There were a few cool highlights of the marathon I would love to share. The first was before the race even began. At registration I was watching 8 Japanese workers teach a crowd how to stretch and warm up using a duster. They were shuffling along on their tip toes gyrating their dusters in the air. I whispered to myself, “Wow, that is...” An American voice came up right behind me and said, “I totally agree. I live here and I don’t even get it.” His name was Eric and he is an intellectual property lawyer from New York. He walked around the expo with us and showed us a store next door called the LOFT. This place is like IKEA+Spencers+Bed Bath & Beyond+ a stationery store. He showed us some of the really odd merchandise that is prevalent for sale here. Please, note the girls licking doorknobs. Enough said.
The second was the comradery we shared with all the Taiwanese runners. They were all sporting the Taiwanese flag on their cheeks, shirts, or were carrying a flag itself. Every time we were near one of these groups we would yell “Jiao Jiao! We love Taiwan!!” They were all very receptive and would applaud. At one point a man ran up and shoved a Taiwanese lady. I leaned over to her group and whispered, “He is NOT Taiwanese…” They immediately began to laugh and said, “Thank you!” After the race I ran around asking any Taiwanese people I saw to take pictures with me. I then had to explain that I in fact did not have a phone or camera with me, so they were going to have to add me on line and send me the picture later. All were very friendly and excited to chat. The Taiwanese are much more inviting to interact with strangers.
The race began right next to one of Osaka’s main attractions, Osaka Castle. The castle glinted in the morning sun and a bit of steam rose off the moat. It really made for a perfect beginning to the day. The course wound around the city and is famous for its yellow fan leaves. It was really nice to see all of Osaka’s modern buildings and bridges. I personally like Osaka more than Tokyo. Tokyo is just too big and it is hard to get around. Osaka is still a large city, but is much more manageable from a transit perspective. There were photographers posted around the course. At a couple points I stopped people dressed up in costumes and gestured for them to go over to the photographer with me. I said, “One, Two, Three Jump”. So there will be some good jump photos heading worldlygnome’s way.
The day came to a close with some kindness from strangers. Myles made a comment that he really wished they had Osaka Marathon jackets for sale. So I hobbled over to a group of volunteers who were all wearing awesome marathon volunteer jackets. I asked, “Excuse me. Can I buy these jackets anywhere?” They all shook their heads, but one girl said, “You can have mine.” WHAT!? I couldn’t believe it. I rambled a mile a minute and asked them about their majors and where they were each from. The girl who gave me her hat and jacket is from Korea and is studying here for four years. Another girl gave her jacket to Myles and one of the guys gave his hat and jacket to Tim. I was blown away. The jackets and hats are really special to us and will always be a reminder to pass the kindness we have received forward.
The second was the comradery we shared with all the Taiwanese runners. They were all sporting the Taiwanese flag on their cheeks, shirts, or were carrying a flag itself. Every time we were near one of these groups we would yell “Jiao Jiao! We love Taiwan!!” They were all very receptive and would applaud. At one point a man ran up and shoved a Taiwanese lady. I leaned over to her group and whispered, “He is NOT Taiwanese…” They immediately began to laugh and said, “Thank you!” After the race I ran around asking any Taiwanese people I saw to take pictures with me. I then had to explain that I in fact did not have a phone or camera with me, so they were going to have to add me on line and send me the picture later. All were very friendly and excited to chat. The Taiwanese are much more inviting to interact with strangers.
The race began right next to one of Osaka’s main attractions, Osaka Castle. The castle glinted in the morning sun and a bit of steam rose off the moat. It really made for a perfect beginning to the day. The course wound around the city and is famous for its yellow fan leaves. It was really nice to see all of Osaka’s modern buildings and bridges. I personally like Osaka more than Tokyo. Tokyo is just too big and it is hard to get around. Osaka is still a large city, but is much more manageable from a transit perspective. There were photographers posted around the course. At a couple points I stopped people dressed up in costumes and gestured for them to go over to the photographer with me. I said, “One, Two, Three Jump”. So there will be some good jump photos heading worldlygnome’s way.
The day came to a close with some kindness from strangers. Myles made a comment that he really wished they had Osaka Marathon jackets for sale. So I hobbled over to a group of volunteers who were all wearing awesome marathon volunteer jackets. I asked, “Excuse me. Can I buy these jackets anywhere?” They all shook their heads, but one girl said, “You can have mine.” WHAT!? I couldn’t believe it. I rambled a mile a minute and asked them about their majors and where they were each from. The girl who gave me her hat and jacket is from Korea and is studying here for four years. Another girl gave her jacket to Myles and one of the guys gave his hat and jacket to Tim. I was blown away. The jackets and hats are really special to us and will always be a reminder to pass the kindness we have received forward.
