Friends and Family perks

I ended up leaving the hotel in Roppongi on Sunday at 11:00 am. A short 25 minute car ride (Uber) to Tokyo Station, the Tekko Building for the bus to the Airport. Thankfully we had performed the exact routine not 2 months ago. Arrived at Tokyo station just in time to grab a Lawson's Egg Sandwich and to hop on the 11:35 Narita Limousine Bus. The Bus arrived at Narita around 12:50 pm, I disembarked at Terminal 1, grabbed some ramen and made my way to Terminal 2. Check-in was surprisingly simple, I picked up some additional snacks (read, peanut butter sandwich) and settled into my book and podcast (Acquired: Nintendo) outside the gate at around 2:10 pm. The  Hong Kong Express flight boarded on time,  with all passengers and crew seated and ready for take off at the scheduled time of 3:25 pm. There was some congestion on the runway and we were eventually airborne by 4:00 pm. 

It's interesting how impactful the jet stream is on the return leg. The flight from Hong Kong to Tokyo is approximately three and half hours, whereas the return leg adds an additional hour for the same trip. We touched down at around 7:25 pm Hong Kong time, losing an hour due to the timezone difference. This is where things get interesting. The second part of my weekend was predicated on no delays and precision arrival. I had been tracking our flight times keenly and was relieved to have arrived without delay.

The reason was I was on stand-by for the 9:20 pm flight from Hong Kong to Sydney, and part of the stand-by criteria is that I needed to be at the check-in counter to claim my seat at least 90 minutes before departure. The reality was that I didn't have any luggage to claim and just needed to exit the airport and get to the check in counter at the arrivals side. The plane was taking a slow taxi to the gate. I turned on my phone and my messages lit up. My sister had messaged informing me that the CX101 9:20 pm flight to Sydney had 8 available seats. My chances of getting on the flight were good. I only needed to get to check-in by 7:50. I sat on the flight tapping my foot. The plane was still taxing to the gate. I wondered if there would be a proper gate or just a staircase to a bus. 

So how did we get to this situation? Well, one, flights back to Sydney for my dates, either from Tokyo direct, or Hong Kong were insanely expensive. This was well, my fault, because I had left it so late to book. I had always known I would be in Tokyo that weekend, I just wasn't sure if I would head back to Sydney. When I had last checked, a single-leg flight from Tokyo to Sydney on the 25th was 14,000 HKD (1,800 USD), and flights via Hong Kong were around 2,000 USD. So I was sitting on the fence.

However, my sister had just started work at a major Oneworld Airline and since passing probation now had access to other Oneworld flights. Read, Cathay Pacific.  Remember when my family flew over to Hong Kong, that was still during probation and access was limited to one airline. So, with my name on the stand by list I had to get to the gate for check-in. The plane came to a stop and I could see that there was a staircase and a bus waiting for us below, it was 7:45. At that moment in time I received a confirmation of a Boarding pass. I was checked in! The adrenaline dissipated from my body. This reminded me of Cuba, but with smaller, much smaller stakes. The rest of the journey was smooth. Managed to transit through Hong Kong Airport with the boarding pass and even managed to jag an isle seat with extra leg room.

Arrived into Sydney the next morning on schedule. It was Australia Day, the airport was busy but got through with no major delays. Picked up at the Airport by Sister and family. So nice to see them, I do enjoy the whole being picked up, and dropped off process. Australia Day was relaxed, I had taken a day off work. Banh Mi for lunch, park in the afternoon. Tuesday I worked from home, but it was my sister's birthday. Forty. Can you believe it? Little sister is forty! Relaxed day at home, although work was surprisingly busy, and the 3 hour time difference really extends the day much longer than it feels. I enjoy working from the dining table, while the house moves around me. Dad drawing up plans for the renovation, auntie in the kitchen, mom in and out of the house running errands. It's like time hasn't passed at all.

Short trip ended with another stand-by flight on the way out. Load looked a lot more promising, by the time I had checked in I had secured a Premium Economy flight. Got to the airport after an 8pm call. The airport was empty. By the time I had made it to the gate I was notified that there was still space in Business class. Another win! What an amazing short trip back to Sydney. Super grateful how everything fell into place, from getting on the flight, the upgrade and most importantly being back for the birthday. To think, I considered not showing up, thankful that it all worked out. Happy Birthday sis!

Currently reading "Contented Little Baby"

Less than 24 hours in Tokyo

New rule, although not too sure how many more impromptu weekends I have in me. The new rule is, avoid flying into Narita Airport for short-duration trips, the time spent navigating between the airport and Tokyo really adds up. Short 20 odd hours in Tokyo hanging out with the Niseko crew, who have been up in Sapporo. Some convenience store sandwiches, some ramen, some bbq and we're out.

 

Race day

Ok, so managed to cobble together 4 hours of sleep last night. Thankfully, the body does pretty well with physical exertion on minimal sleep.

Today was a much different race.

Less about the celebration of a marathon and more about gritting it out. It was a hard race, with sub optimal conditions. A warm Sunday, with temperatures at 6:25 at around 18 degrees, climbing quickly once the sun was up to 22-23 degrees. Much warmer than Sydney. Also, the wind up on Ting Kau Bridge, very challenging.

I had run the Half Marathon twice before, and each time the crowds have always bothered me. Not because I hate people, but more because the conditions of roughly 74,000 on an already difficult course means you have to jostle for position and really go after your pace. This is especially true in the first few kilometres, there's a lot of crowd navigation and trying to get into a steady rhythm. That being said the race does pass some iconic Hong Kong areas. Starting on Nathan Road on TST, before moving over stone cutters bridge towards Tsing Yi halfway crossing Ting Kau bridge before moving East towards Lai King Hill and Lai Chi Kok before joining back with the half marathon crowd to move through the Western tunnel. From there the race goes along the western harbour front before moving down Lockhart road, past the exhibition centre and finishing in Victoria Park.

This was a hard run. I was desperate for a sub 3:30 so had to fight for pacing targeting sub 5 min/km splits. Once again, frustration and energy were the common themes of the first couple of kilometres doing Nathan Road, my splits were 5:29 mins, 5:32 mins and 5:18 for the first three kilometres, already 80 seconds off my target. Thankfully the crowd started to thin and was for the most part able to get into a good rhythm between the 4-32 km mark.

Stone cutters bridge, difficult but not as steep as I had anticipated, managed to keep good pace on that. Most difficult was Ting Kau Bridge, very windy, a lot of work just to keep pace. Very uncomfortable, holding bib down, wind in face and a bit of a climb. As always difficult with the western tunnels, just so warm and humid and people stopping for photos, the climb out of the tunnel is a real challenge. Finally there's always that last hill onto Lockhart that really sucks the energy out of both full and half marathons. You can almost feel a collective sigh as you come around and see the on ramp. That coupled with the fact that people stop and walk this section, very easy to lose speed even if you want the endurance to attack.

Legs started to feel tired at 20 kilometre mark with the back of hammy started to tighten up a bit, possibly from all those slow, steady inclines that chip away at the muscles. Thankfully never developed into full blown cramp. The route coming around through Causeway Bay is always deceptive, you think you've finished, but there's still 600 meters remaining. Was a real dig deep run. Crampfix at 2:30 and 3:00 hour mark. Dumped caffeine at the 2:40hour mark. Helped a bit. 10 gels in total, quite a lot.

Very shaky finish, felt less strong that Sydney. But watch time still under the 3:30. Waiting for chip time. Very happy with time, especially given conditions. Much different to Sydney where i was just happy to sit back and finish, this race had to really fight for each kilometre.

Different race, a lot of the run you're on highways, pounding pavement, there's a lot less atmosphere, people marching towards the finish line. There's a bit of energy on the over passes and the occasional passerby in a car, but Hong Kong is a real mental test. Support comes out when back on the island, which is probably when you need it. Happy people came out for support. Happy with the result.

Aggressive Carb Load = Insomnia

It feels as if my body does not deal with drastic changes very well. Where these changes result in insomnia. More recently, aggressive carb loads. I actually thought my preparation for the Sydney Marathon was spot on. Until, looking back I do remember not being able to sleep very well on the Friday and Saturday evenings ahead of the Sunday race day. I had put it down to nerves, the flight and disruption to regular programming. 

So when a colleague who was preparing for HYROX mentioned that he finds that his Heart Rate Variability (HRV) is negatively impacted I paid little attention. But coming into my second marathon preparation, where the prescription is 10-12 grams of carbohydrates per kilo of body weight for three days out of race day. I once again find myself consuming 700-840 grams of carbohydrates per day and once again, my body does not deal with the additional insulin required to process the carbs. Given that on average I eat 100-200 grams of carbs a day, jacking this up 4x means the body is constantly producing insulin. Which based on a quick search on the internet, could result in temporary hyperinsulinemia which translates to poor sleep quality, insomnia and frequent waking. 

Desperate for a good night's sleep ahead of Sunday's race.

First trip of the year!

That felt like a really short Sydney trip. The work-from-home really made the trip back feel less about holiday and more about being just being home. No complaints though, always nice to be back and I like sitting on the dining room table while there's activity around the kitchen and living space. Back to Hong Kong and first weekend staying put after what has felt like quite a busy end to the year. So I soak in the amazing weather in Hong Kong before flying out to Singapore. The reason two-fold. Firstly, there's a structural scan. The challenge of long distance has many facets. Long distance relationships, which leads to long distance conception, which leads to long distance pregnancy. This is technically my first scan, well if you include the Johannesburg scan, then maybe not. But first planned scan.

So the structural scan is the 20-or-so week scan to ensure everything looks correct and everything is where it's supposed to be. Ultrasound technology really is amazing. Previous technicians have labelled the baby "not cooperative", which at this stage, means doesn't move when it's supposed to. In order to get a clear scan, the baby needs to be in the right position, which is a bit like flipping a coin and hoping that it's the right side up. So there are some tricks that they'll suggest. 1) Eat some food, 2) Drink some water, 3) Walk around for a bit, and if that all fails, 4) Eat some sugar. Queue, White Rabbit. Spoiler alert, everything looks correct and everything is where it's supposed to be.

The second reason for the trip, was Birthday Glamp-ing out on Lazarus Island. It's unseasonably "cool" in Singapore. I say cool, but mean 24-25 degrees, which makes for a nice day trip out. The island is 20 or so minutes from Marina Bay, white sands, nice camp site. I feel ashamed to be Australian in saying this, but some learn take-aways. Start the bbq earlier, defrost things earlier before starting the bbq, do not put too many things on the bbq. Final weekend before Marathon, managed to bang out 14 kms around the island, final long run before next weekend. 

Back to Hong Kong. I have a feeling this commute will become oh so familiar, if it already hasn't.

Insomia

The thing about getting old is that you learn something new all the time. One moment everything is business as usual. The next, things aren't operating in exactly the same way. It's a constant audit. What's changed? What's no longer working?

My new thing is, that I've noticed my circadian rhythm has become extremely sensitive to any perturbations. I don't know if it's because over the last few years my schedule is pretty robust. Go to bed somewhere between 22:00-23:00, wake up somewhere between 05:30-7:00. Any shift to this schedule and my body clock goes haywire. I've had it a few times, where either I've stayed up too late. I.e. gone to bed at 3 am or 4 am and despite being extremely tired, what results is a handful of days of insomnia where I just can't get to sleep. Or more commonly, moving across timezones due to travel resulting in jet lag.

The return flight from Johannesburg to Hong Kong, we woke up at 3:30 am, in Cape Town, caught the 6:00 am flight to Johannesburg. Slept most of that two hour flight, woke up in OR Tambo International airport at 8:00, collected luggage and sat at gate waiting for 11:00 am flight back to Hong Kong, only to barely sleep on the flight and arrive in Hong Kong at 6:00, the following day. My body was confused, minimal sleep over the last 24 hours, and I had arrived back the following day. What ensued was 3 days of jet lag and insomnia. 

The insomnia was compounded by a few things, including a newly discovered tooth problem. Another tooth problem, you say? Well yes, this time, it wasn't the same tooth, but the molar directly opposite the tooth I had just had Root Canal Treatment (RCT) on. 

Mortality strikes you in many ways, this time in the form of a second RCT in the space of a month. I don't know if it's the cost, or the knowing that your teeth have failed which bothers me more. For future reference, the cost of a root canal is approximately 8,000 HKD, or 1K USD. The silver lining is, I now spend more time on dental hygiene and teeth that I had previously.

It's a bag!

There may be a point in time when people look back at the "blind box" culture and try to pin point its origin story. I'm not somebody unfamiliar with this concept, having been deep in collectibles. Basketball cards, football cards, Magic cards. However as of writing, the blind box has become ever-present in society. 

Up until opening this tin, the information was asymmetric. Now it's not. It's a blue!