Street of Barcelona old town

Barcelona Cathedral

Michelle in the Pantheon

The crowd for the Pope. He spoke from that building.

Mare Nostrum 2005

  

   What a totally different yet wonderful experience Mare Nostrum 2005 has been. I competed on tour as the only Australian representative; no coach or teammates in support. As I had already competed on the international scene for several years I was confident that I would have an entirely enjoyable time hanging out with the swimmers from other countries. Travelling alone certainly created a different yet thoroughly enjoyable experience.

    I arrived in Barcelona at 9am and decided I’d better keep moving after the trip or I’d crash! I wanted to try to stay awake until the evening. What was I thinking? Whew! I wandered the meandering streets of old Barcelona and felt transported into a different time in history; a different world. As I walked around I’d find myself thinking I was at the end of the road, it being empty and run down; yet I’d turn a corner and suddenly the street would open up into a beautiful plaza with stunning old buildings. The plaza would be bustling with student life; or if not then pigeons at least! I found my way to the Cathedral who’s locked doors had thwarted my tourist efforts in 2004. It was stunning, all I’d hoped for and imagined. I enjoyed sitting and relaxing in a pew with an enormous organ looming over me, imagining life centuries ago. I did my 7 sips around the Cathedral fountain for luck, and decided it was time to continue onwards. Directly outside the Cathedral I was met by a young artist from Austria who I employed to paint my portrait. Basically that took the rest of the day, and I was thrilled to get into bed and sleep even though the bed was as hard as floorboards!

   I raced the next day, still exhausted from the travel. It didn’t take me long to realize I probably should have just slept the day before, but I suppose in the past I’ve recovered better from trips by staying awake. Every experience is different though. I raced pretty average, and was welcomed into the final of 50 freestyle only after a Swedish competitor of mine withdrew. Thanks, but ouch!

   After an 8 hour travel (recovery out the window!) I arrived in Canet and had a far more slow paced two days resting in the sun and playing Scrabble. I still couldn’t find any speed or good technique, everything just felt a bit off colour. I was trying to adjust physically and recovery properly, but seemed stuck in a rut. I managed to make the final on my own this time, but wasn’t able to finish anywhere near the podium! I had some improvement on my performance in Barcelona, but still didn’t feel ‘on’. We had a rest day after racing and I desperately needed it! My rut was beginning to feel like a deep abyss after another race, and I needed to find some way out to crawl out!

   Again 8 hours later we, the tour group for Mare Nostrum, arrived in Rome. I was still feeling tired, but very antsy. I figured I’d put on my tourist shoes again and get going to the Pantheon, the amazing structure I didn’t get into last year. It was/is an absolutely architectural feat. The sun dial created by the hole in the ceiling, the perfect design of the dome roof, the drains in the floor to catch rain water, and Raphael's tomb are all stunning. I then managed to find my way into the non-tourist part of town. It had a totally different feel to it, being far more relaxed and slower paced. I chilled out, wrote a bit and enjoyed a fantastic latte.

   I raced in Rome, again improving, but still not hitting the time I hit on this tour last year. I managed a 3^rd place finish, but still felt unsatisfied. I felt like I was putting in 110% effort and yielding 70% results. It’s an unpleasant feeling, but I think sometimes we can learn more when we err than when we succeed with flying colours. I left the final of 50 freestyle again with ideas of where I might be able to improve, and hopes that the final meet in Monaco would be a step up. I had gotten off the blocks far faster, but I still wasn’t finding my rhythm in the water.

   The new Pope was speaking in St Peter’s square the next day and I thought I’d head down to check it out. There were massive amount of people there from two hours before the scheduled talk time. The numbers in the square continued to grow, and there was an amazing roar from the crowd in response to the entrance of the Pope. He spoke in several languages and I was interested listening and watching the responses of the different groups of people in the crowd to what he was saying. I was oblivious, I don’t speak Latin, Italian, or the several other languages he spoke in. He spoke for about 15 minutes, and then left as dramatically as he’d arrived; with lots of waves and a massive cheer from the crowd. The experience was unforgettable. Being surrounded by thousands of people and feeling their energy was fantastic. But if I ever have such an opportunity again I’ll be sure to bring along my own personal translator!

   Onwards to Monaco, which was fantastic as always! Finally I raced ok. I can’t say I was thrilled with the time (I’m comparing to this same tour last year) but it was a serious improvement on the first three stages of the tour! I managed a fourth place finish with a better time. I’d managed to improve on some of the mistakes I’d made on the first three stages of the tour, and build a better race plan. Monaco is always fun because it’s a shoot out. it’s heats, top 16, top 8, top 4 swam as two shoot off races, then the final two sprint it out for a win. It’s raced over two days, and is a lot of fun! I still felt that my stroke wasn’t right, but at least I’d found a bit of speed and power! I completed that tour knowing that I had given it everything I could, but that I had some areas that I really needed to work on. It’s always good to walk away with constructive criticism, and build from it.  

   The dinner gala was fabulous, but no hot date with Prince Albert this time. Such is life!