Night Before the Race: Bahamas Marathon

I always worry about how much sleep I get two nights before the race, and today I did it right: slept in until 10am, for a whopping 11 hours of sleep! Amazing. I checked the view from the balcony, and quickly hurried downstairs to start soaking up the rays.

Unfortunately, while it was mostly sunny, it was terribly windy on the beach, and the sun kept getting covered by passing clouds – making it chilly enough for me that I had goosebumps. After a few hours, I gave up on tanning, and instead headed to downtown Nassau to get some lunch.

I didn’t have a specific destination in mind, so I mostly just wandered around to see the sights. I enjoyed some of the architecture, like this square housing the Assembly.

However, overall, I found Nassau to be very tourist-y and not very classy, though I suppose I should reserve judgment until after I log my 26.2 miles. Still, it’s definitely not my favorite place I’ve vacationed. It didn’t help that several cruise ships had just docked, and everywhere I looked, overweight tourists were drinking “yard” frozen drinks from Senor Frogs and generally acting boorish and obnoxious. Now, this blog is called “Absolut(ly) Fit”; it’s not to say that I don’t drink at all. In fact, while at lunch at The Conch Fritter, I sampled the local beer:

(Verdict? Meh – reminded me of a Miller Lite. That is to say, bland and not very good.)

However, where I think I differentiated myself from the tourist crowd was when I overheard a woman walked into the restaurant and loudly proclaim to the hostess, “We get free lunch on our cruise ship, but I felt I ought to support your impoverished economy.”

Forgetting my own manners, I gaped at her for a moment. Had she really just said that?! The waitress seemed a bit taken aback, ultimately taking it in stride and graciously seated her at a table, but I couldn’t believe it. In general, when traveling, I try to be as polite and courteous as possible. I’ve heard a lot about how boorish and rude Americans are, and they always say that you can tell Americans from a mile away, but this was just too much. I’m very proud to be an American, but it’s moments like this that make me very embarrassed to be from the USA. I hate that our country is perceived as being a bunch of fat, lazy, rude slobs, and even more, I hate it when I realize that in many cases, it’s true.

Of course, I also hated this incident because it made me wonder if I’d become a total snob in terms of what I raise my eyebrows at seeing. I really wasn’t that impressed by Nassau, and it bothers me that a vacation that probably would have thrilled me several years ago now has me saying “ho hum.” I saw a lot of couples on their honeymoons (or at my own hotel, there was even a wedding going on), and it made me wonder where I might ever go on my honeymoon, given that I’ve already been to a lot of the traditional places (Hawaii, Bahamas, Jamaica, Mexico), and not found them that special. I’d want my honeymoon to be something out-of-this-world and different than anything I’ve done before. Perhaps somewhere in Asia? Africa? (Or I suppose I could wait to meet Mr. Right and planning a wedding before thinking about honeymoon destinations!) But still, stuff like this makes me wonder if I’m becoming too worldly and sophisticated for my own good.

Anyway, after lunch (delicious steamed conch and rice with peas), I headed to the Wyndham for the expo/packet pickup… nothing too exciting to report there, given how small it was. Finally, just back to my own hotel for some relaxation and then dinner downstairs. $32 for some basic buffet fare! I couldn’t believe how overpriced it was. Good thing my platinum Starwood status had resulted in a $10 F&B credit to make it more reasonable, or it would have been a total ripoff. It’s funny, while I used to only stay in the mega-resorts and chains, I found my stay at the tiny Negril Treehouse to be one of the best vacations I’ve had… and these jacked-up prices prove how nice it can be to do the local thing instead.

But now, it’s bedtime. Shuttle to the start is at 4:45am – yuck. Tomorrow will certainly be an interesting race, given that I haven’t really run since the Christmas Half Marathon in December. Wish me luck!