My First Half Marathon!
Another week in Santander done! We are approaching a month (October 24th) in Spain and I am happy to report that the previous week was yet another success. Elena and I kept ourselves busy everyday with post work activities and spent the weekend in Bilbao! All in all, lots of good news to report.
After our long, fun-filled weekend with Jaden, Elena and I settled back into our "normal" routines and kicked off our week with a very sweaty run in the sun to Magdalena Palace. It was really nice to have a relaxed start to the work week after a few days of back to back events and not sleeping all that much.
On Wednesday, the weather was rainy all day so we opted to to try a café called Wabi Sabi instead of going for a walk. I had spotted this place when Elena and I were living in the Airbnb and had wanted to go ever since because of all the plants in the windows. It was even more perfect inside than I could’ve imagined and I was so happy with my mug of tea and cookie!
From the café, Elena and I went straight to the gym for a cycling class which was led by a new instructor who is from Málaga. She had really great music going the whole time but talked quite a bit which was slightly distracting, especially during the hardest parts of the workout.
Immediately upon the class wrapping up, we ran back to my apartment, sped ate some leftovers for dinner, showered and quickly got ready since we had made plans with Sam to go see the new Joker movie. It was the first time that any of us had been to this cinema and it felt like going back in time when we entered. It was also strangely very warm inside which was not a welcome surprise since we had essentially just sprinted there. None of us particularly loved the movie either, but it was an interesting experience and I’m sure we will be back to watch some other films.
On Thursday, Elena and I headed back to the gym after a day of work to try a yoga class which ended up being one of my favorite classes that we’ve done so far. I felt so relaxed and at peace after doing it and I think it was definitely the right preparation for my body for the half marathon. We also got talking to some of the other women in the class which was really nice and I’m hoping that we will start to expand our gym community soon.
Hoping to repeat our fun bachata lesson last Thursday, we went to get a drink before going to the bar that holds the dance class. However, since it was study abroad night at the bar, there was no bachata :( Thankfully, we had just left a group of other language assistants so we headed back and had another drink with them before I went home for an early night... I have to work on Friday's and practically nobody else does.
Following our usual Friday tradition, Elena and I had a nice home-cooked meal at my apartment before we got ready to go see a flamenco show with some other language assistants. The show was very unique and I’m really glad we went because it was unlike any flamenco show I’ve ever been to. It portrayed more of the darker side of the flamenco heritage, and how this dance has been appropriated from typically black and indigenous cultures.
Everyone who went to the show continued the evening at a bar, but I decided to call it a night since I was running the Bilbao Night Half marathon the following day. Elena accompanied me back to my apartment before she went out on the town with some other friends.
On Saturday, we caught the 11:00 am bus to Bilbao and upon arriving, we went straight to get my bib, T-shirt and all other race merch. There were SO many people picking up their bibs and such which was really fun and exciting to be a part of. However, I did start to get a little bit nervous about the race since I had never run more than 10 miles before.
After we had all of my racing stuff and some new snacks, the two of us went to meet up with a woman who I met on the plane to the US this past June. We had been loosely in contact and I told her I would be in the city for the race so she suggested getting together!
Albany and her friend Stiven took us to a couple different bars around the city center and we had such a great time chatting and getting to know more about them and their time in Bilbao. Elena tried some typical pinchos (tapas) but I only had a green tea which in retrospect was a mistake because I definitely could’ve used more fuel for my race. However, in the moment I was feeling very nervous and didn’t want to overeat before I ran.
The race started at 7:00 pm so after saying goodbye to our friends, Elena and I sat by the river for some pre-run snacks and stretching. I got all warmed up and headed to the start where there was a live band playing 80s rock music! Throwback to high school track :)
Before we began, the host announced that they were 15,000 people running the race which is crazy! There were three races happening at the same time: a 10k, a half marathon and a full marathon so for the first six-ish miles, the streets were extremely crowded. It was almost impossible for me to control my own pace for the first two miles since everyone was so congested at the start.
However, once it cleared out a bit, the running got a little easier and I didn't have to focus on not stepping on/getting stepped on by everyone. I felt really strong for the middle miles but man were the last four a drag. Even so, I’m really happy I had the opportunity to run this race in Bilbao. I definitely think I could have used more training beforehand and more food day of which I will remember for future races. Thankfully, Elena was there to cheer me on along the route and she really gave me energy when I needed it, especially at the end!
Once we were able to find each other after my race (which was miracle since I didn’t bring my phone with me), we grabbed a quick dinner and then frantically found an Uber to take us to our farm stay. We hadn't booked a hotel in Bilbao because they were all very expensive. Thankfully Elena's mom had found us an awesome place a couple kilometers outside of the city we just had to get there. We were on a time crunch because the last check in was at 11:00 pm and we were worried that we were going to be too late.
On the way there, the Uber driver, who had been driving in the area for almost 5 years, started laughing because he had never been so far up this remote road and the three of us just thought it was the funniest thing ever. He was such a good sport taking us all the way up to our hotel and Elena and I have still been talking about how funny the ride was.
We arrived and were greeted by a HUGE dog and a very nice woman who checked us into our room. It felt so amazing to shower and lay down, but for some reason, my body was unable to shut off, and I could not fall sleep for so long. Finally, around two in the morning, I was able to go to bed, but I think that lack of a good nights sleep definitely hurt me the next day.
We had a lazy morning on Sunday and got breakfast at the farm stay with some amazing views of the pine forest and surrounding mountains. It was a simple breakfast and reminded us of our time in the Airbnb with Begoña. We took a little stroll and then we decided to head back to Bilbao, which ended up being much more of an adventure than we anticipated.
For whatever reason all the taxi services and Uber drivers were unavailable or occupied, so the very nice woman who worked at the hotel offered to drive us down the mountain to town. While we were looking at the different bus options in town, an older woman told us that the buses weren’t running and that we had to get a train to Bilbao. She said that it was leaving soon so we rushed over to the train station just in time to miss it.
At this point, we were finding our trip back to be extremely comical, and the two of us decided to use our hour in a tiny village to get some food and a Radler. All in all, we did end up making it back to Bilbao in time for our bus and we had a relaxing ride back to Santander. The weather was absolutely gorgeous in the lovely city we call home and it felt so good to be back!
The weekend really flew by and I’m currently fighting the urge to stay outside all day so I can get my presentations done for this upcoming week. It is so difficult to justify being inside here when the weather is nice. My school is hosting a Halloween themed day on Friday which I am really looking forward to being a part of :) My parents also arrive in Spain this Friday and I am so excited to have a week off to spend with them in Santander and Picos de Europa! I know they’re absolutely going to love where I live and I cannot wait to show them around!!
¡Bravo Jéssica! Estás viviendo una buena vida y eres un gran embajador de nuestro país. ¡Espero que hayas votado antes de irte! Tenemos que ganar esta vez. ¡Apuesto a que los españoles quieren que Kamala también prevalezca! Cariños y abrazos para ti, querida nieta. mimí