am on edge.

Mile 6.5 - the turnaround point - was quickly approaching. At the point where the marathoners split off, I felt pretty sad not to be joining them. At that point, I felt like I could have pulled off the full 26.2 - very easy to say at mile 6.5! The actual turnaround point was incredibly lame and anti-climactic. One orange cone at the end of a cul-de-sac with a white glove on it. No race official, no nothing. Oh well, on we go.





I decided to push myself for the second half since I felt ok and I knew what to expect (the course was an out and back). I'm proud to say, I did not get passed once the whole second half and passed several people. I firmly believe that my full marathon training helped me finish strong, though the hills were killer. I ended up doing a negative split for the second half - about 4 min. faster than the first half including a potty break.

I got to kiss this face every time I saw my two biggest fans!



All in all, I'm happy I ran the half marathon. I won't lie - I certainly felt some pangs of disappointment that I didn't run the full 26.2, but that is life. It was a good race and I was glad to be able to show my support for the Hokies. I don't know that I'd recommend this race unless you LOVE hills. It was beautiful scenery, but the crowd support was pretty much limited to the finish line.







Thanks to all my friends and family for the support they've shown me over the last four months. I've had fun sharing my marathon journey with you and I hope you'll keep reading to see what's next. One thing I realized is that it's lonely running races alone, so... who's coming with me next time?

hokie pride

To say that I'm devastated by the events that happened yesterday at Virginia Tech is an understatement. As I've told many friends, trying to put my feelings into words trivializes it, but I'll try. I was in shock, disbelief as the events unfolded yesterday and the horrific story just got worse and worse. Virginia Tech was a place I always felt happy and safe. I look back on my four years there one of the happiest times of my life. I spent many, many hours in Norris Hall taking classes and also in West AJ with my friends. One of the professors that was killed, Dr. Loganathan, taught some of the first civil engineering courses I took. He was one of the good ones that you don't forget, and now we never will. His death made an already personal tragedy much more real.

I've decided to downgrade the marathon this weekend to a half marathon due to the aforementioned shin splint injury. I'm running in honor of the Hokies who were killed, their families, the school, the students, and everyone who was touched by this event. Maybe it seems silly or just dumb but I cannot think of what else I can do other than send my prayers and hug my family a little closer.

moment of truth

I haven't run since last Tuesday (see previous post). I have been working out, stretching, etc. but it is amazing how tight and tired my muscles are, given this extended break from running. I still feel some pain in my lower leg going up and down stairs. TOnight, I'm going to go for a walk on the treadmill and perhaps try to jog just to see how things feel.