Training Log Archive: blairtrewinIn the 1 days ending Nov 14, 2014:
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Friday Nov 14, 2014 #
7 AM
Run 1:07:00 [3] 12.0 km (5:35 / km)
Headed initially south and then west this morning, the opposite direction to yesterday, dropping down towards the river and then back up again a few times. It's obvious the desirable real estate here is as far away from the river as possible, as the roads transition from bitumen to crumbling cobbles as you go downhill and the buildings transition similarly. (I suspect this has as much to do, historically, with being as far away as possible from mosquitoes that might give you something that might kill you as it does to do with floods). Saw a few more temporary settlements (which are clearly organised - I saw signs from the WHO and a local relief agency at one) in places such as a median strip and a basketball court, although some things are sacred - the football field was untouched. This route also took me past the national stadium, named in honour of a 1930s war with Bolivia which, like a lot of Paraguay's football matches, ended in a scoreless draw.
The run started promisingly in nicer conditions than recent days (as a runner you can immediately tell the difference between a dewpoint of 14 and 19). Faded away a bit in the second half, on a day which was a bit longer than planned. Pretty slow but I think rough ground in places may have contributed to that.
One of the interesting features is that, while there are traffic lights here (and some of them even work), the vast majority of the city's intersections have no visible indication of who does and who doesn't have right of way. This is a bit of a recipe for chaos - seems to be a case of whoever gets in first - and I certainly wouldn't fancy driving here, but I didn't see any crashes or evidence of any while I was here so it might not be quite as crazy as it sounds.
It's not a place I'd want to spend the rest of my life, but I liked Asuncion - got into the city much more than was the case with the Brazilian ones, perhaps because I had the confidence to step outside the bubble a bit more (in turn, it helps here that my Spanish, though still far from adequate, is less inadequate than my Portuguese). Definitely glad I took this step off the beaten track.
The run started promisingly in nicer conditions than recent days (as a runner you can immediately tell the difference between a dewpoint of 14 and 19). Faded away a bit in the second half, on a day which was a bit longer than planned. Pretty slow but I think rough ground in places may have contributed to that.
One of the interesting features is that, while there are traffic lights here (and some of them even work), the vast majority of the city's intersections have no visible indication of who does and who doesn't have right of way. This is a bit of a recipe for chaos - seems to be a case of whoever gets in first - and I certainly wouldn't fancy driving here, but I didn't see any crashes or evidence of any while I was here so it might not be quite as crazy as it sounds.
It's not a place I'd want to spend the rest of my life, but I liked Asuncion - got into the city much more than was the case with the Brazilian ones, perhaps because I had the confidence to step outside the bubble a bit more (in turn, it helps here that my Spanish, though still far from adequate, is less inadequate than my Portuguese). Definitely glad I took this step off the beaten track.