On 05.13.10, In Travel, by Studioyvr
On 05.13.10, In Travel, by Studioyvr
I went to Zion National Park the day after Ironman St George where I setup camp just outside the park boundaries and spent the next 2.5 days hiking various parts of the park. It was an amazing experience. I started off in the north at Kolob Canyons which was so remote that I practically had the whole trail to myself. Then I drove over to the Kolob Reservoir but had to turn back after reaching 7000 feet because there was too much snow. Subsequent days were spent hiking the Canyon Outlook trail and the infamous Angels Landing trail, neither of which are candidates for anyone suffering from vertigo.
My only regret was that I was not able to hike in Slot Canyon which was impassable due to the water levels being 4x above the safe level. Oh well, hopefully there will be a next time.
You can view all of the photos from Zion on my Fickr account or you can view the embedded slide show.
On 01.05.10, In Travel, by Studioyvr
Jerusalem's Western Wall
And all the roads we have to walk along are winding
And all the lights that lead us there are blinding
There are many things that I would Like to say to you
I don’t know how
Because maybe You’re gonna be the one who saves me ?And after all
You’re my wonderwall
Wonderwall by Oasis
Mission accomplished. Today I placed my prayer within a crack of the Western (Wailing) Wall located in the Old City of Jerusalem. It took some time to accomplish this task. I first had to done my paper Yamulke and then wait in line until one of the ushers allowed me to approach the wall. I was obviously not an orthodox Jew so I was not given any priority and therefore had to wait until the truly pious were finished. I then approached the wall, said my prayer and placed my paper prayer with thousands of others in one of the many crevices in the wall. My prayer was very simple and contained all the names of my friends and family that I wanted to seek blessings for.
Holy Sepulchre
Next on the agenda was to head over to the Christian quarter and join the hordes of other tourists that invade The Holy Sepulchre. The Sepulchre is built upon the spot where it is believed that Jesus was nailed to the cross before he was forced to carry the cross along the Via Dolorosa. The most sacred place within the Sepulchre is the spot beneath the alter. This is a very tiny area which can only accommodate 4 or 5 people at a time and therefore the lineups are very long (and there are often VIP’s that jump the queue). I made my way into the small chamber with 4 Russian women. We all knelt before the alter and then began to pray. I was done in about 30 seconds however could not leave because the entrance was blocked by the praying women. They were not only praying but were also placing religious objects onto the alter so that they would become blessed. One women had bags and bags of stuff that she was placing on the alter so it was taking a very long time. I was becoming increasingly claustrophobic and starting to panic a bit when finally a priest crawled under the alter and hauled the women out.
It was only noon by then however I had enough of Jerusalem’s Old City. Obviously visiting the Holy sites can be quite emotionally taxing however I find that just being alone in the streets of the Old City to be somewhat stressful. Navigating the endless maze of alleyways is very difficult and you also have to be on the watch for getting ripped off. People are continually trying to sell you something or lure you into one of the myriad of shops. So I headed for the Jaffa Gate and walked up to Ben Yahuda street so that I had a good kilometre between myself and the Old City. I spotted one of the many Cafe Cafe locations and headed over there where the sights were not so holy.
Bling Jeans
The food is not as traditional either. I parked myself in front of this massive Mediterranean salad and ate the entire thing. Yum!
Salad Pigout
Since I was in a Jewish part of town I then went to a nearby store so that I could buy some beer before hailing a cab and heading back to my hotel. My cab driver was a real character, one of those stereotypical weathered old Arab dudes. He started giving me a hard time about the beer because we were heading into a Muslim neighborhood however he soon dropped that subject and began the political lecture. I learned a lot on that taxi ride. Did you know that people that are born in Israel who are not Jews are without status? They cannot vote or get a passport. My cab driver also told me that his brother traveled to the US to go to university but could not return to Israel because he had been out of the country for more than one year. Yikes, the poor guy was then homeless and had to apply for refugee status in another country. As I departed, the cab driver said to me, “only the land is Holy here”. Point taken. I then took my illicit beer to my hotel balcony and then like a good Infidel spent the afternoon sitting in the sun, snoozing and reading.
Tomorrow I am heading north to Tiberias where I will pick up my race package and then attend a good old pre-race pasta carbo load party. It’s almost race time folks.
Shalom and Salaam to you my friends.
On 01.03.10, In Travel, by Studioyvr
The complexity of the situation in the land known as Israel is immense. There is so much that is rooted deep in historical times, evidenced by archeological sights and holy shrines that are located at every turn. The land seems to be a never ending display of contrasts and contradictions. For example, Israel is well known for it’s liberalism towards gay men and women, who are welcomed and expected to serve in the Israeli armed forces. Contrast this then to reports in the Jerusalem paper that a Canadian woman was beaten for refusing to move to the back of a public bus. Where is Rosa Parks when you need her?
The contrasts are both bewildering and fascinating, all of which makes Israel an educational place to visit. I think that the important thing to remember is that as a visitor to this land is that I am not here to judge anything or anyone. I am merely the observer, one of many travelers who are in this country to learn and appreciate it for all that it is (and is not).
I think that one of the contrasts that is too big to ignore is the difference between the Arab and Jewish sections of Tel Aviv or Jerusalem. The Jewish sections of town are often very clean and modern while the Arab neighborhoods are sometimes visibly rundown. One can’t help but notice the millions of dollars that are funneled into the Israeli economy that come from all corners of the globe, the amount of this wealth is sometimes obscene. Yet that money does not appear to be equitably distributed amongst all of the inhabitants of Israel.
Modern Tel Aviv
As a traveler, Israel is not always the easiest place to visit. Many signs are written in Hebrew and/or Arabic which can make navigation quite difficult. As well, businesses and restaurants that serve tourists are often closed in order to comply with one of the countries 3 main religions. Just try to find a restaurant that is open in Jerusalem on Shabbut! Still, these minor frustrations are a very small price to pay in order to have the privilege of exploring this fascinating land.
Shalom!
Western Wall
On 11.17.09, In Travel, by Studioyvr
Bondi Beach
I think we all need a little hit of Vitamin D on these long cold Canadian winter nights. Vitamin Disco that is. Heh heh.
The following video brings back many fond memories of when I crash landed in Sydney for a week of recovery after finishing Ironman Western Australia. My daily routine in Sydney consisted of sleeping in and then then heading over to Boy Charelton Pool where I would do yoga, have a swim and then lunch on their deck. After that I would venture out one of the many suburban beaches for the afternoon. One of my fave beaches was Bondi Beach which is featured in this video. Enjoy!
On 07.01.09, In Travel, by Studioyvr
My immune system gets all suppressed after completing Ironman races. Therefore I like to avoid crowded places and public transportation. So the perfect solution for me was to get off the busy freeways and travel along the back roads of Washington state. I jumped onto Highway #2 just west of Spokane and headed out onto the wide open plains.
The scenery was spectacular and there was very little traffic so the driving was quite effortless. This was just what I needed. I was in no hurry so I really took my time, stopping every couple of hours to eat and drink or sometimes just to walk about in the wide open spaces.
One of my first stops was at the Grand Coulee Dam. I had not been here since my childhood so I enjoyed the visit. There was a tour and light show however that would have involved hanging out with other gringo’s so confined my visit to a walk around the visitor centre. That was quite enough.
The weather was still a little variable so I decided to press on to Lake Chelan which lies in the arid Okanagan Valley. I am so glad that I did because it was gorgeous there. It was warm and sunny as I drove through the many valleys that were lined with orchards and vineyards.
I spent a couple of days at the 25 Mile campground on Lake Chelan. It was totally relaxing. There wasn’t much to do but swim, nap, eat, read and have a beer or two. At night, all I could hear was the rushing water of a nearby stream. It was the perfect location to unwind and recover from Ironman Coeur d’Alene.
Ironman Recovery Centre
After my stay in Lake Chelan, I continued west leaving the arid valley behind as I began the climb up into the Cascade Mountains. The first stop on the way was in the Bavarian themed town of Leavenworth. Here even the local McDonalds was festooned with (someones idea of) Bavarian architecture.
Faux Bavaria
On (and up) I continued until I got to the top of Stevens Pass where there were remnants of snow on the mountains even in June.
A couple of hours later I arrived home relaxed, unhurried and happy. A perfect post-Ironman state to be in.
On 06.16.09, In Travel, by Studioyvr
I am out in the eastern part of British Columbia in an area known as the Kootenays. Geographically it is basically a very long glacial trench that lies between the various ranges of mountains that make up the Canadian Rockies. I am staying here until tomorrow when I will drive down to Idaho and setup base camp for Ironman Coeur d’ALene. Apparently the weather tomorrow is going to be very stormy so I thought I would spend the day traveling and then cycle the IM CDA bike course on Thursday when the weather improves. Well that is the current plan anyway. I am on vacation and plans tend to change by the hour which is completely fine with me.
We actually have done quite a bit during my visit here despite my frequent napping and eating. On Sunday, we drove out to Wasa Lake and watched my sister and brother in-law race in an Olympic triathlon. It was a great venue for the event. We sat on the beach and watched the waves of swimmers head out. Then we moved over to some shady grass to watch the cyclists. Finally finished up by sitting on a picturesque trail, cheering on the athletes as they ran through the pines.
Here is a photo of my sister exiting the swim. Look at that smile!
And here is my brother in-law ripping up the bike course.
Yesterday we went out to the St Eugene golf course for lunch. It was quite interesting because the main building on the course was a restored school that was originally used by the Catholic church to house First Nations children. The photos inside the building told the story of the children who were forcibly removed from their families and housed at the school, watched over by the ominous nuns and priests of the Catholic regime. Very sad. The good news is that the school now serves as a source of revenue for the local First Nations band which is rather fitting. Here is a photo of some of my family sitting inside one of the sweatlodge tents.
Last night after dinner we went and watched my sister and my nephew play soccer together at their mixed league game. The rest of my family were practicing their Ironman cheering at the soccer game. I think the locals were a little surprised to hear such enthusiastic cheering at their game. They probably thought that there was an Muslim invasion happening when were doing our war cries.
It hasn’t been all relaxation while I have been out here. Well mostly it has but I have been doing a little bit of excersize during my pre-Ironman taper. Just doing some very short stuff in between naps. Like a 1 km swim, 30 minute bike or run. I also have been doing a fair amount of stretching which is beneficial because I would certainly seize up due to all of the sleeping that I am doing.
So it’s all good out here in vacation land. No work stress. Lots of time to catch-up with family. Loads of healthy food and lots of time to sleep.
I could really get used to this.
Get up the day after the marathon at 3 am.
Grab the 4 am shuttle to Logan Airport.
Jump on the 6 am flight to Dulles.
Fly into a storm, circle the airport for 30 minutes, try to land a couple of times and get lucky on the third attempt.
Run to your connecting flight and arrive as they are closing the doors. Get on board for the 5 hour no service flight to Seattle without purchasing water or food supplies.
Discover that your aisle seat has suddenly morphed into a window seat so you are now locked in place for 5 hours.
Snag a Whopper Jr at the SEA/TAC airport Burger King as you run to catch your third flight of the day.
Arrive in Vancouver only to discover that your luggage is still in Dulles. The same luggage that you cleverly packed at 3 am so that it contains your car and house keys.
Get a cab to Chick Interrupted’s house, pick up your spare set of house keys and convince her to drive you home.
Arrive home long enough to get your spare set of car keys and then get a cab back to the airport where you pick up your car.
Drive home swearing the entire way as you crawl along in rush hour traffic.
Finally get home and realize that 17 hours of travel have left you totally dehydrated, cramped up and burnt out.
And that ladies and gentlemen is my recipe for a successful marathon recovery program. Whine…
On 04.12.09, In Travel, by Studioyvr
Can you guess where I took this video? Hint: think Land of the Lohans.
