The Bangkok Standard Chartered Marathon

Yes, I went to Bangkok, Thailand on the 14th of November, but I did not run the Bangkok Marathon on November 23. That I want to make it clear.

This is my story.

Before I got hooked on running, I have another passion, it is the quest for adventure and the unknown. On July of 2006, I embarked on a journey to travel every province of the Philippines, document my travel and take a photo of the 79 provincial capitols (now, there are already 81 of them) and whatever sight my eyes can lay upon. It was surely an experience of a lifetime. My goal, to be the first ordinary person to travel the whole of the Philippines and have proof of it. You can read all about it in my travel blog http://www.thelaidbacktraveller.blogspot.com/.

Where does that lead me?

Last August, before my first run (the KOTR), I booked a flight to Bangkok, Thailand, just an early Christmas present from me to me. To experience a culture and a landscape that is not familiar. While walking around Bangkok with my backpack, I chanced upon a poster of a couple running. It was a poster of the Bangkok Standard Chartered Marathon. Too bad, it was slated on the 23rd of November and by that time, I'm already back in Manila running at the UNICEF's Run at McKinley Hill. So I thought that I will not leave Bangkok unless I had my photo taken with the small billboard as my background. Just so to put my sights on running there next year.

Unfortunately, it was not a very busy place, there were no people walking around, and so I waited, and waited, and waited. Patience does pay off. Finally, after I don't know how long, a man came and waited for a bus. Using my charm and my fingers, I asked him to take my photo and he obliged. And I asked him without saying a word (sign language lang). And so here it is......

The regrettable thing is that I wasn't able to ask the name of the man who took this photo. So, to you heaven sent, whoever you are, Khob khun Krab (thank you in Thai).

Now I have one thing to look forward to next year, it will surely be one my running goals in 2009 to run in the Bangkok Marathon. So, I need to look at its schedule first defore booking a flight there, and hopefully, the political crisis by then is already over.