Venitian mosquitoes

I almost changed my mind about going for a long run early this morning. I was in half a mind to stay in bed and sleep for a little while longer all because of a few little insects. The said insects, mosquitoes, woke me up at 3:30 am and I felt obliged to kill all the little b**tards in order to stop them buzzing me with a fly-by every 2 minutes.

It had been so hot yesterday, that we experimented with the window open last night to try and let a little fresh air into the bedroom: bad move. With the fresh air, there was a small squadron of the little b**tards, that also decided to share our living space. Early this morning, it all became too much for me and I decided that I'd rather die of heat exhaustion and suffocation that be sucked to death by a bunch of b**tard insects. I closed the window, went on a killing spree, spraying the bedroom walls with our own blood, which is rather satisfying since at least you know that you've achieved pay-back big time !

The alarm rang at 7:45 am and I hit snooze. 9 minutes later it rang again and this time I thought that I'd better do something about it, so I got up. Half asleep with the early morning exploits, I dragged my kit on and my carcass out of the flat to go for a run. I set off in the same direction as usual, heading for the north of the city and Piazzale Roma. The morning was hot, despite the early start, and the effort to run at 4:40 pace was intense. There was no air, not a whisper of a breeze and the humidity was also very high. I struggled down the quays to Punta della Dognana and the 5 km mark before heading over to St Mark's Square and the Bridge of Sighs. Due to the early start, the Square was virtually empty and the run towards the public gardens and the Biennial exhibition was easier since there were no crowds to avoid. I still suffered at the 7 - 8 km mark though feeling the heat and the exhaustion in my body.

I slowed the pace down and ran around the public gardens to St Elena at the farthest end of the island and then started heading back. The most wonderful sight appeared at exactly 10 km when I came upon a water fountain in the park. I was able to fill my cap and pour the water over my head 3 times, before carrying on the run. Back up to St Mark's Square, then over Rialto bridge before back home thoroughly exhausted.

13.5 km all up in 1:05:05 or an average of 4:48 per km. Faster on the way out and then struggling to finish in 5:15 pace. Pleased to have run anyway as I'm sure that runs like this do wonders for my endurance.

Now where's my mosquito swat ?
Picture of the little b**tard!

Venice duo

Laurence and I ran together this morning again. I managed to wake her slightly earlier this morning but by the time that I'd dealt with 2 phone calls from my boss, it was 9:40 am when we left. It's frightening how much contact I still have with work when I'm supposed to be on holiday. How will they manage in a couple of month's time ?

Another fantastic day weather-wise: blue sky, 30°C, and high humidity. It's easy to tell that the humidity is high since having washed the towels after yesterday's excursion to the Lido beach, they're still damp despite hanging out to dry all evening. So lovely weather for sauntering around, not so ideal for running though.

Laurence set off at a steady pace of about 5:30 per km and I ran with her. We headed out along the route that I'd taken yesterday as this avoids many bridges and allows you to get into a steady stride without having to avoid tourists, and climb tens of bridges. This pace is faster than Laurence's planned marathon pace, and so she kept reminding me of how hard I would find it to train at this comparative speed in full sunshine. We ran steadily until passing the Punta della Dogana after 5 km and then we slowed down slightly. The heat and the narrow alleys and crowds were too much at this point and we dropped the speed to about 10km/h.

7.7 km all up in 43:23 or an average of 5:38 per km. Just another 34.5 km at the same speed and Laurence will achieve her 4 hour marathon objective.

Accademia bridge with the museum just behind.

Venice morning run

I've been feeling guilty these past days that I haven't been out for a long run. Yesterday was lovely to run with Laurence but it still didn't help me feel any better about my lack of distance recently. Today, I was hoping to change all of that and run by myself for a long run.

The plan, before I set out, was to head out in the same direction as yesterday towards Piazzale Roma and then along the quays to Punta della Dogana, back up to Accademia over to St Marks square and then along the front to the public gardens, back to St Marks square, up to Rialto bridge and over the bridge back to the flat. In fact, I actually managed to do the route as planned, however, the manner in which it was done, left a lot to be desired.

I set out earlier than yesterday, at about 8:45am, hoping to avoid the worst of the heat. It soon became apparent as I left the shade of the narrow alleys around the flat, that I was very optimisic as the sun was already up and the day promised to be a scorcher. Not a cloud in sight, and the thermometer was probably already around 33°C. To make it worse, the paths along the quays offered no shade and my cap did not provide anough protection from the sun for my liking.

I was running well to begin with covering the first 5 kilometres at an average of 4:38 per km. I crossed over the bridge at Accademia and on to St Marks Square and along the front towards the public gardens and I began to suffer. At just under 7.5km I stoppped for a short rest in some shade. I was desperate for a drink of water but there were no fountains here. I told myself that I would continue as planned but just ease off the pace so as not to wear myself out in the heat and humidity. My pace slowed from this point on and I ran the kilometres at about 5:10 pace.

I admired the yachts tied up alongside the coast towards the public gardens, including Cloud 9, which you can hire here: http://www.charterworld.com/index.html?sub=yacht-charter&charter=mycloud-1546 if you happen to have the 350k€ necessary per week available.

I ran back to Rilato through the narrow streets from St Marks place, which was a pleasant relief since these were a lot cooler than in full glare of the sun. Avoiding the tourists was hazardous enough though.

11.5km all up in 56:47 or an average of 4:57 per km so no great shakes as far as pace is concerned. Good to get a longer run in. I struggle in the heat though - but this is not new ! Map of run is here.

Traffic on the grand canal in summertime in Venice

Venice

There are 409 bridges in Venice. These bridges are not flat affairs since the boats, notably the gondolas, need to be able to pass under them and so they tend to rise steeply with short steps and then flatten out before descending rapidly with more steps on the far side. These bridges are beautiful to look at and form part of the charm of the city. But boy, are they are bugger to run over.

Laurence and I went for a run this morning around the city. We're staying in a flat in the Sante Croce district of the city, almost in the centre and I had a plan to run to the quays on the southern side of the city in order to avoid the crowds and have as much space as possible.

We set off at 9:45 am which was too late really, since the sun had already been up for a couple of hours and the temperature had risen to the low 30°Cs. We headed off to Piazzale Roma and then down to Dorsoduro and Zattere. We just ran easily and I was really enjoying the sights and the sounds of Venice at a comfortable pace when my left shoulder muscles tightened and spasms started. It was like a torticolli in my shoulder, causing intense pain every time I tried to move. I carried on with Laurence but I had to drop my arm in order to find a comfortable position in which to run.

We ran 7.4 km all up in 46:01 and Laurence didn't suffer from any pains in her knee which was good. The bridges were hard and worth any amount of hill training. Lovely city and holiday is going very well.