11 consecutive weeks marathoning, honestly feeling a bit banged up. Sunday’s run in Philadelphia will be marathon #47. Afterwards will get a one week reprieve, feast Thanksgiving with family, then finish out my 50 State calendar in Memphis at St. Jude’s.
Hold on – whole lotta weekend happenin’ before Sunday. Super excited to tour Philly – in particular, hafta/gotta/wanna see the Liberty Bell AND iconic Rocky Balboa statue. HAHA – yep, it’s true. The original Rocky flic is an all-time Top 10, probably watch once a year. Laugh if you will – but LOVE LOVE this film.
Flew out Friday (first snow of the season), hotel taxi’d post-midnight, 5 hours shut-eye – woke to sunshine. Late November in Philly, couldn’t have asked for better weather 🙂
Penn Center ⇨ Philadelphia Stock Exchange ⇨ Philadelphia City Hall ⇨ Declaration House ⇨ Independence Hall ⇨ Liberty Bell
Morning 2 mile jaunt down Market Street was like a walking tour of American Revolutionary history. WOW, WOW, WOW! Caught 20 minutes of two Park Service films…shame I didn’t have more time. Taxi’d to the Philadelphia Museum of Art, snapped a shot with Rocky – walked those iconic steps. No words.
Washington Monument ⇨ Franklin Institute ⇨ Logan Circle ⇨ Cathedral Basilica ⇨ Philadelphia Convention Center
This 2 mile walk-about highlighted the best of Philadelphia – its beautiful monuments, fountains, manicured parks & cityscape.
Bib pick-up at the Convention Center (for next day’s marathon), taxi’d back to my hotel (driver waited while I changed clothes), next stop: Walnut Street Theatre. Talk about a crazy FULL day. My friend Stephen had secured 2 tickets to ‘A Christmas Story’. AWESOME production, PERFECT kick-off to the upcoming holiday season (also appreciated sitting down a couple hours 🙂 ).
Founded in 1809, this National Historic Landmark theater is the nation’s oldest playhouse.
Post-show fine dining & a taxi ride home. FAAANNNTASTIC Philadelphia day!
Running 26.2’s gonna seem like a cake walk tomorrow – so much to see & do, LOVE LOVE this town!
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- first snow of the season
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- Penn Center
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- Philadelphia Stock Exchange
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- Philadelphia City Hall
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- Declaration House
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- Independence Hall
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- Second Bank of the United States
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- symbol of American freedom
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- iconic Rocky Balboa (sporting tomorrow’s Philly Marathon shirt)
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- “the steps” — WOW!
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- Philadelphia Museum of Art
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- Washington Monument Fountain
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- The Franklin Institute
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- Logan Circle
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- Cathedral Basilica of St. Peter & St. Paul
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- Walnut Street Theatre – oldest playhouse in America
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- Liberty Bell, Rocky Balboa…and theatre — jam-packed Philadelphia day!
Rocky theme song: ‘Gonna Fly Now‘
Last year set the template for all future birthdays — National Park visit, local hike & dessert 🙂
- birthday month Nat’l Park visit: Crater Lake National Park. Check.
- trail ran 10+ miles at White Ranch Open Space in Golden, 2 loops of hike & hills in summer heat. Check.
- took advantage of Ash & Tom’s grilling skillz — chicken, grilled peaches & corn on the cob Friday; rib eye steak Saturday. Top that with homemade birthday cake: lemon curd, cream cheese icing, adorned with candied lemons. FAAANNNTASTIC!
Kicked off Birthday Week 2015 with dinner theatre in Boulder, front row table to Mary Poppins. Super fun Thursday, Chim-chimney!
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- lemon curd, cream cheese icing, adorned with candied lemons – YUM!
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- Mary Poppins pre-birthday celebration
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- one year older but ageless on the trail — 10+ miles in Golden
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- smoke currently clouds our mountain landscape (West Coast fires)
Ended Birthday week at the Shambhala Mountain Center, an hour west of Fort Collins. Quiet, peaceful alone time, deep in the Colorado Rockies. Good place to reflect — where I am, where I’ve been, where I’m going.
excerpt from buddhism & gnomes, October 2013
Don’t expect this to be a popular viewpoint, but I believe my God loves all his people & works through a series of faiths/religions to develop & activate our spirituality. HUGE fan of prayer & meditation.
I’m not a follower of Happy Buddha [I’m Christian], so why go? I challenge you to put your mind in the right place – push out judgment & preconceived ideas – get quiet, close your eyes, breathe, pray/meditate.
Diggin’ birthday month — lookin’ forward to 2016 🙂
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- buddhist prayer flags: luck, happiness, compassion, prosperity, health & longevity
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- banners & prayer flags line trek to the Great Stupa
What is the proper way to pronounce the word “Mackinac”?
The French Pronounced it “aw” but spelled it “ac”. The British heard it pronounced “aw” so they spelled it that way. Whichever way it is spelled, it is always pronounced “aw”.
Lasagna, 45 minute drive north & a quick 20-minute power nap after finishing marathon #33 – and I’m boarding an early afternoon ferry to Michigan’s Mackinaw Island. Berthed downtown on Main Street, bought a carriage tour ticket & hopped aboard within 5 minutes of arriving on the island. BAM – awesome timing (next tour not for 2 hours).
Traffic on Mackinac Island is limited to bicycles & horse-drawn carriages – automobiles prohibited…pretty cool, huh?
Targeted a visit to Mackinaw & its Grand Hotel because of a sappy 80’s movie starring Jane Seymour & Christopher Reeve, “Somewhere in Time”. Re-watched the movie last week online before marathoning in Michigan.
Don’t think the love story itself drew me in – it was the ability to go back in time & live another era. What would life have been like if I were placed in the early to mid- 1800’s in the American West? Hmm.
Mackinaw’s Carriage Tour hit all island highlights. Started downtown, rode past residences built in the 1910s & ‘20s, the Governor’s ‘Summer Residence’, and – the Grand Hotel.
Built in 1887, the Grand Hotel still looks much like it did a century ago. There are newer hotels with modern facilities on the island – but give me history & creaky wood planks any day. Nothing rivals the Grand Hotel’s long wrap-around wood porch, overlooking the Straits of Mackinac (Lake Huron). Spectacular.
Tour resumed at the island’s working stable (Surrey Hills) where we switched carriages & travelled thru Mackinac Island State Park, stopping briefly at Arch Rock (rest break for the horses).
Tour concluded at Fort Mackinac, built by British troops during the Revolutionary War. I hopped off at Fort Mackinac & walked the trip remainder, down historic Market Street, past “Somewhere in Time” gift shop & multiple fudge stores.
Beautiful day.
Ferried returned, hotelled the night across from Old Mackinac Point Lighthouse.
Early 230am start for the trip home – 4 hour ride to Grand Rapids, 8am Denver flight.
“Come back to me” – Elise McKenna, ‘Somewhere in Time’
I’ll come back to Mackinaw & the Grand Hotel.
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- early afternoon ferry to scenic Mackinaw Island
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- Mackinac Bridge, Lake Michigan
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- bicycle or horse-drawn carriage — automobiles prohibited
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- carriage tour down Main, thru historic Downtown, to the Grand Hotel
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- Arch Rock, Mackinac Island State Park
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- Straits of Mackinac (Lake Huron)
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- British outpost, Fort Mackinac
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- lighthouse sunset (moon visible)
“Somewhere in Time”
