Christmas Miles in the Rain

Daily miles: 30.62 | Total miles: 11,074.4

I got up at 6 a.m. It was still dark. Cold coffee, packed my vest, and by 7:30 a.m. I was out ready to run—still dark, still quiet.

After an initial climb, I had to run down a steep road to navigate my way out of the city. I stayed fully focused, careful not to trip, stumble, or slip. Once I was down, I merged onto a major road that would take me all the way to Silivri.

Traffic was heavy for most of the day. It rained on and off, but it wasn’t too bad, and the temperature hovered around 13°C. Because of the wet weather, my phone was wrapped in a plastic bag, which meant not many photos today. But honestly, there weren’t many beautiful sights along this stretch anyway—nothing missed.

At mile 6, I met my sister for a coffee. At mile 15, we had a short pit stop, and at mile 23, I grabbed half a banana and a few sips of tea. The entire route was rolling, up and down, with the final stretch finishing on a fairly steep hill—one last effort before the day was done.

When I finished the run, my sister had orange and persimmon (khaki) pieces ready, along with the rest of the banana and a protein drink. Perfect. I did some work afterward, and then we sat down to eat Christmas dinner.

Later, my sister pulled out a bag with presents from home. That alone already felt special. But the best gift? Reading glasses—from her. I always deny that I need them, but I guess I’m kind of there. Trying them on proved it: I can read small print again without pulling a face. So yes… thank you.

Thanks for checking in.

Merry Christmas, and see you tomorrow. Andrea