What a warm and wonderful welcome as I arrive in Mongolia after 3 flights (LaGuardia-Atlanta-Seoul-Ulaanbaatar). It was a mighty long trek, departing Sunday afternoon from New York and not arriving until 11 AM Tuesday. Forget about Monday…it just did not exist… the sci fi flavor to it all doesn’t escape me and wandering a desolate, dark and eerie Seoul airport at 4am in the morning reminded me of many horror movie storylines in my head!  (That’s actually one of the benefits of these adventures that I value highly – the spark of one’s mind of stories, thoughts, memories, hallucinations sometimes and so on, dependent on the amount of miles and the lack of sleep). It didn’t escape me that the endless walk to my gate with no people and only the squeak of my rucksack and trail shoes on the floor was a hint of the many miles to come!  Might as well get in to the groove.

I’m posting this quick note with proof of life photos(!) and confirmation that I made it safely. (And even MORE importantly so did all of my luggage – and not one stop during many security checks. All gear and food here and accounted for!). It was really wonderful to meet fellow racers Jody (US) and Winston (Singapore) at the airport, who were also awaiting transfers to our hotel.  Racing the Planet has a knack for bringing together the most interesting people and with just a few short conversations I already feel like I’ve met some really special people.

For now I am feeling like a zombie after all of the hours of travel and a 12 hour time difference.  Focus is on staying awake past 8pm! A slow walkabout of a very different cityscape and people….and an iced coffee as I breathe the air. The weather is warm/mild and the hotel welcoming. After some sleep I have no doubt I’ll be able to write more, but for now sending hellos and love to everyone back at home. Thanks for following!