Apr 2009

A friend of ours put together this video of me from the Tokyo Marathon. It was taken off Fuji television and he compiled all the clips that he found me in. Thank You Brent. That is awesome of you. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d1vYydYp8EU

I have been holding off on publishing this blog because I have not been able to load the videos. Hopefully that will get ironed out and you can check back for the videos that go along with this entry.

One night about a month ago, Quinn and I created a travel itinerary for my Mom and Bob's trip to Japan. Little did we know that they would research every detail of those places and know more about them than us! This week is my spring break so we were able to do quite a bit of traveling. I will attempt to recount the events.

Japan is filled with cherry blossom trees and they only bloom one time per year and the blooms last about 2 weeks. My Mom and Bob were lucky enough to arrive in Japan during one of those two weeks. On the day they arrived Quinn and I went to a cherry blossom festival near the Tama river (river by our house). My Mom and Bob arrived later in the day. Here are some pics of the trees.

Close up view.

People love to picnic under the blossoms.

Of course, the Japanese girl scouts were there for our entertainment. Here they are performing yet another Disney classic.

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This is a different kind of flower along the river. Quinn claims it is a peony.

Here is another pick of people having a grand picnic down under the trees. They carried all of those bamboo cups and plates and what not down there. It was extravagant.

Once more pics of the flower

They arrived that evening and here they are getting of the bus.

Day one (Sunday):

Mom wasted no time fiting right in with the Japanese and slept on the train.

We went to a fertility festival. This event goes against all I know about Japan's modesty. People were eating penis popsicles and carving various items into penises. They carried 3 giant penis statues through the streets. There was an entire group in drag. Quinn got pulled into the parade to carry part of the statue for a little while. Warning: the pictures that follow are not for everyone.

Here they are carving giant radishes into penises.

We had a great lunch and a TON of yaki soba noodes. No English menu here, so they just brought us food. It was all tasty. I think the cook described some of it as "tempura grass."

People were also dressed in traditional costumes with short shirts and underwear-esque bottoms.

It was wild.

Day two (Monday):

We took the Shinkansen (bullet train) to Kyoto. This train goes up to 200 miles per hour. This video gives you a taste of what that is like. When I looked out of the window for too long I started to feel a little sick.

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Kyoto is the former capitol of Japan and is very historic and traditional. There are many shrines, castles, and all the things you think of as being traditionally Japanese. There are so many things to see there you could spend two weeks and not see all the shrines. We were told it was easy to get "shrined out." So we tried to mix it up and see a variety of sights.

They are so crazy here about cherry blossoms that they put fake ones on the trains.

First we went to a Zen rock garden XXXXXX. It was neat. We have our own rock garden back in Phoenix. I am thinking of making it more Zen like and charging an entrance fee. This shrine had beautiful grounds and lakes. Couldn't get enough of the those cherry blossoms.

Here are some traditional Japanese Chiuhauhas. People push their dogs around in strollers and dress them up.

Then we had another great lunch with gorgeous food. There are so many cute restaurants throughout Japan. Many restaurants only have 5 or 6 tables but they have the best ambience and style.

Quinn loves these guys!

The feel of Kyoto is very different from Tokyo. The streets feel more cozy. You never know what you will find....maybe a tiny garage? How does this person get out of their car???

Next we saw the Golden Pavillion. It is decorated in gold leaf. Gorgeous.

Here is another great idea for my Zen rock garden in AZ. I will put a small bowl and a couple of statues around it and people with throw money in my yard! The Japanese are so smart!

Next we went to the Botanical Gardens. I am a huge fan of botanical gardens and Quinn and I go to them frequently when we travel. This was by far the BEST botanical gardens I have ever been to. There was a such a variety of plants and flowers. And of course, those popular cherry blossoms. The Japanese are pretty crazy about these cherry blossoms. It is quite the event, since they are only around for 2 weeks before they get blown off by the wind. Everyone was out in full force having their picnics.

What is up with this? Another fertility festival? Not sure.

Then we ate at another cute restaurant without a menu in English. We kept going off the beaten path to eat and having to do all kinds of charades to settle on a meal. This place they brought us all kinds of dishes and they were fabulous. They were surprised when we ordered Sake and they kept making sure we didn't want water instead. One guy even pretended to be drunk to make sure that is what we really wanted. The Japanese are so helpful and go out of their way to make sure you get what you want to eat. I can't say enough good things about the customer service.

Day 3 (Tuesday):

Next we went to Nijo castle. This was the castle for the Sho-gun. It was a HUGE complex. It has a nightingale floor that squeaks when you walk on it to alert you of intruders. Very tricky.

And of course, more beautiful grounds.

Next we went to a Geisha show. I was able to get tickets last minute for a Geisha dance performance. This was an amazing chance opportunity because they only perform two times per year. They perform for four weeks in April and two weeks in the fall. We got the last four seats in the house and they were in the front row! Luck was with us on this one. I guess they had a cancellation. I couldn't take any pictures but we were so close that we could see where the Geisha's had on hair pieces. The make-up, dancing, costumes, and music cannot be described. It was awesome.

Then we went to a park with a festival going on for the cherry blossoms. There were street performers and people hanging around enjoying the great weather. Here a crane and a turtle enjoy the sunshine.

We went to another shrine that is full of thousands of Tori gates. They are donated by business men in hopes of success in business. There are little stone foxes all around that are thought to represent good business due to its cunning and sly nature.

Then we went to Nishiki market which is a large fish and pickled products market. There are also home goods there. It was a covered outdoor market with tons to offer. Never thought I would see a pickled eggplant.

This is a picture of the Kyoto train station that we left from. Apparently it was controversial because it is very modern in style and Kyoto is known for being the traditional city in Japan. It was an incredible building.

The next 2 days were spent in Tokyo. Here my Mom and Bob check out the skyline with buildings as far as the eye can see.

This picture is from Roppongi. This is an area where people live, work, and play all in a series of interconnecting buildings. It is kind of like a master planned community in an urban environment. It was designed by a famous Japanese architect. Great restaurants and shopping here.

Next we relaxed in Yoyogi Koen. It is the Tokyo equivalent of central park. Lots of people enjoying the outdoors. Bob finally got a chance to take a picture with the locals.

My mom and Bob went to the tsukiji fish market Friday morning and then waited in line for an outdoor Sumo competition. We got front row seats!!!! I could have reached out to touch the sumo wrestlers. AWESOME!

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This is a judge. They were all very young. They rotate judges and singers every 5-6 matches.

Or course we took them out for Yakiniku where you cook your own meat on a grill.

Mom and Bob at Sunrise bakery along the flight line.

Enjoying the countryside in Ome. This is where people go to Kayak, boulder, fish, camp, and BBQ.

Then came the inevitable. Time for Mom and Bob to return to Florida. We miss you guys!

I know Kristen got on here and told everyone my time, and I just wanted to let everyone know that I had a great race. We did not have perfect conditions, and honestly, when I woke up I was a bit worried about the wind. Kristen set me straight and got me to suck it up. Getting over your own mental block is half the battle.

It has taken a lot of work to get back to this point. Last year I ran my first marathon in January, and then I really lost the drive to run, so I basically took 6 months off until we moved to Japan. I have been training since we moved here in August with Tokyo Marathon in my sights. When I ran a half marathon in November in just over 74 minutes, the prospect of running 2:25 was not looking so good. Everything really came together the last couple months with a lot of hard work, and a couple of 120 mile weeks.

As for the race, it was really quite amazing. Nothing like lining up with 35,000 of your friends for a Sunday run. I had to battle my way to the front before the race started due to an unlucky number assignment that put me behind about 3000 people. Once I got to the front, I felt a lot better about the race. I was lucky enough to go out with the lead women, and their pacers brought me through the first half marathon right under goal pace. For those of you in the know, I was running side by side with Constantina Dita (womens olympic marathon champion) and she really does look like she is running all out from the very start. It was really windy during the whole race, and the last 5k had us running right into the wind. I stayed strong and didnt' let it get to me, and finished just under 2:26. I figure the wind cost about 2 or 3 minutes. I felt really comfortable, and know that I will be able to faster next time. Overall I am very happy with it. Here is a link if you care to see pictures. I have to warn you, they are not pretty. Surprisingly enough, I was actually very relaxed for most of the race, even if the pictures tell a different story. You can really get a good idea of the wind in a couple of them by looking at my hair. My bib number is 22020. http://tm09eng.allsports.jp/photo/photo_list_tag_search.php?tag_code=zekken&tag=22020

My plan now is to do some spring road races, and hopefully get in a couple of track meets with a little help from a running friend I have made in Tokyo. Next December there is an elite level marathon in Fukuoka Japan, that I am going to apply for, and I will make every effort to go for the Olympic Trials qualifying mark. They moved it down to 2:19, and there is no reason to shoot for anything slower. I'm sure we will keep you all up on the races between now and then.

Quinn