Aloha from Hawaii

On Friday afternoon, I arrived on Oahu, Hawaii, and today I finished my first 100-mile bike ride! I spent 5 hours and 45 minutes biking the Honolulu Century, which goes from Kapiolani Park to Swanzy Beach Park and back. When I crossed the finish line, I felt good and strong -- it was damn hot, but I loved every minute of it. The scenery was beautiful, the ride was well-supported, and I was in the company of a great group of people -- my friends from Team In Training.

We started riding this morning before the sun came up and, by mile 3, I was already sweating like I'd done 100 miles. Around mile 20, one of the three guys I rode with broke a spoke on his back tire, so we spent some time at the mechanical tent but otherwise, the ride was pretty uneventful, which is a good thing! We did share the road with more than 2,000 cyclists visiting from Japan (the ride is sponsored by Japan Airlines) -- I'll just say that taking pictures and/or shooting video, while talking on your Bluetooth headset AND cycling, probably isn't the safest way to roll down a hill at 35 mph...

Check out my photos of the ride!

Tomorrow I fly home to San Francisco, and then Tuesday morning I am off to Portugal...

Ready to roll...

In exactly one week, I'm leaving San Francisco to kick off 2+ months of traveling -- I'll be biking, hiking, studying Spanish, and not working. I can't wait. I'm lucky enough to work for a company that, after 5 years of service, grants you a two-month leave to recharge. And recharge, I will.

My first stop is in Hawaii, for the Honolulu Century Ride. This April, I signed up for Team in Training, which helped me prepare for the bike ride while I raised funds for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society. $4200 and many miles later, I'm finally ready to do 100 miles in paradise.

After rolling through Hawaii (literally), I'm heading back to San Francisco to drop one suitcase and pick up another -- not 12 hours after returning from Oahu, I'll fly to Portugal for a week. From there I'm off to Spain for 5 weeks, 3 of which I'll spend re-learning Spanish in a language immersion program.

Shortly after I say "adios" to Spain, I'll say "hola" or, better yet, "konichiwa" to Tokyo and "sawatdi" to Thailand. There I'll spend a week trekking from Bangkok to Chiang Mai and back, and a week on the islands in the south. I think I may need a vacation after this vacation...