Holiday!!

My wife and I have just come back from a great 10-days holiday where we did lots of 'non-running' related stuff and really had a great time away (lots of eating, drinking, relaxing, etc etc).  I did manage to get a few runs in too, so I'm pleased that I manage to keep things ticking over.  My plan purposefully didn't show any sessions whilst away, so I'm happy to have got 5 sessions in totalling around 30 miles.

We travelled down to Annecy on the train from Paris and stayed at the same hotel as the last time we were in Annecy, so settled straight in with the first of many tartiflettes and glasses of wine.

For those that may not know, Annecy is in the Alps and is on a lake that shares the same name. The lake is fantastic and very clean (it is the cleanest lake in Europe).  There is stunning and inspiring scenery and I got three runs in (two 7-milers and one 5-miler), including one with my wife which was great! The photos don't really do it justice, but here are a couple, with the first with me proudly wearing my Trotters shirt!

On another day, we took a walk up into the mountains which was great. There were a handful of runners up there too, but it's not something I'd contemplate as the paths are very steep and narrow!  There were some great views on the way up though, and my Garmin shows that we peaked at over 2200ft which wasn't too bad.

Whilst in Annecy, I took the opportunity to read Chrissie Wellington's 'A life without limits'. Chrissie is a British Ironman competitor and turned professional fairly late (late 20s). It's a great read and charts her progress to various world titles and records in that gruelling sport.

We caught the train back from Annecy to London and headed to York for a few days, again by train. York is a great city with lots of things to do, and the food and beer at very good! I got two runs in along the River Ouze (a 6 and 5-miler) which I enjoyed.  So although I haven't been doing massive mileage I am pleased to have kept things ticking over, and I always enjoy running in new places to keep things fresh.

On the way back from York I started reading the  Brownlees' 'Swim, Bike, Run: Our Triathlon Story'.  I haven't finished it yet, but it's good so far.

I'm still on holiday from work for the rest of this week, and have a few plans but the full training won't resume until next week.  I need to kick start things for Dartmoor Vale in October.  Logistically it's going to be a bit tough for a week or so as we're getting our bathroom done and we don't have a second loo/shower, so that may prove interesting!

A few days away in France (and the GBBF)

Having been on holiday in France for a week, followed by a day in London at the Great British Beer Festival (http://gbbf.camra.org.uk/home), I haven't done that much in the way of exercise.  However, the holiday was fantastic and it was really good to get away from work for a few days.  Last year, we did a train journey through France (Lille and Dijon), Switzerland (Lausanne and Lucerne), Germany (Stuttgart) and Belgium (Brussels).  We really enjoyed the holiday and travelling by train is efficient and stress free so we decided to do a smaller version and visited Dijon and Annecy.

We went to Dijon last year and it is a great place to visit in the Burgandy region.  The food and drink are fantastic and there are a lot of restaurants etc.  This year, as well as relaxing and taking in the centre of the town, we decided to take a walk out to the man made lake (Lake Kir) and have a wander around.

After three nights in Dijon, we took the train Annecy (via Paris).  We chose Annecy as we had discovered that it is pretty similar to Lucerne, which we visited last year.  Lucerne is one of our favourite places, but it is fairly expensive so we were hoping that Annecy would be similar but a bit cheaper.  Our hotel was about 10mins walk from the train station and just a couple of mins walk to the 'old town'.

Lac Annecy

Again, there were a lot of bars and restaurants and what makes it similar to Lucerne is that it is situated on a lake (Lac Annecy).  There is lots going on or near the lake with street artists and performers, boat trips, beaches, cycle routes and an nice path that was used by a large number of runners (making me feel slightly guilty for not being able to run!).  A couple of highlights for me were hiring a speedboat on the lake and also going for a swim in the lake.  I took the opportunity to go swimming twice, the second time before breakfast on our final day.  It really is stunning and refreshing and sets you up for the whole day.

The final stop off was the Great British Beer Festival in London.  I'm a card carrying CAMRA member and ale drinker, but have never been to the years biggest beer festival.l so I'm really glad to have gone.  According to the site, there were over 1000 ales, ciders and perrys along with some really nice traditional food.  I'm hoping to be able to go again, although it hasn't done much for my training regime!

Anyway, very much hoping to go back to Annecy and the Beer Fest and I'm very much aware I need to get back into my exercise now I'm back from holiday  In fact, I'm hoping to go to the gym later today....