THE LANGUAGE OF FITNESS
Being in good physical condition affords many perks: justifying cupcakes and frosty-beverages post-workout, the exhilaration of achieving a personal best, the mental health boost that sweating with friends creates and being able to truly experience the flavor of a new place.
I was fortunate to sail the Danube with my family last week. I love traveling Europe by riverboat because every day you wake up in a new city or country. While we had the option to take a bus tour in each city, my sister and I opted to travel by our own two feet. Sometimes we took the “long way” (got lost!), but always we had a fantastic adventure and learned a bit on the way.
We began in Passau, Germany which lies at the intersection of three rivers: Danube, Inn and Ilz. The rivers are each different colors due to the sediment they carry, and you can actually watch the rivers meld into one if you trek up into the hills. We followed the snow-fed, black-colored Ilz river and had a beautiful hike through the Bavarian Forest. In town the locals usually stay clear of tourists, but in the woods, they greeted us with friendly nods and Hallo’s.
In Durnstein, Austria, we spotted the ruins of a castle high on a hill where Richard the Lionhearted was held prisoner. We bounded up hundreds of old, crumbling steps to reach the summit and were afforded incredible views and a great educational display about King Richard. There was something special about looking out at the hills, river and rooftops from the dungeon knowing that the king probably spent hours gazing at the same sight (pictured above).
In Vienna, we discovered the Donauinsel (“Danube Island”) – a long, skinny island near Vienna’s city center that features a run/bike path, water fountains, fun playgrounds, beaches and awesome views of both the historic and modern city skylines. We fit right in with the other runners getting their long training runs in as the island is nearly 13 miles from end-to-end. I loved looking at everyone’s running shoes – the same brands/styles as in the US, only brighter colors!
My most favorite experience, though, was in Budapest, Hungary when I discovered a CrossFit gym located along the banks of the Danube. To make my adventure all the more fun, I rented a bike to ride the 8km to the gym instead of Uber’ing. Of course, that morning it was pouring rain, but I still went anyway and had an incredible tour of the city as I pedaled my way along the river.
I started on the Pest side of the Danube, passing the beautiful market hall, St. Stephen’s Cathedral, Parliament and the Olympic Rings monument (inspiration!) then crossed over the famous Széchenyi Chain Bridge (their equivalent of the Brooklyn Bridge) to the Buda side of the river where the Buda Castle towered overhead and eastward past Margaret Island to another island in the river where Reebok Crossfit Duna was nestled.
I was super nervous to drop into the gym, but everyone was so welcoming. Once the 3-2-1- Eredj! was given to kick-off the workout, it didn’t matter where people were from or what language they spoke. A push-up was a push-up, a squat a squat and a 400m run was still a butt-kicker.
