Showing posts with label athletics. Show all posts
Showing posts with label athletics. Show all posts
February 1, 2011
December 14, 2010
September 1, 2010
Thank you, thank you, thank you.
When I started to blog in October of last year, I conceived this as an opportunity to connect with friends and family back home in the States. I did not hold any bold ambitions about the reach of this blog nor any delusions that my thoughts and insights about my time overseas would reach anyone beyond a close circle of friends and family back home.
But since that time, my blog has managed to generate feedback in a surprising number of ways. I have been touched along the way to find out that I have some dedicated followers and I have been pleased to learn that my posts have presented learning opportunities or that I have managed to share a new and fresh perspective on a tired topic, experiencing life overseas.
Every once in a while I will hear from a friend who casually mentions something I know I have not told them directly, and it quickly becomes obvious they have read about my experiences on my blog. Thanks for reading friends and family.
But there was one time, when I received the below message in response my post entitled East meets West, and Back Again:
Dear Meghan,
Thank you for blogging yours truly and the SFW [Swahili Fashion Week] on your blog...much appreciative.
Warmest regards,
Mustafa Hassanali
Fashion Guru/Managing Director
Mustafa Hassanali HAUTE COUTURE
Thank you Mustafa, this message was truly inspiring.
Then there was the time when I received a personal phone call from the owner of Le Corsica, he informed me that when he read the contents of this post to his mother, she cried tears of joy and pride.
Thank you, P.F. I remain dually impressed with your culinary adventures in Dar es Salaam (and a superior darts player).
But two weeks ago, in response to my post Fanciful Excuses, I received perhaps what is the best form of feedback possible. A mere sidenote mention of a broken Lululemon messanger style bag, generated the following message from Lululemon's Online Community Educator, she wrote:
But since that time, my blog has managed to generate feedback in a surprising number of ways. I have been touched along the way to find out that I have some dedicated followers and I have been pleased to learn that my posts have presented learning opportunities or that I have managed to share a new and fresh perspective on a tired topic, experiencing life overseas.
Every once in a while I will hear from a friend who casually mentions something I know I have not told them directly, and it quickly becomes obvious they have read about my experiences on my blog. Thanks for reading friends and family.
But there was one time, when I received the below message in response my post entitled East meets West, and Back Again:
Dear Meghan,
Thank you for blogging yours truly and the SFW [Swahili Fashion Week] on your blog...much appreciative.
Warmest regards,
Mustafa Hassanali
Fashion Guru/Managing Director
Mustafa Hassanali HAUTE COUTURE
Thank you Mustafa, this message was truly inspiring.
Then there was the time when I received a personal phone call from the owner of Le Corsica, he informed me that when he read the contents of this post to his mother, she cried tears of joy and pride.
Thank you, P.F. I remain dually impressed with your culinary adventures in Dar es Salaam (and a superior darts player).
But two weeks ago, in response to my post Fanciful Excuses, I received perhaps what is the best form of feedback possible. A mere sidenote mention of a broken Lululemon messanger style bag, generated the following message from Lululemon's Online Community Educator, she wrote:
"I’m sorry to hear about your experience with our bags. I would love to know what bag specifically you have had issues with, as it sounds like something worth passing along to our Quality Assurance team. We are dedicated to producing quality items, both clothing and accessories and I’m sorry to hear that you have had these issues.
Have you gotten a chance to return the bag to a local store? If not, we’d be happy to offer you a refund or replacement bag. As an alternative to the style you have already tried, I’d recommend our Cruiser Backpack. It is extremely practical and durable and my personal favourite of any of our bags: http://shop.lululemon.com/
Now seriously folks, this is customer service at its finest. Not only was she proactive in reaching out to me in the first place, but she was creative and thoughtful in her approach to helping me find a replacement bag, even offering to overnight ship a new backpack to my mother who could carry it with her on her recent visit here. And so it seems, I no longer have a viable excuse for not riding my bike straight to the gym after work!
But the best part, is that this backpack is AWESOME! Upon laying his eyes on it, a good friend said, I am buying one immediately upon my return to the U.S. A gentlemen in my office spotted my new backpack on my desk at work and immediately started thumbing through all of the secret compartments in deep adoration. Thank you Lululemon, I am now in possession of a highly coveted object and remain a truly loyal customer. Many, many thanks.
August 10, 2010
Bike Love.
The other day following an unruly bout of homesickness, Andrei and I met for a bike ride after work.
Ok, ok, while our ride was not nearly as scenic, nor even half as romantic, it did seem that a nice leisurely bike ride was just the cure for homesickness I had been seeking without even realizing it.
As most of you know, I am a bike aficionado. So you can imagine my sheer delight to receive this from Andrei on my birthday morning.
David Byrne is well known as the co-founder of the Talking Heads, but his professional and personal interests delve far beyond his leading role in this band. Since the early 1980s, DB has been riding a bicycle as his principle means of transportation in New York City, and following his discovery of the folding bike, bicycles now accompany him most anywhere in the world he travels. Bicycle Diaries chronicles his observations and insights - what he is seeing, whom he is meeting, what he is thinking about - as he pedals through and engages with some of the world's major cities from San Fransisco to Istanbul to New York to Buenos Aires.
He writes:
"I found that biking around for just a few hours a day - or even just two and from work - helps keep me sane. People can loose their bearings when they travel, unmoored from their familiar physical surroundings, and somehow loosens some psychic connections as well. Sometimes that's a good thing - it can open the mind, offer new insights - but frequently its also traumatic in a not-so-good way. Some people retreat into themselves or their hotel rooms if a place is unfamiliar, or lash out in an attempt to gain some control. I find that the physical sensation of self-powered transport couple with the feeling of self-control endemic to this two-wheeled situation is nicely empowering and reassuring, even if temporary, and it is enough to center me for the rest of the day.
It sounds like some form of meditation, and in a way it is. Performing a familiar task, like riding a bicycle puts one into a zone that is not too deep or involving. The activity is repetitive, mechanical, and it distracts and occupies the conscious mind, or at least part of it, in a way that is just engaging enough but not too much - it doesn't cause you to be caught off guard. It facilitates a state of mind that allows some but not too much of the unconscious to bubble up."
His words speak straight to my heart, I find that bicycling as both a form of transport and exercise grounds and centers me. I suppose I too strike that meditative "zone" that he references, which distracts me from my daily stresses and allows my creative juices to flow, in fact, most of my blog entries are crafted in my head as I ride home from work each day. I have long discovered that a little bit of exercise each day does wonders in terms of positively lifting my spirits, although admittedly this is a lesson I tend to casually "forget" on occasion.
If his words are not inspiring enough, perhaps these pictures will prove to be dually inspiring. Throughout the Bicycle Diaries DB chides the commonly held perception that spandex is a required uniform for urban cycling, which surely detracts some from this "sport". Now if only I could figure out how to look this good on a bicycle?!
---
Photo Credits:
http://habituallychic.blogspot.com/
http://thesartorialist.blogspot.com/
As most of you know, I am a bike aficionado. So you can imagine my sheer delight to receive this from Andrei on my birthday morning.
He writes:
"I found that biking around for just a few hours a day - or even just two and from work - helps keep me sane. People can loose their bearings when they travel, unmoored from their familiar physical surroundings, and somehow loosens some psychic connections as well. Sometimes that's a good thing - it can open the mind, offer new insights - but frequently its also traumatic in a not-so-good way. Some people retreat into themselves or their hotel rooms if a place is unfamiliar, or lash out in an attempt to gain some control. I find that the physical sensation of self-powered transport couple with the feeling of self-control endemic to this two-wheeled situation is nicely empowering and reassuring, even if temporary, and it is enough to center me for the rest of the day.
It sounds like some form of meditation, and in a way it is. Performing a familiar task, like riding a bicycle puts one into a zone that is not too deep or involving. The activity is repetitive, mechanical, and it distracts and occupies the conscious mind, or at least part of it, in a way that is just engaging enough but not too much - it doesn't cause you to be caught off guard. It facilitates a state of mind that allows some but not too much of the unconscious to bubble up."
His words speak straight to my heart, I find that bicycling as both a form of transport and exercise grounds and centers me. I suppose I too strike that meditative "zone" that he references, which distracts me from my daily stresses and allows my creative juices to flow, in fact, most of my blog entries are crafted in my head as I ride home from work each day. I have long discovered that a little bit of exercise each day does wonders in terms of positively lifting my spirits, although admittedly this is a lesson I tend to casually "forget" on occasion.
If his words are not inspiring enough, perhaps these pictures will prove to be dually inspiring. Throughout the Bicycle Diaries DB chides the commonly held perception that spandex is a required uniform for urban cycling, which surely detracts some from this "sport". Now if only I could figure out how to look this good on a bicycle?!
---
Photo Credits:
http://habituallychic.blogspot.com/
http://thesartorialist.blogspot.com/
July 15, 2010
Run Like a Kenyan.
Recently Andrei and I traveled to Nairobi for the day. We woke at 3am, were picked up at 4am, departed from Dar es Salaam at 5am, and arrived into Nairobi at 6am. Luggage and agenda free, we had 11 hours of adventure ahead of us before our return flight home. While we both enjoy getting lost in urban settings, we have found that trekking through concrete jungles can make for a less than relaxing getaway.
So instead we hired a driver for the day and headed straight to Ngong Hills, about a 40 minute drive outside of the city center. "Ngong," literally meaning "knuckles" in Maasai, is a series of 4 peaks overlooking the Great Rift Valley on one side and the skyline of Nairobi on the other side. These hils resemble the knuckles of a giant whose fate is the subject of several Masai legends.
At altitudes above 2000m, the air was thin and left us breathless. As we rested and enjoyed the views,
these guys ran circles around us. The Kenyans, famed for their running prowess, did not fail to impress.
But why is it that Kenyans are such good runners? The theories are many and varied.
According to some, high altitude running partially explains this phenomenon, as running at higher altitudes builds greater lung capacity as runners grow more used to the athletic rigors of thinner air. The vast majority of Kenya's most accomplished runners were born and raised at high altitude, hailing from a hilly region surrounding Eldoret ranging in altitude from 7,000 to 8,000 feet above sea level.
But certainly that alone cannot explain this phenomenon, as worldwide many populations live at high altitudes. One theory our driver explained to us in great detail is that the "Kenyan" running stardom actually lies mostly with one particular tribe, the Kalenjin. Though Kalenjins represent just 12 percent of Kenya's population, they comprise about three-quarters of the nation's elite runners. It was Kip Keino who kicked off this trend back in 1968 when he won Olympic gold for his winning performance in the 1,500 meter event. In 1972, added an Olympic steeplechase title. His successes apparently inspired succeeding generations of Kalenjins to seek distance-running titles.
Kip Keino, among many other Kalenjin marathon winners, are viewed as heros and idols for Kalenjin youth. However, not only are they admired for their athletic talent, but also because many young Kenyans view winning distance running titles as their ticket out of poverty. In races where winning cash prizes reach upwards of $100,000, surely this helps aspiring runners keep their eye on the prize. This in turn feeds the legacy and tradition of "Kenyan" running talent because as interest in running increases, so does the competition for much coveted positions on traveling squads and accordingly so does the intensity and difficulty of Kenyan training regimes.
---
References:
http://www.slate.com/id/2090658
http://www.kilimanjaro.cc/eam/ngong-hills.htm
So instead we hired a driver for the day and headed straight to Ngong Hills, about a 40 minute drive outside of the city center. "Ngong," literally meaning "knuckles" in Maasai, is a series of 4 peaks overlooking the Great Rift Valley on one side and the skyline of Nairobi on the other side. These hils resemble the knuckles of a giant whose fate is the subject of several Masai legends.
At altitudes above 2000m, the air was thin and left us breathless. As we rested and enjoyed the views,
According to some, high altitude running partially explains this phenomenon, as running at higher altitudes builds greater lung capacity as runners grow more used to the athletic rigors of thinner air. The vast majority of Kenya's most accomplished runners were born and raised at high altitude, hailing from a hilly region surrounding Eldoret ranging in altitude from 7,000 to 8,000 feet above sea level.
But certainly that alone cannot explain this phenomenon, as worldwide many populations live at high altitudes. One theory our driver explained to us in great detail is that the "Kenyan" running stardom actually lies mostly with one particular tribe, the Kalenjin. Though Kalenjins represent just 12 percent of Kenya's population, they comprise about three-quarters of the nation's elite runners. It was Kip Keino who kicked off this trend back in 1968 when he won Olympic gold for his winning performance in the 1,500 meter event. In 1972, added an Olympic steeplechase title. His successes apparently inspired succeeding generations of Kalenjins to seek distance-running titles.
Kip Keino, among many other Kalenjin marathon winners, are viewed as heros and idols for Kalenjin youth. However, not only are they admired for their athletic talent, but also because many young Kenyans view winning distance running titles as their ticket out of poverty. In races where winning cash prizes reach upwards of $100,000, surely this helps aspiring runners keep their eye on the prize. This in turn feeds the legacy and tradition of "Kenyan" running talent because as interest in running increases, so does the competition for much coveted positions on traveling squads and accordingly so does the intensity and difficulty of Kenyan training regimes.
---
References:
http://www.slate.com/id/2090658
http://www.kilimanjaro.cc/eam/ngong-hills.htm
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