About a year and a half ago, my brother asked me if I would join him in running a race called the Reno Tahoe Odyssey. Well after years of inactivity, asking me to join a 178 mile relay race was quite a tall order. After six months of training, I was feeling incredible. I hadn't been in this good of shape since high school. The race was such an amazing experience, and I have kept up with my running ever since.
Well I say I have kept up, but since the move to Costa Rica, the motivation just has not been the same. While I do still try to run a couple of times a week, it is easy for a couple weeks to go by before I realize I haven't gone in a while. I have been pretty busy with going to Panama, working, Joe's family visiting, working, and I can't believe I had let a whole month go by without running. Yikes! Well lucky for me, some motivation just came pounding on my door.
A group of friends from high school has decided that we are going to run the Ruby Mountain Relay in August. I cannot tell you how excited I am to be doing this. Some of these friends I have not seen in years, one in particular since high school. So not only are we going to have fun because we are running an incredible race, but it is going to be a two day gigglefest I'm sure. We were all pretty crazy together in high school, and I anticipate a lot of the same hijinks to take place.
So now it is back to training mode, as I do not want to be the one that dies on the trail somewhere between Wells and the Ruby Marshes. Yesterday was my first day back (besides some hill sprints earlier this week) and let me tell you, the 4 or 5 miles is still having it's way with my quad muscles. My legs are sore, my back muscles are sore, my arms are sore, AND I FEEL GREAT! I am looking forward to pushing myself again, to get in even better shape. I hope that training at sea level does not kill me when I get to higher elevation. I will try to post updates on the race, and my training, but no promises. We all know I suck at blogging.
Friday, June 14, 2013
Monday, June 10, 2013
Six Months and Counting Part 2
So at this point you may be asking yourself, "Christina, you said Breanna would be there at the end of March, where is she?" Well that is very vigilant of you to remember such a thing. Well Breanna and Marshall finally made their way down here the beginning of May. I wish that I could say that things are going great, but unfortunately that is not the case. After only two weeks, they decided to move to another city. I wish them the best of luck, and wish that things had worked out differently. Without getting into too much detail, I will just say that I am heartbroken that they have chosen to cut me out of their lives.
On to bigger and better things, let's talk about our SECOND trip to Panama! My dad and Mabel were going to be there, so Joe and I decided it would be the perfect opportunity to tag along. We were able to travel to Panama City to meet up with my dad. While there we did some sight seeing around the amazing city. I had no idea how huge it is, and all of the buildings it has. It is a very developed city. We also made our way to see the Panama Canal, which was as awe inspiring as I thought it would be. We then made our way to the Caribbean Coast, to the islands of Bocas Del Toro. We spent a week bouncing around the different islands, seeing all that they have to offer. The water was crystal clear, warm, and full of life. We saw dolphins, stingrays, starfish, eels, all kinds of colorful fish, coral, just about everything. Snorkeling in the water was our favorite thing to do, which we did a few times. Every day was nonstop action from the moment we woke up, until the time we crashed at night. The hotel that we stayed at was unbelievable. It was individual cabins over the water, with a dock leading to each one. It was like paradise. Spending the time with my dad was great, I'm on track to see him three times in one year, which is a record of sorts.
After bidding farewell to Panama, we came back to Costa Rica just in time for Joe's Mom's visit. She came down with his little brother for a short visit, but it was great. We were so happy that they were able to come down and see us. It really meant a lot to both of us that they would come down. We had a great time showing them around, and like I said, we got them an awesome room at the hotel I work at. It was such a relaxing time.
And now it's back to just Joe and I. We can't believe how lucky we are to have this experience, and are trying to treasure every moment we are given.
On to bigger and better things, let's talk about our SECOND trip to Panama! My dad and Mabel were going to be there, so Joe and I decided it would be the perfect opportunity to tag along. We were able to travel to Panama City to meet up with my dad. While there we did some sight seeing around the amazing city. I had no idea how huge it is, and all of the buildings it has. It is a very developed city. We also made our way to see the Panama Canal, which was as awe inspiring as I thought it would be. We then made our way to the Caribbean Coast, to the islands of Bocas Del Toro. We spent a week bouncing around the different islands, seeing all that they have to offer. The water was crystal clear, warm, and full of life. We saw dolphins, stingrays, starfish, eels, all kinds of colorful fish, coral, just about everything. Snorkeling in the water was our favorite thing to do, which we did a few times. Every day was nonstop action from the moment we woke up, until the time we crashed at night. The hotel that we stayed at was unbelievable. It was individual cabins over the water, with a dock leading to each one. It was like paradise. Spending the time with my dad was great, I'm on track to see him three times in one year, which is a record of sorts.
 |
| Panama City in the background |
 |
| Panama Canal |
 |
| Me and my Dad with Panama City behind us |
 |
| Give peace a chance. |
 |
| Starfish at Playa Estrella |
 |
| Heading out for a day on a boat. |
 |
| Snorkling |
After bidding farewell to Panama, we came back to Costa Rica just in time for Joe's Mom's visit. She came down with his little brother for a short visit, but it was great. We were so happy that they were able to come down and see us. It really meant a lot to both of us that they would come down. We had a great time showing them around, and like I said, we got them an awesome room at the hotel I work at. It was such a relaxing time.
And now it's back to just Joe and I. We can't believe how lucky we are to have this experience, and are trying to treasure every moment we are given.
Sunday, June 9, 2013
Six Months and Counting
It's hard to believe, but Joe and I have been here for six months and two days. A lot has happened since the last time I wrote, so I better get to it.
In my last post I said that we were heading to Panama to renew Joe's visa, and that we were looking forward to the adventure. Well we sure were in for an adventure, because absolutely nothing went as planned. We arrived in Paso Canoas after dark, and it was insane. There were cars, buses, trucks and people everywhere, moving in patterns that I just could not understand. We were told to get off the bus, which we figured they just need to check our passports and send us on our way, but then the bus drove off!! After a minor heart attack, because all of our stuff was on the bus, we were told that we would meet back up with the bus after going through immigration, and to follow some guy on a bike. So off we went, making our way through the crowed streets, until we found the line. After waiting for what seemed an eternity it was our turn. All was going well until they asked for our exit tickets, proving that we would be leaving Panama. Well..... we hadn't really thought of that. After purchasing some fake tickets from some random guy, and waiting in line again, we were finally cleared for entrance to Panama. We stayed a couple of nights at a really cool hostal in David. We were really amazed at how cheap things were there, and definitely enjoyed our time. The way back was another "adventure." Lets just say that when you combine missing ticket agents and $100 cab rides, you are just happy to be home.
Luckily for us, we didn't have time to wallow in the stresses of traveling, because my family came to visit! It was so much fun having them here, and we were really able to do a lot of things and enjoy the amazing weather. We went to the National Park, we went to the beach, we snorkeled, we boogy boarded, we really just had a ton of fun. Philip and Stephanie were here for one week, my mom for two, and my dad for about two and a half. So we really got our fill on family time. I will try to insert some photos from their time here, when I am not at work. Oh yeah, I found a job!!! Let's move on to that.
I have been working at a hotel that is up the street from our apartment for about a month and a half now. I started working in the restaurant, just to help out for a special event, but then they asked if I could help out at the front desk because they were loosing someone. It is only a few days a week, and it pays hardly anything, but it gets me out doing something, AND I got a super awesome discount for when Joe's mom came to visit. I think at this point I am going to end this post and have a Part 2, so that this doesn't get ridiculously long. Stay tuned...
In my last post I said that we were heading to Panama to renew Joe's visa, and that we were looking forward to the adventure. Well we sure were in for an adventure, because absolutely nothing went as planned. We arrived in Paso Canoas after dark, and it was insane. There were cars, buses, trucks and people everywhere, moving in patterns that I just could not understand. We were told to get off the bus, which we figured they just need to check our passports and send us on our way, but then the bus drove off!! After a minor heart attack, because all of our stuff was on the bus, we were told that we would meet back up with the bus after going through immigration, and to follow some guy on a bike. So off we went, making our way through the crowed streets, until we found the line. After waiting for what seemed an eternity it was our turn. All was going well until they asked for our exit tickets, proving that we would be leaving Panama. Well..... we hadn't really thought of that. After purchasing some fake tickets from some random guy, and waiting in line again, we were finally cleared for entrance to Panama. We stayed a couple of nights at a really cool hostal in David. We were really amazed at how cheap things were there, and definitely enjoyed our time. The way back was another "adventure." Lets just say that when you combine missing ticket agents and $100 cab rides, you are just happy to be home.
Luckily for us, we didn't have time to wallow in the stresses of traveling, because my family came to visit! It was so much fun having them here, and we were really able to do a lot of things and enjoy the amazing weather. We went to the National Park, we went to the beach, we snorkeled, we boogy boarded, we really just had a ton of fun. Philip and Stephanie were here for one week, my mom for two, and my dad for about two and a half. So we really got our fill on family time. I will try to insert some photos from their time here, when I am not at work. Oh yeah, I found a job!!! Let's move on to that.
I have been working at a hotel that is up the street from our apartment for about a month and a half now. I started working in the restaurant, just to help out for a special event, but then they asked if I could help out at the front desk because they were loosing someone. It is only a few days a week, and it pays hardly anything, but it gets me out doing something, AND I got a super awesome discount for when Joe's mom came to visit. I think at this point I am going to end this post and have a Part 2, so that this doesn't get ridiculously long. Stay tuned...
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)