My trip around the world

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After a very bussy check-in at Schiphol Airport - the que was literally from the door till the desks!! - I got on board of the United Airlines flight to Chicago. Luckily I was picked out of the que by a member of United Airlines and was lead to the businessclass desk to check in... The que appeared to be for Delta Airlines!! A good start of the trip till so far!

The flight was good. After 9 hours we landed on Chicago O'Hare and after a thourough questioning of the customs I managed to get out and to meet Dan..... the friend I had made over the internet and whom would host me for the next 10 days in Chicago.
The weather was HOT!! Around 40+ degrees... How we ever were gonna run the half marathon with this weather....I had no clue!


Dan was a very practical person: He drove straight over to the city where we were to collect our racenumbers for the 5 Km, 10 KM and 21 KM.... but after being sent from one person to another we found out racenumbers were to be collected at the venue on the day of the race itself....

So we went to his place where I could sit in the garden for a bit, relax, unwind and recover from the flight.
I was given my own appartment in the basement of his house and felt treated like royalty! Nice and cool and spacious..... a 5 star hotel couldn't have been better!!

Later on we went to a local restaurant for dinner.... A nice walk through the neighbourhood and a beautifull meal in the restaurant where his Neighbour John was working....
This way you get to know people quite fast which is really nice.
John straight away organised to go for breakfast the following morning in a local restaurant as well....
We seemed to get on quite well.... had great talks, great laughs and he also was a great host... showing me around the city, taking me for breakfast, getting me coffees in his place....

I'll never forget the lovely lady - waitress - in their regular breakfast place... She "Knew" I was a guest of the guys and was welcomed by her so nicely everytime we were there.... Even if I went in on my own she'd always come over and talk, talk, talk....
I'll never get used to the amount of food they eat in the US though.... Enormous!!! even to me it is too much, although I can eat fairly well!

I got a few days to get used to the climate and surroundings before the first race: the 10 KM... Because of the hot weather the race started at 6 am ! and the track was along Lake Michigan. to me a lifetime experience!
But it meant getting up in the middle of the night and pooring yourself down with gallons of Gatorade - a sports drink - Even John, who didn't run, got up in the middle of the night to support us! Americans aren't such bad people after all......


We got there in time, and waiting for the start you could see the sun rise... every minute the temperature was getting higher as well and I am sure by the time 6 am came we were close to the 30 Celcius already!
We set off for the 10 KM , and even running alongside the lakeshore where you would hope for some wind, it was a tough run! Well, at least I finished! A bit slower as I would have hoped for, but it was to be expected under these circumstances.


Time for a bit of relaxation and exploring the city.... I found Chicago absolutely wonderfull!!! A beautifull city with loads of modern buildings and a great setup. Millenium Park is fantastic to walk around... Michigan Avenue THE place to go shopping!

Public transport is very well organised, and it is so easy to get on the "L-Train"that brings you into the city and back out again...BUt even the busses are easy to find and to figure out where you want to go...
Ofcourse plenty of taxi's as well, so there is no need at all to feel lost in Chicago.

Many tv-series and films have been filmed in Chicago ( I didn't bump into Oprah though!) but it was nice to see a few of the spots you'd reckognise from the tv or cinema....

A few days later we had to go for the 5 KM... piece of cake I figured after the tough 10 Km. untill we started! There was something with the air and after 1 km I thought I couldn't breath anymore!... Again i managed to make it to the finishline, but even found it harder than the 10 KM! I found out I wasn't the only one who had trouble breathing so it must have been something with the air that day.


Yet again a few more days to relax and so I did....
I took the guys out for dinner one night to a turkish restaurant ( where else!!! ) and the funny thing was.... none of the staff in there spoke Turkish!!! I can't deny the food was absolutely brilliant! for the rest I went around the city, did some shopping and relaxed as well....
After all it was HOT and it was my hollidays , so why exhaust myself?

I was pleased to bump into George from SF one night in one of the bars, whom I 'd also known from the internet and who was in Chicago at the same time....
Unfortunately we couldn't meet in Chicago again before taking off... but Sf was on my travelschedule as well..

Then the last run: The half marathon.... Because of the warm weather I first decided not to run.... But after re=thinking, talking it over and re calculating I decided to give it a go anyway.. After all I HAD made this trip to Chicago for the half marathon!

At least it had cooled a lot by then, so i reckoned it should be a bit easier... I made it to the start quite confident and headed off..... the first 10 KM were ok....
Then it got tough! We actually had to run the track 4 times up and down! which is such a bore and it seems to never end! Again I finished! And I made it UNDER the limit I had set myself! So i was quite happy!

It took me a full day to recover - in bed!!! - restless legs and painfull arms! - And the following day I was to set off to Las Vegas.. another exciting experience!

Dan and John drove me to the airport.. I felt sorry having to say goodbye, then again another exciting destination was waiting for me!
After an OVER thourough check-in at the airport - all lugage had to be OPEN, shoes removed, handlugage double screened....... I got in and had to wait another bit to board the flight to Las Vegas....
Only then I found out that O'Hare airport is a full NON smoking airport!!! You can smoke NOWHERE inside there..... So what else can you do but to walk up and down the departure lounge and drink hughe amounts of coffee at Starbucks!


After a good 4,5 hrs flight from Chicago we landed in las Vegas. The vieuw from the plane was fantastic arriving at the airport! You actually fly over the so called "strip" with all the enormous hotels.. The excitement was getting bigger!

As soon as we got off the plane you are confronted with the first gambling machines!!! Yes.... in the arrival hall there are numerous slotmachines! A very weird sight !!

Luckily this was a domestic flight, so no customs!
Outside I got a taxi to drive me to the hotel..... The weather was outrageous in Las Vegas! 45 degrees Celcius!!!! OMG!
I thought I had my share in Chicago already but here it seemed to be even a little wamer.

Walking into the Hotel * The Stratosphere* was like a real treat! AIRCO!!!
first I thought the taxi had dropped me off at the wrong place: A casino! But realising this was Las Vegas I managed to find the check-in desk for the hotel... tucked away in a small little corner! and the rest of the lobby was ONE big hughe gambling place!!! It is too much to take in all at once....

But as the USA standards for hotels are higher than the European ones I was quite pleased with my spacious room with a double bed....Big tv and fridge etc etc... Certainly a place where you would not get bored!

i contacted my dear friend Scott when I arrived in the hotel, and we arranged to meet for the following night.
So, time to get out and explore..... and there is SO much to explore!!! Even alone the hotel you're staying in... If you go down to the lobby you're actally inside a full casino... As far as you can see there are slotmachines! You'd nearly get lost just in the lobby!
So the first night I stayed inside the hotel. lobby area etc... Made a few little gambles on the machines ( the $0,01 machines will keep you ging for a long time!) and feel the atmosphere and watch all the people coming and going...
Besides, it was nice and cool inside there!

The following day it was time to get out..... I had planned to walk the Strip up and down.... but 1 day wasn't enough to do it all.
But you actually go from inside one hotel to the next... Simply because it was too hot outside, but also insde every hotel there is so much to see...
My hotel was actually at the "bottom" of the Strip and the more you got to the "Center"the more interesting the hotels became.....
Hughe shoppingmalls INSIDE a hotel!! complete concert halls INSIDE a hotel!! Rebuilts of popular places such as "The Venice" and the Eiffeltower and one is bigger then its neighbour...

That night I had arranged to meet Scott, and he picked me up from my hotel with his car... He drove me a bit round LAs Vegas by night... another beautifull sight with all the hotels lit up! And then we went for dinner.. I remember being in a place that looked like a jungle and hearing jungle noises all the time...
We had a great night and he showed me round the strip as wel... showed me the place he works in etc etc... Always great to go round a city with insiders!

i must say: the 2 nights in Las Vegas were enough! I reckon the 3rd day you'd be bored.....
So I was lucky having to set off for San Francisco the following day.
Although I was sorry having to leave Scott behind, yet another exciting experience was ahead of me......

The flight was only just 1 hour so a piece of cake....

After getting a taxi from the airport I made it to my hotel at the border of China Town in SF....
This was a bit of a bummer really.. a very small place with very smal rooms!!! but ok, it would do me for the next 3 nights....
So here i contacted George, whom had come back from chicago by then. George arranged to meet me for dinner the same night and offered me to drive me round SF by night..... wow!!!!!

But I had a full day to explore the city frst, so out I went...
SF is also a fabulous city!!! way different than Chicago, let alone Las vegas! - but oh so nice!
From where I was staying I was very close to bussy shopping area's etc so plenty of action going on all day.

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