MARCH

My Birthday on Barcelona Marathon Day

12 March 2017

This was a very special month; I ran the Zurich Barcelona Marathon on my Birthday! This year I decided to do something more remarkable than a usual birthday party for friends and
family.

Running a marathon for Cancer Research UK fitted this criteria. I raised lots of money, probably over £3,000 – this is to be checked and confirmed as the donations still keep on coming until the end of the year

 

 

However, before I set of for sunny Spain I have performed at a Ruby Wedding Anniversary at Wentbridge Hotel near Doncaster. It was so lovely to see the couple being still in love after 4
0 years tor.

Before I set of for sunny Spain, I have performed at a Ruby Wedding Anniversary at Wentbridge Hotel near Doncaster. It was so lovely to see the couple being still so much in love after 40 years together. Relationships like this very rarely happen nowadays; it makes me think often about my own life and how I wish I would want to spend my life with someone who truly loves me ‘for better and for the worse’. At the same time I am wondering how many couples I performed for at their weddings are now divorced? Apparently the statistics say it is 3 on 4 marriages that fall apart. Shame things are no longer as they used to be when our grandparents were getting married. Shame we live in a disposable world, where like in a supermarket, you can get another latest product model without trying to fix the old one.
But HEY! It means I perform at more wedding than I would be if the relationships lasted forever – which I can’t really complain about ;-

Barcelona! What a vibrant place, Las Ramblas is where all the nightlife is happening. Having had a hotel in the very center, I could admire the local life and Spanish culture. But I am actually not a big fan of Spain, from very personal reasons actually. I very much dislike Spain after visiting Madrid back in August 2014. However, we should not judge the whole country based on one incident – well, true, but it still does not appeal to me as much as other Southern European countries.

I ran the entire marathon, 42km (26 miles) in exactly the same time as I did in New York, 4h 44 minutes – it is called consistency! The same running music set list must be the key, thank you Coldplay for keeping me going!

After the run, of course, I needed to relax. Relaxing in the hotels top floor open swimming pool was all I needed for my tired legs.

 

After having returned from Barcelona I had one day to expect my new Italian sofa delivery and then… back on a plane to Cairo, where I did three solid days of electric violin performances, 3 performances on each day, launching the new shopping center – Mall Of Egypt! I never travel alone outside of the European Union, hence on this occasion, I took with me my boyfriend who luckily still had some holiday days to use from the previous year.

 

In Egypt I had to be all covered up for my performances because it is a Muslim country.

I did not mind because I am not trying to sell my music though the looks but hopefully because of the quality of my music and the performance I deliver!
In Egypt I also had the chance to visit the Pyramds and the Sphinx, as well as ride on a camel J This is a real perk of my job – I really do get to see places I would probably never got to see.

On the way back to the UK, I was really surprised at the airport security in Turkey when the immigration officer knew who I was by my name, without even looking into my passport! Fame at last.

However, we also experienced the worst plane turbulence in my entire life. When crossing the mountains over Serbia, the aircraft was shaking so badly, all drinks landed on the floor and I quietly was praying it is not the end of my life! Thankfully I am still alive