We are back from Chicago, with our “hard earned” 2 medals!

This is our 3rd oversea Runcation, and longest flight in my life – 19 hours (5 hours from KL to Taoyuan for layover, 19 hours to Chicago). I would expect watching 3-4 movies on the plane but turned out to be only 1 in the end, and the remaining I was just light sleeping and eating.

We took EVA Air and made the right decision to book Premium Economy Seats. Despite the long journey, it was the most comfortable flight seats I’ve ever taken. The leg space and seat width were huge. The cushion behind our head were adjustable to allow us sleep better.

Ok, I am so proud with the flight decision that I could write an entire chapter about it, but this post is about takeaways of this Runcation:

• We were spot on about our expectation and preparation. The entire journey was so smooth and almost aligned with the itinerary. This saved lots of time and gave us peace of mind. For example, I bought Uber gift card from Amazon months before the trip, after knowing that e-hailing is cashless, and I couldn’t top up with credit cards or bank transfer. We also bought Ventra daily ticket when happened to pass by a train station.
• Despite followed the large part of the itinerary, we still had lots of unplanned moments – and all well fulfilled! We met fellow Malaysians in expo, joined local running community pre-run events (and got lots of free gifts!), met the most well-known Shoetuber kofuzi, 6th fastest marathon record holder John Korir along with his brother Wesley Korir. We visited World largest Starbucks, and had the best chicken wings in my life, in Lou Malnati.
• Anica completed FM, 3 weeks after her cyst removal surgery. She even had a bad fall during her shakeout run 2 days before the FM. For the surgery, it wasn’t an easy decision. To let go the results after trained so hard and so well for years. I knew she would come back even stronger, and I am here, and will be there to support her along the journey.
• The tipping culture is challenging and at times, confusing haha. I’ve even witnessed the waitress of the restaurant at my hotel talked to a customer because he didn’t want to pay any tip. Throughout the trip, I’ve paid tip to: restaurant when dine-in (even breakfasts which included in the hotel stay), Uber drivers. I didn’t pay tip to: hotel frontend staff, grocery cashiers, carry-out, public transport.
• Chicago city has lots of museums and rich history of architecture. One of the best way to learn about their buildings is through river cruise. The tour guide would share his knowledge and opinions about the buildings – you literally have an hour of entertaining lesson about Chicago.