Venice Marathon

Good Morning

This morning we woke up at 5:15 am to then walk to the closest boat station that would take us to Piazzale Roma from where we had to walk another 2 km to reach a bus that would after approximately 90 minutes takes us to the starting line.

On your mark, get set.

The starting line was at a place called Villa Pisani (between Padova and Venice).

Villa Pisani was a huge beautiful place, built in the XVIII century which belonged to a Duke of that time.  Before starting the marathon, there was an alpine band playing typical music from the region giving the event a complete Italian feeling.

The Race.

Even though it was said that rain was expected, fortunately, only a few drops fell.  It was, however, a bit cold and windy.  In the first kilometers, we ran through several towns: Stra, Fiesso D´Artico, Dolo and Mira, until we arrived in Venice.  When we passed through the towns, the locals went out to cheer on the runners, which gave us a boost.

The view during the run was beautiful! Everything from the typical Italian architecture, the main squares, parks, rivers, and nature.

On kilometer 33 I felt the runners high, which was a sensation of happiness and gratefulness combined that have me the energy I needed to cross the long bridge until we reached Venice.

From kilometer 38 on we were already running in Venice where we had to cross 14 bridges, passing along the water with an amazing view of some of the most emblematic buildings, boats, and gondolas.  In the last kilometers, we went around Piazza di San Marcos where even though our feet and legs hurt, the view and the cheers helped us finish.

The Return.

Once the three of us finished, we realized that to get on a boat we would have to make a line behind hundreds of people so we decided to walk an additional 3kms on top of everything to reach the hotel.

Conclusion.

We have reached the conclusion that marathons start from the moment you open your eyes in the morning of the race.  At least in my experience, I seem to always end up having to walk-run from the moment I step out my door to the starting line and at the end the same to get back. The distance is never only 42.195 km.

Each marathon has something special and it’s hard to pick a favorite, however, without doubt, the most special thing about this one, is that I ran with my parents.