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Running A Marathon…

Running A Marathon… Today is February 24th, 2020 – aka, 3 days AFTER my first marathon! I ran Muscat’s 26.2 miler, and I’m still in shock and awe that it’s finally over and I actually did it. It’s difficult to describe the complicated mix of emotions I feel – overwhelm, triumph, a little bit of nostalgia for the journey, pride, self-respect, and happiness. I wanted to write a recap blog post to share some personal tips and immortalize some of those feelings and the whole experience while I’m still living it! I started running after a lot of pestering from my wife, who was taking swimming lessons at that time. She came to know of a group that runs  on Friday evening  at a park in Muscat and badly wanted me to join them, as she felt I am lackadaisical. After much deliberation, I decided to give it a try. So one fine day we went to see what is happening there, and oh boy!!, I got hooked. There I saw a person resembling ” Mandrake” ( a movie character in Malayalam), a very charism...

Egypt

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Egypt – The Land of Pharaohs   It was in October 2019 that Ajith and I were contemplating our second international trip. As both of us are fond of off-beat destinations and prefer natural and historical wonders, the cities and metropolitans were out of our list. Joining us were two great companions from the US, my cousin brother Kiran and his travel partner and friend Vivek. So the four of us discussed and zeroed upon Egypt which is an Arab country in northern Africa and has an array of long history associated with it. Egypt!! I couldn’t wait to go! Northern Africa seems more like the Middle East. 'Egypt', for me, the name conjures up images of pyramids, souks, hieroglyphics, exotic foods, and yes, even romance! At the Muscat Intl Airport Nowadays, it seems that it can be dangerous to go places such as Egypt in the Middle East, or northern Africa. Modern-day Egypt is…chaotic, hectic, frenetic, noisy, and downright overwhelming, and boy is it worth it.   Many people explo...