Into the Unknown

I have packed my bags put my stuff in storage and waiting at seatac to board a plane to Jordan! I will be studying in Jordan for one month and then am embarking on what might be the biggest adventure of my life up till now.

My plan is to travel to Europe, India, Nepal, Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines after I complete my program in Jordan. I currently have a ticket to Europe then India then Nepal. I still need to get my visa for India which I am going to try and do when I am in Jordan.

My anticipated plan for 40 days in Europe (subject to change upon arrival):

  
On October 31st I will fly out of Athens to Delhi, India with a layover in Moscow, Russia. My plans for India are still up in the air and my main priority is focused on getting a visa as soon as possible.
After India I will fly into Nepal on November 10th where I will start a 17 day trek to the Mt Everest Base Camp just in time for my 23rd birthday.

After Nepal I do not have any plane tickets booked yet, however, am looking into doing a 2 week surf camp in Lombok Indonesia. I am then thinking of staying in Indonesia for a full month then going to Malaysia and the Philippines. As I said earlier, the latter half of my trip is still up in the air and flexible to what I decide while I am abroad. Once I am traveling on my own (after Jordan) I will plan at least one country ahead. Whenever I enter a country I will have a plan on where I will go next and a ticket to simplify visa requirements as well as other entry and exit requirements.

Throughout my travels I expect to gain new perspectives of various cultures and the world. I hope to learn new things about myself that will be of benefit in other aspects of my life. I am excited and am so lucky to be able to do this and can only imagine what will actually come of this endeavor.


If you have any suggestions of must see places or things that I should do in any of these countries (or neighboring countries) feel free to leave a comment! Anything would be appreciated.

Dawg for Life

Today I took my last final at the University of Washington. However, I am not quite done. I have 5 more credits to complete and I am doing them abroad. I will be flying to Amman Jordan tomorrow morning and will be taking an engineering class focusing on the water cycle and challenges facing people living in an arid land in obtaining water.

Outside JHN next to ESS Bassalt Flow Column

I was able to participate in University of Washington's spring commencement ceremony on June 15th because I only needed to take summer classes and go abroad to finish up my last 15 credits. My parents flew into Seattle to come to my graduation during the week. On Saturday morning I we all walked to campus for my department graduation ceremony and celebration.

Picture with Robert Winglee Chair of ESS Department

After my department ceremony we walked around campus taking a few pictures of memorable places and then headed downtown to Century Link field for the large UW commencement. Once downtown I met up with some friends as we made our way into the staging area. 

Once downtown I met up with some friends as we made our way into the staging area. In the staging area everyone is organized within their respective colleges. Within the colleges there are different colored tassels. Luckily even though Marina and I were not in the same major or even the same college we had the same color tassel so she was able to join my group so we could sit next to each other. Overall, the ceremony was not that exciting; it was long and hot. Regardless, I am glad I was able to do it as a celebration with my friends and fellow classmates. 

After the ceremony and taking more pictures I had dinner with Alaina, Jeremy, Alaina's family, and my mom and dad in Bellevue. After a delicious and lavish meal we returned to Alaina's house for desserts. 

I then drove my parents to their respective hotels and met up with a some friends at the bars on the ave to continue the celebration! 

It was an extremely long day packed from start to finish but was fun to celebrate my accomplishments thus far with all of my amazing friends that I have made in my time in Seattle.

Ironman 70.3 Success

My general goal for my first Ironman 70.3 was simply to finish. I came up with times that I would aim for, mainly in the swim and run portions, because this is where I am experienced and have other races to base goals off of. 

Morning Crew!

Swim:

My goal: 30-35min; Actual: 41:01

On race morning I still had not decided if I wanted to wear the wetsuit that I had rented for the weekend. I had felt the water and it was really warm, however, everyone I saw was wearing a wetsuit and I was told by several people that it was a good idea to wear it. For some reason I really did not want to but I sank into peer pressure and wore the wetsuit. Honestly the wetsuit did not help at all; I actually think that it slowed me down a bit. I should have trusted my instinct and swam in my tri-suit which would have allowed for easier maneuverability and I would not have had to deal with it in the transition. I will remember this for my next race!

Warming Up for the Swim

Bike:
My goal: 4:30; Actual: 4:07:12

At the start of my swim wave all my nerves went away as they seem to do right when I start a race. However, I was now facing what I thought would be my biggest challenge of the day, the dreaded 56 mile bike ride. I quickly took off my wetsuit and put on my biking gear in T1. I actually could have gone faster but I was going through a mental battle thinking about how nice it would be to already be done and not have to bike. I quickly moved away from this train of thought because I knew it would only be detrimental and I was going to complete the race no matter what. As I left the transition area and mounted my bike I saw Bo and Derek on the sidelines cheering for me.  For the first 20 miles of the ride I was going at a pretty consistent pace but that quickly went downhill as the course became more uphill and as the distance increased. In my training I did not bike nearly enough and never did hills and my biking suffered because of it. There was actually one point in the race where a lady was passing me but asked if I was okay (probably because she saw me struggling up a hill minutes before) and gave me chomps, which are like gu or other energy supplements. However, at the time I was not thinking clearly took them with a lot of gratitude and ate a couple. Later that night when I thought I would have the best night sleep of my life I realized they had caffeine in them and I couldn't sleep for the life of me; I just laid in bed thinking of how tired my body. Then next morning after a little bit of sleep I red the packet and figured out that I had less than 20mg of caffeine but since I have not have caffeine in over 7 years it kept me up all night. Another lesson learned! In summary lessons learned on the bike: 1) bike more & do more hills (or appropriate terrain for the specific course) 2) don't take candy from strangers....you will never know when it has caffeine in it!

Run:
My goal: 2hrs Actual: 2:47

T1 swim to bike

After finally finishing the bike ride I was ready for the run and mentally ready to kick it into gear and finish on a strong 2 hour run. I dismounted my bike and went to the transition area to get my running gear on. As I made my way through the transition my legs felt really stiff, once I had my bike stuff off and my running stuff on I started running but it felt like I had giant concrete blocks as legs. Every step I took I thought would become easier but it got worse and worse, however, I was hitting my goal for the first two miles. After the first mile my legs were feeling a bit better but overall mentally I was struggling. My time continued to decrease and I absolutely hate to admit it but I walked a couple times. 

I know in this post I mainly focused on things that didn't go that well or that I needed to improve on but there were also amazing moments in the race. For me some of these moments where when I would pass someone and say good job keep it going and then they start running again and you see that those simple words made a difference in their race and when the same thing happens to you right when you need it a quarter of a mile to the finish line because the calling of the finish was not strong enough; when you are on your bike and you see someone with a flat and all five of the bikers that pass her ask if she has what she needs; when you are getting passed by someone and they say with complete sincerity to enjoy the day and enjoy the ride and then you think about what you are doing and just for a second amaze yourself. All of the volunteers, spectators, athletes and course officials were all amazing! 7 hours and 46 minutes after the start of the race I was done and greeted by some of the most supportive friends I could ever ask for! 

Support Crew!

FINISHER!

The next race I do I will be sure to look back on my first race improve off of what I can from having the experience and remember all the small moments that really made the day incredible like that one last high five from a fellow athlete who was struggling at the same time as me as we tried to pace off each other.

Lake Serene Hike

On Sunday August 11th Cassie, Richard and I went on a hike to Lake Serene and Bridal Veil Falls in the Snoqualmie Forest in the Central Cascades of Washington.
It was a 7.2 mile roundtrip hike with a 2,000 foot elevation gain. It was out and back starting off with uphill on the way to the lake and downhill to finish it off.

When we got to the lake it was extremely foggy and we could barley see the lake, luckly, after hanging out for a while it cleared up and we got a great view of the entire lake and the surrounding mountains. Once it cleared it was time to brave the cold and jump into the alpine lake! With a little hesitation, because I was already freezing, I jumped in twice. In the end it was quite refreshing and I was glad I conquered the cold. 

           

Chihuly Garden and Glass

Seattle Center has hosted the Chihuly Garden for a couple of years and it was not until Saturday August 17th that I was able to make my way to the exhibit.

   

I don't have much to say about this; the pictures say more than I could describe. However, with that said, the pictures don't say as much as the exhibit does in person experiencing the garden. The ticket was $20 which before going into the exhibit I thought was a bit pricy but in the end it was worth it. There are several different rooms with different themes and then an outside garden portion; there where some glass sculptures so well created that they blended into the surroundings in some areas looking very realistic.


Chihuly Garden and Glass

Paddle Board Yoga

Last Sunday the 4th I took a paddleboard yoga class through Surf Ballard. I have only recently started taking a few yoga classes mainly to support the training I was doing for my Ironman and had never been on a paddleboard before. It was a beautiful day to be out on the water and I enjoyed challenging myself with various yoga poses. However, I felt somewhat distant from the water both when I was paddling and doing yoga. I think the reason that I felt distant was because I am more familiar with being on a surfboard where you are really connected to the water and engaged in powering your own movement. Overall I enjoyed the experience and trying something new but I probably wont take it up as my next hobby.