Just like a river, constantly evolving (that's my cunning plan)

Emails from Mongolia - 23 July

From: azuradec
Sent: Wednesday, July 23, 2009 3:44 PM
To: G et al
Subject: Next year

Guys, really, supporters are more than welcomed!
You can even be a volunteer at the check points -
I want to come back next year to do the 100km! 
Can you believe it - I am now feeling left out not having completed the 100km?! 

The award ceremony and party is taking place this evening. 
And then most of us are off to UB tomorrow morning. 
Sniff. 

I am not doing much today - hanging out and rehashing yesterday's event. 


Love
XXX
 

 

 

Emails from Mongolia - July 22

From: azuradec
Sent: Wednesday, July 22, 2009 3:44 PM
To: G et al
Subject: Race day!
 
I have taken a lot of pictures to share with you. 
Stunning vista-it truly is
heaven here and I really think it should be a mandatory annual retreat. 
To answer your question: The marathon is organized 
- the other activities are DIY with facilities 
available. You will all have to come.
 
Can you believe that I seriously entertained the thought of doing 100km?

We were told that if we thought we could do-it
would be better to register for 100km and take the option of stopping at
42km rather than the other way around and not being able to
- not being registered.  I thought hey lets keep my options open-  and
registered  for 100km. Haah. 
 
We were woken up by Mongolian flutes (lovely!) at 3am this morning.
We started our marathon at 4am. 
(We were also treated to a song and
dance event last night, after dinner including throat singing).

It was cold. 
I knew the two mountains for the 42km was going to be tough-
But didn't anticipate how tough it was going to be! 
Plus it had been raining - 
the trail was soft and swampy-not easy to run at all!

I  also realised during the 42km that it was v.much a climbing 
affair and that I was still struggling to breathe with the altitude.
 
I initially thought I would be able to finish the 42km in 6 hours 
(and maybe carry on for 60km or 75km and
perhaps 100km), however realised along the way that SERIOUS effort 
was
required to meet the  cut off or respectable time of 8hours! 
 
I ran whenever I was on flat ground and only took small breaks while
climbing the mountains (honest governor!) and arrived at the finishing
line at around 1149am - with a bouncing 
rucksack on my back, an episode of
losing one side of contact lens (replaced) and numerous falls. 
 
I'm not feeling as sore compared to post NY (still aching though as you can
imagine from running and climbing for 7 hrs and 4o+ mins) but realised now that 
this is a different race altogether.  

I think I did ok although
of course am already thinking I can do heaps better with more training.

Honestly - I really didn't entertain
the thought of continuing with 100km once I reached 42km;
(although now I think I should have gone for it..damn).
 
I am now waiting for the 100 km superstars to come back.
 


Lotsa love
xxx


Running the 42km
 
Race view


  
Second attempt at fishing before race day

Emails from Mongolia - 21 July

From: Azuradec
Sent: 07/21/2009 10:21 AM ZE8
To: G et al

Subject: Report - Continuation 

Hello there
 
Wanted to send another report yesterday and the night before to keep the
narration going but couldn't get any phone signals. Warning: long email. 
 
Sunday was a brilliant almost perfect day. 

I went
out for a (breathless) early morning run [5km? 6km?] 
with my American ger mates 
(seasoned marathon runners I know now) and A (who stopped after
a few mins - eh?). I struggled initially with breathing
(1700m above sea level is my excuse) but got better. 
I like my American ger mates - they are goofy, warm and
considerate and apparently have known each other for 18 years
and have been running the world together. 
One is living in Singapore- the other one has traveled from California. 
Lovely to watch them banter.
 
I hooked up with the 2 Danes from the van after breakfast 
(the man with the library card and 
one of the race organizers)- the man with library card 
proved to me that he did indeed have an espresso maker-contraption with him 
[which he mentioned in the van he would use to make me become 
addicted to him..hmm]. 

We went for a 6 hour hike, which involved some mountain climbing. 
The man with the library card loaded
his heavy rucksack with stones before we ascended. I came up
last-but received praises of "not bad" which I basked in and
requested be repeated to others during the remaining of the day 
(the race org. sort of ignored me; 
the man with the library card offered to sign a show-off
certificate to save time and effort).
 
Library card man asked me during our hike whether I rode horses. 
I said no. "You don't ride, you don't ski, you don't fish....whatever do you do?"
He insisted that I should try horse trekking come Monday morning with him 
and offered to be my coach. 

We came back from the hike super hungry -we refueled..
Library card man suggested yet again that I jumped into the freezing lake with him 
and make a quick dash into the sauna to have the "perfect experience" 
(no doubt a Scandi one). For some reason 
(having just read 'man's search for meaning' ???) I agreed. 
 
* * 
Yesterday - the library card man and I and a number of other people went
for a three hour horse trekking around the lake and mountains which was 
fantastic-although I have to say I
was super nervous for first half. 


* * 
Today - The the library card man suggested we go 
kayaking and fishing this morning to trounce the others
who had caught two fish. He produced a snazzy fishing kit
and we paddled
out. We caught nothing - he said he was exercising his 'catch and release' 
strategy. 
We spent the remaining afternoon sitting in the sun 
- blanket on the ground; story
books out - our van mates came by to get their medical sign off 
and the man with the library card 
suddenly transformed into a serious MD.
 
Second race briefing -done and dusted. 
We will wake up at 3am on Wed morning and start
running at 4am. It's all very serious. GULP.

 
Early morning running view



Espresso - my daily fix sorted

 

While out horse riding

 
Setting out to fish (zero catch)

Race day beckoning 
 

Emails from Mongolia - 19 July

From: Azuradec 
Sent: 07/19/2009 12:32 AM ZE8
To: G et al 

Subject: Report from Khovsgol

Hello there - I have arrived safely to the camp. 
It is BEAUTIFUL. 
And when I say beautiful,
it really is an under statement. Blue skies-green hills-pristine lake. The
wilderness reminds me of Zimbabwe. We left UB on a charter flight at 3pm 
and
landed at Moron(Moron?) about two hours later. 
Then 8 people into a van for the
four hours ++ drive up to the camp.
 
I found myself in a van with jovial people .. 
we were cracking jokes and insulting each so
much that I was laughing most of the time 
(and thus was not sleepy at all!). 

Most of the jokes centered around:

(1) the authenticity of the 2nd camp doctor 
who is claiming to be a surgeon 
but seems to spend 
most of his time climbing mountains, fishing, diving and horse riding
(he brandished a medical card - we think its a library card) 
 
and 
(2) someone who was needing the
loo badly (where? where?) who disapproves of ipods - wanting to buy an 
alternative mp3 player (how refreshing!)


We arrived at the camp late - dined in a ger - briefed of the coming days - and
brought to our designated gers. I am sharing it with 3 others - a Malaysian woman
(fancy that!) and 
2 lovely American women (running partners). 

Its cold outside but not (yet?) unbearable. No idea how to charge phone 
- no electricity - only generators in the evening.

Will likely switch my bb off when not using to save battery.

Love
XXX

PS the rain yesterday in UB turned to become a full torrential hail storm 
which lasted some 3 hours.
Wet wet wet.



 


 

Emails from Mongolia - 17 July

Have decided to post the emails instead of rewriting 
------


From: Azuradec 
Sent: 07/17/2009 03:07 PM ZE8
To: G et al 

Subject: Report from UB 

Greetings from Ulaan Baatar, or should I say 'UB' as they say it here. 
Arrived around 10++pm here last night after transiting in Seoul. Greeted
by one of the race organisers, someone super pleasant I have been emailing
to. Waited with her for the other person to show up. 
 
I'm staying at XHotel in UB for 2 nights -my room has arm
chairs decorated with doily (spell?). The red tap produces cold water and
the blue tap provides scalding hot water -I discovered this when I jumped into the tub
and put my head first under the shower expecting cold water
(not a sensible thing to do I know). 

There were a number of blackouts last night-I was puzzled when
it happened the first time but got used to it after the forth time.
 
I'm sitting in a cafe(?) -trying to hide from the heavy rain-not unlike those in
KL-- I was walking, exploring the city centre when it started drizzling. I made
it to this covered area just in the nick of time-very lucky. I pointed to
"Mongolian tea" (tea with salt and milk according to my lonely planet) on the menu
but was told they only have 'mac tea fruit'. 

The guy came with a glass of hot water, sachet of powdered tea which he
emptied into my glass. 

Never mind I have had a local lunch-hungry and walked
into a cafe(?) and pointed to a pix for lunch which
turned out to be something like fried bread with mutton(?) and a plate of
mashed tatties, carrot, mutton(?) Sausages and 2 heaps of rice with chili
sauce. It was not bad. 
 
Still raining heavily and getting chilly-no one guaranteed good weather.
 
Love
Xxx
 

Exploring UB

 

Exploring (getting lost) in UB
 
The Monastery

 
Getting heavier!




Flooding - tough crossing roads 
 
 
My fancy room



Number 5 please

Update over due

I have not been spending as much time in front of the computer these last couple of weeks. I've also been useless in all forms of desk bound activities e.g. posting letters, writing proper emails - sorry to those I am owing.  I don't know what it is - restlessness? I just can't stay in front of the computer long enough these days..wanting to be on the go all the time. That or read a book.

So, rain forest festival was a lot of fun. I got back to HK, unpacked, packed... and now I'm typing from the internet lounge at Incheon airport - waiting to board my flight to UB. I have to say that I am liking (i) KAL's flight attendants uniform - in particular the starched scarf and hair pin. Trendy non?and (ii) internet lounge despite not knowing how to switch the computer from Korean to English mode.

So - I will be in UB for 2 nights. And then on another plane to the North for the 42km run on Wednesday. I have butterflies in my tummy. I want to do well, but am aware that I haven't trained as hard as previously (notwithstanding my bruised toes and missing nails). I am reminding myself that the most important thing is to enjoy the challenge and adventure and that I will be running in beautiful surroundings. ...so que sera sera.

* *

Belated pictures from Rain forest Festival

 

 

 

Its been some time

I've been busy at work mostly. And then there was the every other gym session and the regular runs. And the long runs on the weekend? 30+km Phew. I've lost my toe nails. Not to say I have not been on the net (nor to see Kenji)- for I have - checking face book and twitter regularly - only not here. Which is a shame, because I am really liking this new site (although have to admit to also missing the old 5 years old site -RIP). It inspires me to draw. It even inspired me to put up drawings on the walls of my flat. This hasn't happened for 4-5 years!

Friday's Illio theme - worn