5 weeks of country hopping and spending some much needed time with the people I love, was EXACTLY what my soul needed. My social battery was filled and my heart was over flowing with love and gratitude. And even with all the appreciation I have for my family and friends – who made this sabbatical…

If you would have asked 15 year old Lindsey, if she wanted to go on a vacation with her older sister for a week, ALONE, she would have laughed then immediately have said hell no. But 23 years ago, my relationship with Alyce was like most sister relationships. We were close enough in age to…

The last day in Portugal was extraordinary. It was the perfect way to end the 3rd stop on this 7 week adventure. We still had the rental and there was 1 last site we needed to see in Lisbon before heading into the country and onto to the coast. It was the Jerónimos Monastery. One…

Full disclosure: I’ve been sick on this trip. Since day one, I haven’t felt great. And I owe it to myself and Philippa to still have the best time that I can. So, I went to local pharmacy, spoke someone and they gave me meds. All the meds. They worked. And right in time for…

Lisbon is stunning. It’s vibrant and colorful. It’s ungodly hilly. Thankful to have had a few days rest prior to arrival, because I don’t know if my legs would have survived. We started our adventure with the National Tile Museum. Lisbon is full of tile. The sidewalks, the streets, the buildings – are made of…

2 days at home isn’t enough. And there ain’t no rest for the wicked. So, why Lisbon? Well, why not a Lisbon? I had a week of sabbatical not accounted for and I knew I wanted to go to Europe. I knew I wanted to travel alone and to a city I’ve never been. Well,…

The last few days in Tokyo were a whirlwind. The vibe of the trip shifted into RUN MODE. 26.2 miles is no joke and it was crucial that I got my mind in the right headspace. Saturday, we joined Paramount Running and AFE Tokyo for a 4K shake out run. It was incredible to see…

It’s your lucky day … 1 blog post, 2 days. Thursday: I was confident that the Japanese would have the most efficient race day expo of all the major marathons. That was a grossly overestimated expectation. We waited almost 2.5 hours to get our bibs. It was madness. They also ran out of finisher jackets.…

A bullet train to Kyoto … check. The 6am boarding time was a bit aggressive, after 2 very long days. Thankfully, the JR to Kyoto from Tokyo was very pleasant. We passed Mt. Fuji (the picture doesn’t capture it’s beauty), we saw a bit of the Japanese country side and most importantly, didn’t have to…