Saturday, December 22, 2007

Running Manhattan Beach

It was mayhem at LAX on Thursday night....ridiculous traffic getting into and out of the airport. I made it to my hotel in Manhattan Beach eventually, checked in and relaxed. My flight to Singapore wasn't until 8:00 pm on Friday so I had plenty of time to explore in the morning. I picked Manhattan Beach for my layover because of the ease it would present in getting out for a run. Let me tell you, I wasn't disappointed. I watched the news reports of the cool front that had blown in overnight to LA - the low was 49 deg F, high was 61 deg F. I dressed in a running skirt and long sleeve top, just in case this cool front really did feel cool. There was a pathway - Veteran's Parkway - that essentially connected the hotel to the beach.I ran down the pier - whew, it really was windy! Despite that it was an absolutely gorgeous day.I ran the Strand down Manhattan Beach to Hermosa Beach. On my left were all kinds of empty beach volleyball courts. On the right were all kinds of amazing houses.
It was interesting to see all of the different folks out running the Strand that day. There were folks bundled up in sweatpants and sweatshirts, a couple of folks out in shorts and t-shirts braving the cold front. There was one fellow out running in just a pair of shorts (no shirt) and a pair of gloves. I pondered over the point of the gloves... I regretted my decision to wear a long sleeve top - while the wind was brisk it had a cooling effect from the strong sun.
I ran up and down the Strand, ran back towards the parkway and finished up with 10 miles. I walked back to Manhattan Beach and stopped in at one of the restaurants for a late breakfast - carne asada benedicts. It was pretty tasty... A tea latte from The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf and it was time to walk back to the hotel. I checked out of my hotel and wandered over to a nearby movie theater where I caught an early afternoon showing of Juno. After that it was time to head back to LAX and check in for my 8:00 pm flight to Singapore. This run in Manhattan Beach definitely goes down as one of my favorites - beautiful scenery, a run that felt great, and a yummy reward breakfast. Good times!
***It is 9:43 am here in Singapore...time to start the day!

3 comments:

Unknown said...

I realize we have never met, but I continue to be amazed at our similarities in our travels. I found your blog from your post on the Nike Half (which I was at) and I will be running with you in the Goofy. And, I am also in LA for the Christmas holiday. Granted, my stay is longer than yours, but I ran in the mountains today and it was also one of the more memorable runs I've had in a long time.

Safe and fun travels to the far East!

Laurel said...

Great pictures. Looks like a beautiful day. Have fun on your vacation.

MissAllycat said...

Beautiful pictures! I'm completely jealous. That is not at all what my Iowa "vacation" looked like! :)