#100: Berlin Marathon 2013

Wednesday
Originally it was supposed to be a 2:55pm direct flight from LAX to Tegel Airport in Berlin. But when I checked in at the Bradley Terminal, they informed me that in addition to the flight being delayed a couple of hours, the flight will also be making a personnel change in Dublin. So I went through the TSA screening and passed the time by checking out some duty free single malt scotch. Maybe one day, I'll buy a bottle and save it for a special occasion. I noticed that the terminal had changed quite a bit since I was last here. It was now very modern with free wi-fi and for some reason they were carting around complimentary bottles of water and fruit. I took a bottle of water.

Duty free scotch

"Budget" duty free scotch

AirBerlin

Once I got on the plane, it was time for some movies and some old classic TV episodes along with an extended nap time.

It's movie time

Thursday
We landed in Dublin at around 10am local time for the personnel change. As they opened the airplane door to change crews, it was nice and rainy. The fresh air was pretty nice after being in the plane for such a long time breathing in recycled air.

Personnel change at Dublin

Cheers!

The plane landed at Tegel TXL airport at around 1:30pm and we deplaned onto the tarmac to board a shuttle to the gate. That was so different than US airports.

Landing in TXL

As we were all in line to go through customs, I bumped into somebody that looked really familiar. It was one of my FB friends that I've never met in person. We have a mutual good friend. What a weird coincidence to actually finally meet in Germany of all places! She and her husband were on their way to another destination and had a connecting flight to catch.

ADL sighting!

I tried to buy my bus fare from the fare machine with my credit card, but the machine was not reading my card. I tried several times and eventually gave up. I used my emergency cash to exchange for some Euros to buy the fare. Then I caught the TXL express bus into Berlin and got off near the Brandenburg Gate. It was pretty exciting to see where we would be running through for our finish line!

The Brandenburg Gate!

I walked over and took the U6 subway down to the expo at the Flughafen Tempelhof. The expo was just a short walk from the Platz der Luftbrücke station. The expo was very well organized. You first walk through a bunch of booths, then past the official merchandise, then you finally get to the race number pick up section way in the back hangar. You give them the registration confirmation printout and your photo ID (passport) and they print out your race number right then and there. I guess that helped save money for no-shows. I then picked up my pre-ordered shirts, a race shirt and a finisher's shirt. I like races where they let you order only what you want. Before leaving the race number pick up area, they put a wristband on you. This was to make sure that there was no transferring of bibs. After what happened at the Boston Marathon, most marathons have been cracking down with different methods on making sure registered athletes are the only ones that show up on the race course.

Expo entrance at Berlin Tempelhof Airport

40th edition

TATA!

BMW

As I was leaving the expo, I noticed that there were some famous marathoners signing autographs. I saw Patrick Makau, the then men's world marathon record holder. He wasn't all that friendly. He definitely looked like he didn't want to be there, but was obligated to do so. I then met Uta Pippig. She was completely the opposite. She was a very nice person to meet. She was so happy for me and gave me a hug when she found out that it was going to be my 100th marathon on Sunday.

Patrick Makau

Uta Pippig

Leaving the expo, I caught the U6 subway. Got off at Hallesches Tor station and transferred to the U2 line. I rode that to the Wittenbergplatz station. Got off and headed over to my hotel to finally check in. I saw a bunch of currywurst stands along the way. I would've tried some but they took only Euros and I only had a little left.

I checked in at the Hotel Lützow. The room key was attached to a giant metal room tag. I actually carried it with me in my running shorts during the marathon and it ended up bruising my thigh. :) The room was pretty nice. But it felt more like a dorm room. The first thing I noticed was that the power outlets were different. I had to smack myself for forgetting to bring an adapter. My cellphone was dying for a recharge, so out I went to find a store selling one. I asked the front desk for suggestions. They told me to check out the nearby Saturn electronic store. I was able to find one for pretty cheap.

I went through the expo haul. We received a very nice drawstring bag which was also to be used to check any gear on race day. We also received an Adidas wristband where you engrave your finishing time at the specified Adidas store, a packet of PowerBar electrolyte powder, a box of pasta, and a packet of pistachios. Even though I had a small kitchen in my room, I tossed the box of pasta. I thought that it was funny that they gave us a sponge. I brought it home with me. I think I will save it for a summer time race.

Expo haul

Course map

Friday
I basically only planned for Friday to be my sightseeing day. I really didn't want to tire myself out by doing too much walking. So I decided first to check out the Olympia Stadion. It was actually pretty cool to visit the location where the Olympics took place. I didn't pay to go inside, but it was nice enough to just look around on the outskirts.

Olympia Stadion U-bahn subway

Path to the Olympia Stadion

Olympia Stadion

Olympia Stadion entrance

Jesse Owen Allee

Afterwards, I got on the U2 rail and headed back the other direction. I got off at the Hallesches Tor station to check out a few places before heading back to my hotel room to stay off of my feet. While I was checking out the spot (Bebelplatz) where the Nazi's burned books, I was hit up by a supposedly deaf girl begging for money. I gave her a few euros, but she wasn't satisfied with the amount that I gave. So she kept pointing at a number on a piece of paper that said 20 euros which I did not have. I gave her a few more and waved no more. I got the feeling that they were just using a gimmick to fleece the tourists. Oh well.

Hugenotten Museum

Konzerthaus Berlin at Gendarmenmarkt

Memorial to May 10, 1933 Nazi Book Burning at Bebelplatz

On the way back to my room, I stopped by the supermarket to pick up some Powerade for the marathon on Sunday and some snacks. I also learned that for plain water, they are marked "still". I realized that I hate carbonated or sparkling water.

Snacks at Kaiser's Supermarkt

I ate my snacks while watching pretty much one channel where English was spoken. It was actually a Japanese news station. After taking a nap, I met up with marathon friends at Café Brel, which was about a 25 minute or so walk from my hotel. I wasn't very hungry and I was low on euros, so I ordered soup. I think my friends thought it was weird that I was barely eating, so they kept giving me some of their food including some snails. :)

Eating snails at Café Brel

Café Brel with marathon friends

Saturday
I didn't do much today besides going out to eat.

For lunch, I went to Makoto to have some ramen for lunch. I ordered a Bitburger draft beer, miso ramen & gyoza set, and edamame. Their gyoza was pretty decent, nothing spectacular. The ramen broth was also pretty decent, not great, but not bad. The noodles were also not bad. If you need a ramen fix, this place will do the job. You'll get a decent bowl of ramen. But if you're looking for the best, you'll have to look elsewhere. But seeing how you're in Berlin, this may be the best you'll be eating. Service was decent although a bit slow. There was very few people sitting inside at the bar during lunch when I was there. You have the option of sitting at one of their tables outside. Outside might be the better option during the summer, as it was pretty hot inside. Very conveniently located to the Rosa-Luxemburg Platz subway station.

Bitburger beer, edamame, and gyoza

Miso ramen

For dinner, I had a rather difficult time finding a place that would accept credit cards. I eventually ended up eating at a nice place where everything was a la carte. I got a chicken breast and some roasted potatoes. I picked up some more snacks before heading back to my room.

Chicken and potatoes at Lindner

More snacks

I laid out my race gear and ate my snacks before going to sleep early.

Race gear

Sunday
I got ready and walked over to the starting village. The instructions said that it would open at 6:30am. I got there at about 6am and milled around. It did not open right away at 6:30am. The runners were all pretty anxious to get in. When it finally opened, they had a line of people checking to see if you had your bib and the wristband. They forced you into one of about ten single file lines. I've never seen security this tight at a race. Once I got through, I headed straight for my gear bag check tent. The location of your gear check was based on your bib number. They had signs everywhere directing you where to go. They were also handing out yellow Adidas plastic vests/bags for you to wear. This was a nice touch by Adidas. There was definitely a chill in the air even though I was wearing arm sleeves.

The race started at 8:45am with 3 separate waves. I started in the last wave 3 which was entirely made up of runners in block H. Block H was for those running 4:15 or slower.

Block H

Yes, you should be here!

Starting line

There were a couple of things that I loved about this race. Most of the course was lined with trees. It was an absolute treat to run through all of Berlin on a clear crisp day. It never got too hot during the race. I loved that the race had kilometer markers instead of mile markers. They came more often, so I felt like I was always making progress. I tried for the most part to cover each 5k at about 30 minutes which comes out to 6 minutes per kilometer. Once I started to slow down after about the halfway point, I just ran at whatever felt okay and enjoyed the rest of the race at a more leisurely pace. I found it weird that they were passing out tea at some of the aid stations. I didn't take any, so I wasn't sure if it was cold or hot.

During the last 5k, I bumped into my friend. I always find it weird that out of the thousands of runners in the race that I would bump into somebody that I know. She was having a difficult race, otherwise she would've beaten me by 30 minutes. I wished her a strong finish and told her that I would wait for her at the finish. About a mile later, I saw a guy that wore a shirt with the back saying that today was his 300th marathon. I came up to him and asked if he spoke English. Fortunately he did. I told him it was my 100th. We exchanged stories and congratulated each other before I took off for the finish line. It was so cool to turn that last corner and see the Brandenburg Gate looming ahead. After running through it, it was just a few hundred meters to the finish line. That was one of my favorite finish line experiences!
5k: 27:46

10k: 56:01

15k: 1:25:21

20k: 1:56:33

Half: 2:03:29

25k: 2:31:19

30k: 3:06:53

35k: 3:42:59

40k: 4:18:10

Finish: 4:33:10

I waited at the finish area for my friend to finish. She wasn't very far behind me. We took some pictures together and looked for the board with the times of the top finishers. We were happy to see that Wilson Kipsang had set a new men's WR finishing with a 2:03:23! We then went our separate ways to pick up our gear bag.

They were passing out alcohol free beer at the finish area. It actually tasted pretty good. But I usually can't eat or drink much immediately after a race, so I didn't finish it. Before leaving for my hotel, I returned my ChampionChip. Very few races still use these timing chips. I then walked back to my hotel. I am glad that I booked this hotel. I didn't notice when I made the walk earlier in the day while it was still dark, but the walk back was very scenic and pretty. It was all lined with trees and just long enough to keep my legs from stiffening up.

Alcohol free beer at the finish

Großer Stern

I'm so glad that I picked this race to be my 100th marathon. Next to the NYC Marathon, this was my favorite marathon! After running the Montréal Marathon and now the Berlin Marathon, I would definitely encourage my fellow marathoners to run an international marathon if they haven't already. Nothing against marathons in the good old USA, but it's just a totally different experience to run one in another country!

One of the first things I did when I got back to my room was to finally remove the wristband. It was getting annoying after wearing it for several days.

Number 100 done!

Bracelet to enter the starting area

For dinner I ate at Argentinisches Steakhaus Rivado. Despite the poor reviews on Yelp, I ate here only because it was close to my hotel. I ordered a Warsteiner beer, a rib-eye steak with potatoes and green beans. All of it was decent. Kind of hard to mess up potatoes and green beans. As for the steak, I've definitely have had better elsewhere. The wait staff was arguing among themselves. I don't care if you're arguing in another language... it ruins the dining experience. There were many open tables when I got there, but I was told that they were all reserved and my only option was to sit at the bar. After I left, those tables were still open.

Warsteiner beer

Green beans

Rib-eye steak and potatoes

My friends wanted to celebrate finishing the marathon with me, so I met up with them for a second dinner at Dicke Wirtin. I had two beers, Schneider Weisse and Schwarzbier. Both were good. For food, I got a plate of sausages, potatoes, and sauerkraut. They were all excellent. I would definitely come back for their food. English is almost useless here, so bring a German speaking friend if you can. Otherwise, service is pretty decent. It was super busy when we got there and you could tell that the wait staff was running around trying to get to everybody. Since the place was packed, my friends and I had to sit outside. If you're intolerant of smoking, make sure you try and pick a table that's not downwind or you'll be breathing in second hand smoke the entire time. The next time I come to Germany, I will need to bring more cash. They do not like accepting credit cards especially American credit cards without the smart chips. I owe my friends big time for covering my butt!

Schneider Weisse

Sausages, potatoes, and sauerkraut

Schwarzbier

Monday
Time to go home. After checking out of my hotel. I hoofed it over to Zoologischer Garten Bhf station to catch the X9 bus to the Flughafen Tegel Airport. Getting through airport security was very different at this airport. You don't line up early and go through general security check and sit at your gate. Each gate had it's own security line. You have to wait until it's almost time for your flight before you get in line for security check. Your carry-on bags get x-rayed and you go through a metal detector. They also did a pat down for me. After you get through security there was a small section in the corner selling duty-free items. There also weren't too many places for you to sit. I think I prefer American airports.