During the Easter break I travelled to Paris, France with Travelling Fit a company that specialises in marathon travelling packages. This was my third overseas marathon trip organised through Travelling Fit and they never disappoint.
The day of the Paris marathon the weather was beautiful, dare I say perfect. The sun bathed Paris in gentle sunshine adding to the old world charm of this vibrant city, yet it held a hint of morning chill. Perfect running weather! I was so excited to be standing at the start line on the Avenue des Champs-Elyees with thousands of other runners from around the world. The excitement and eagerness to start was electric.
The crowd was pulsing with nervous energy, and bopping to the beats of a DJ that blasted out party tunes over the massive gathering of runners & spectators alike. Literally the whole city centre of Paris was in party mode and in anticipation of the start of the race.
Paris knows how to turn a running event into a party. Along the whole 42.195kms of the run a selection of diverse live bands and DJs (over a 100) played inspiration music to help keep us all motivated. I have a surreal memory of running through a road tunnel near the river Seine while a DJ pumped out popular eighties hits and a laser show lit the passage way! It was amazing!
I felt so privileged and very grateful to be able to participate in such an incredible run. The route passed all of the main city tourist sites such as the Louvre, the Bastille, Cathedral Notre-Dame (running past the Eiffel tower was truly spectacular) and finally finishing at the Arc de Triomphe.
Thank you, Paris.