1/2 Marathon in Brighton-We did it!

After a great couple of days checking out London, it was time to meet Jen and Ed and head down south for the big race. Luckily Ed’s parents and sister live in Seaford, which was just a short train ride away from Brighton where the race was. So we got to spend some time with them as well. We arrived on Saturday night (the race was on Sunday) and Ed’s family was preparing us a wonderful ‘carb-filled’ dinner of homemade lasagna, delicious salad, and the most amazing cheesecake I think I have ever eaten! They were so sweet to make sure we were well prepared for our big race the next day. So we headed off to bed kind of early after some great conversation and of course a couple of cups of tea. (It wouldn’t be England without tea, right?!)

The next morning, Sarah, Ed’s mom, was up and ready to take us to the starting line. Although it was a bit of a cold morning, we couldn’t have asked for better weather. The sun was shining and as we arrived we were greeted by over 15,000 runners, all ready to get moving. Sarah dropped us off, wished us luck, and promised she’d be back a bit later with the rest of the gang to meet us at the finish line…

Energy was high as we started the race. The music and the announcers were getting everyone amped up and ready to run 13.1 miles along the seaside. We started the race first running in one direction along the water and then turned around, came back across the boardwalk and started our way down to the other end, still staying on the waterfront. What a beautiful place to run!! After 6 miles, we were feeling great; we were keeping a great pace! There were so many fans cheering us on and clapping the whole way, it was really easy to stay motivated. 

I think the whole town of Brighton came out to support the runners! As we neared the end, we couldn’t believe how well were doing. We crossed the finish line and we were stunned to find out that we had run this half marathon a whole 20 minutes faster than the one we ran together almost 4 years ago when we were both living in Phoenix!! We were amazed with our accomplishment and couldn’t be happier about completing it all!!

When crossing the finish, we spotted Ed and his mom waiting for us there and we were off to meet Ed’s dad and his sister, Frank, for a celebration lunch at a really nice Vietnamese restaurant in town. (Luckily we had brought a change of clothes…didn’t do much for the hair situation though! Haha!) We were so excited to get some food in our bellies after all that running and then it was time for cupcakes!! At our last half marathon, Jen’s mom had brought us cupcakes from Sprinkles (a very famous cupcake maker in the States) and so I wanted to keep the tradition alive. I had brought these cupcakes all the way from Notting Hill in London from a little bakery that I had found. They were delicious!! And even though Ed didn’t run the race with us, he still got his celebratory cupcake!!

The rest of the day we were very lazy ladies just sprawling on the couch and basking in our glory! Haha! Ed’s family made us another fabulous dinner (famous English Sunday dinner) with meat, potatoes, veggies, and something called Yorkshire pudding! It was all so delicious!! The next day, Ed, Jen, and I headed back to Brighton to meet up with one of Ed’s friends and we spent the day walking the ‘lanes’, famous ally ways with lots of cool little shops, and just enjoying another day of sunshine!! It is VERY abnormal for England to have this much sun all at once, especially in February…we were very lucky to have such beautiful weather!! Ed and Jen headed off that evening to go back home to Manchester, and I was off the next day back to London to catch a flight back to Spain! What an amazing and successful weekend in Brighton!!  

Camden Town

With Jen and Ed on their way down from Manchester by train, I had another half day to spend in London. I had heard great things about Camden Town and decided to check it out. It was close enough to my hostel to walk, and with another day of really nice weather, I was out to the street to find all that Camden Town had to offer. As I approached something called the ‘Stables’, I decided to enter in and see what I found.

There were all of these little booths or stables that used to be used for horses, but now are used for permanent market booths, selling everything from antiques, to jewelry, to trendy clothing and handbags. There was an array of different types of things for sale and it was exciting to see what all they had to offer. As I made my way down the windy pathways of the ‘Stables’ I found myself in a completely different part where there were food booths from almost every country imaginable: authentic French cheese and prosciutto sandwiches, Arabian falafel and kebabs, Peruvian pollo a la brasa, English fish and chips, Chinese dim sum, freshly baked cakes, cookies, fudge, even macarons, and the list goes on and on. Each booth dealer was happily passing out samples sure that everyone would like what they had to offer.

There was so much to choose from, I was unable to make a quick decision and passed through to the locks to take everything in before I made a decision of what I would be dining on for lunch. As I exited out to the river, there were two boats going through the locks. What a beautiful setting for people to watch and enjoy the passing river and the frequent changing of the locks.

As I walked back into the ‘food booth frenzy’, I finally decided on a fresh, spiced lamb wrap, and to drink, a glass of freshly made, organic ginger, ‘winter’ tea. Both amazing choices and delicious!! After a wonderful meal and some awesome purchases in the markets, I had to be off to my hostel to pick up my suitcase and then to the train station to meet up with Ed and Jen! I was so excited to see them and so ready for our big race the next morning!! 

London Times

To be honest, I wasn’t exactly sure what to expect from London. With all of my Spanish friends telling me about their weather dilemmas when visiting: snow, rain, cold, etc., especially in February… But, with my training at its peak for the ½ marathon and the excitement I had to see my lovely friend Jen, I was on my way!! When I arrived in London I was pleasantly surprised to be greeted by the sun, and thankfully, it didn’t leave my side the entire trip!! So lucky! I arrived Thursday night, just as the sun was setting over all of the beautiful London homes and I headed into the city center on the infamous Underground, ‘minding the gap’ the whole way! (You’ll only get that if you’ve ridden it! Haha!)

I arrived at my stop ‘Swiss Cottage’ which was very appropriately named because it was such an adorable part of town with big white walkups and my hostel was actually a completely renovated historic building. It was so unique, with a big wooden staircase and big stained-glass windows throughout. I went out to find some good Indian food, something I heard you can't miss in London, and with a recommendation I found an awesome little place to spend a nice evening getting to know my maps, readying myself for the very busy next two days of touring London I was about to experience. While at the restaurant, engrossed in all of my ‘London info’ a little old man at the next table struck up a conversation with me and suggested that if I was a runner, that maybe I would want to start off my Saturday with a nice run around Hyde Park. Wanting to see that…I felt it would be a great way to kick off my tour of the city!

The next day, bright and early I jumped on the Underground and was on my way to Hyde Park. What an beautiful place for a run, and it definitely helped that the sun was shining down on all that were out to get a morning workout! After my run, I stayed in Hyde Park to get a better look at the Kensington gardens and the extremely nice houses that surrounded it! Wow! As I was headed back to the subway to take a quick shower, I saw a sign that was pointing towards ‘Notting Hill Gate’…I knew that had to be my next stop!

 

I think anyone who has ever seen the movie, wants to experience Notting Hill, and of course so did I. As I got off the subway and entered into the little burrow of Notting Hill, I was fascinated by all of the colorful houses in pastel blues, pinks, yellows, greens, and purples. So cute! I walked my way down one of the cozy little streets and ended up right in the middle of the famous ‘Portabella Market’ of Notting Hill. It was so fun to take a gander at all of the antiques and precious trinkets that were for sale there. 

After just a short time, I had to be off back to the entrance of Hyde Park Corner, the meeting place for the afternoon walking tour I had scheduled into my day. I love the walking tours that are offered in most of the big cities, through a company called Sandeman’s New Europe Tours. They give great tours because all the guides are so passionate about the history and the insights that they are telling you! I knew this had to make the list of things to do and it would be a great way to see and learn a lot in a short time!

As we began our tour I knew this was going to be a good one! We had an amazing tour guide, who was actually from the States, but had studied English literature and history and really new her stuff!! We walked along some green belts that eventually took us to the outside garden walls of the Buckingham palace. 

As our guide described to us very interesting stories about the only two times someone has tried to jump the fence and stow away inside of the palace. One story included camping tents and a group of very disoriented men, while the other an intoxicated bum who ended up chatting up the queen at the base of her bed!! Very funny stuff! We visited Buckingham palace knowing that Queen Elizabeth II was home because her special flag was flying. Then, we were off to see the infamous palace guards, fuzzy hats and all! We did not try to harass them, as so many do, but we got our pictures with them and they literally DID NOT MOVE! I could never do that job! Haha!

Our last stop on the tour was Parliament Square where we finally saw the stunning ‘Big Ben’ bell tower, actually now called the Elizabeth Tower after Queen Elizabeth II celebrated her Diamond Jubilee in 2012 (60 years on the throne!!). Here, we also got to see the outside of the beautiful Westminster Abbey and the Houses of Parliament. So surreal to be there seeing it all in person! During the tour I had become friends with a girl that happened to be the sister of the guide. So after the tour was over, the three of us stopped in for some pub food and as we got to talking, they invited me to join them for the Grim Reaper Tour that they were going to do later that evening.

I wasn’t sure I was really going to like this tour, as I am not a huge fan of ghosts and other spooky things. But with Sonja, the amazing tour guide, I was totally engaged in everything she was telling us!! We started at the London Tower as we discussed the many hauntings that have been reported, even in recent times. We walked around the side of the tower and saw the moat surrounding it, that back in the day, transported prisoners in and out of the tower and ultimately down the River Thames. When we finally reached the River Thames ourselves and I was pleasantly surprised to see the amazing view of the Tower Bridge at night! So striking with all of its lights!

As Sonja took us through the East End of London, she described it just how it would have been in the 1800’s; prostitutes sweeping the streets, starving men, women, and children, almost all immigrants coming to London looking for a better life, but obviously not finding it here. She began to unfold the entire story of Jack the Ripper; his victims, the witnesses, and the ongoing mystery of his true identity, which still has people perplexed even today. Fascinating. As we said our goodbyes, she left us at the Liverpool Street Underground Station, which she reminded us, had been the former sight the Bethlem Royal Hospital, the world’s oldest psychiatric hospital, also known as ‘Bedlam’. Spooky, right?! A very great first day in London Town!