Italy, here I come!

Well, folks, we’ve finally made it! On Saturday, I finished my training with an easy 8 mile run through Griffith Park, and the next time I write you it will be from Italy!

Needless to say, I’ve been quite busy getting everything in order because I leave, which is on Thanksgiving Day. Thanks to the time difference I will arrive in Florence on Friday, check into the fabulous Hotel Baglioni and then off to the Expo to pick up my race bib, timing chip and final race instructions.

On the night before the race, we will all join together for one last time for a pasta dinner. I was surprised to learn in the last month that on race day, the groups don’t always stick together. Rochelle, Garth, myself and hopefully a few others will try to find a way to do so. I can’t imagine anything more fun than crossing the finish line with my fellow runners. After six months, it would be too strange not to.

But who knows, maybe I’ll be so swept up by the run that I won’t even notice if my fellow runners are with me or not. The Florence Marathon sounds breathtaking. And rather easy, too. (Well, aside from the mandatory 26.2 miles and six-hour time limit.) After some extensive hill training over the past six months, we get to enjoy a rather flat course. In fact, we go downhill for the first mile or so, because we start off at the Piazzale Michelangelo, make our way down to the river, across Ponte Vecchio, which I can’t wait to do!, and then weave our way around the rest of the city.

After the race, I will begin my journey into the rest of Italy and realize a childhood dream of mine by finally meeting some of my relatives! The Rossini side is from the Marche region, and I’m in touch with one of my cousins, Carlo, who lives there.

I also have a list of “must do’s” for friends while I’m in Italy… like buy Virgin Mary trinkets, go to Lake Como and get a poster or take a bunch of good pictures, send a postcard from Vernazza, which is one of the towns in the Italian Riviera, and so forth. I’m very excited about traveling the long way from Florence to the other coast in Marche by going through the hill towns in between. And of course, I plan on seeing the major cities as well… A Roma! A Venizia! A Milano!

In all honesty, I can’t believe it’s all happening. I feel guilty sometimes, because I’m so blessed for all this. After all, the primary focus is to help people living with HIV/AIDS. If I happen to improve by any small measure in the process, hey, even better. But I’ve received so much more than that – better health, new friends, and the knowing now that I can stretch beyond my vision. When you add it all up, what’s $3,800? It doesn’t seem enough. I can only hope that the recipients of this money feel the same way.

Well, I better get back to packing… Off to Italy I go, hi-ho, hi-ho!