Now, yesterday was a confusing day. Dirk ran a trail marathon with a few other guys in Belgium (hey Dirk, why don't you write about this?), while I could only think of it/them. Reason: poor me (...) was in Kyoto. On a trip to Japan and a day off, I went to visit the cultural city. I arrived in Kyoto on Saturday evening, and started with a visit to the tourist office - useful if you have not brought any other source of information with you.
They were really helpful and gave me good tips. So, I decided to ask them for another piece of advice: where could I go running - say just in the case I would like to?... So I get a piece of paper, all Japanese, about... a MARATHON in Kyoto the next day. Wow, that was not really what I had in mind but hey, why not?! So I pass my evening strolling around in the beautiful city and wondering whether or not I should participate. I had my running shoes with me, but not much gear or supplies. Also, I was in Kyoto because of the temples and palaces, remember? I would not get to see much of that if participating in the marathon. So, should I? Well, I thought, why not.
So I spent my day cycling (in the snow!) from temple to temple, really fascinating. I finished my day by running an hour along the river in the snow, another beautiful experience. But a marathon: no, impossible, 3 things against me: I am not high level, not a woman and most of all, it was only a relay ;-)
It was a nice phantasy however (to run a marathon, that is)!
Wim
