From Russia With Love

XIV FINA World Championships

Today our team arrived in Shanghai, China for the FINA World Championships. We woke up at the crack of dawn and flew for 14 hours until finally landing in China. I slept for most of the flight except for occasional food and bathroom breaks. I hate how random parts of my body cramp up when I sleep on planes! I kept having to move around in my seat, probably annoying the man sitting next to me (he was very nice). I ended up getting a few hours of rest, but I was still very tired by the end of the flight. After going through customs (we got to go through a special expedited line just for FINA athletes), we drove to our hotel. It is NICE. It’s five stars and our 18th-floor rooms are very modern and sleek. There is a mirror on the wall by the bath tub that also turns into a TV. I don’t know how it works. But it’s awesome! We also have complimentary bathrobes and slippers which I will definitely be wearing every night. All in all, I am in love with our hotel. After grabbing a snack, we swam in the pool for a while to kick out our legs and start to get rid of “sausage legs”. It felt really good to get in the water but I definitely felt a little slow and sluggish. The hotel pool was also very impressive - the lighting was very romantic and there was a giant hot tub that our team explored after our practice. Tomorrow we begin our first day of practice at the pool and I think we will get to see the competition pool as well. I can’t wait for the meet to start and for the other athletes to get here! The US and Austrian delegations are staying at this hotel as well, so we will be seeing a lot more athletes as the days go by.

Because of China’s strict firewall, I cannot log onto Facebook or Twitter. This is going to be a struggle. Actually, it will probably be good for me to be cut off from the real world for a while. I will be able to concentrate on the competition and stay focused on the task at hand. However, I am still getting email on my phone, so if you want to contact me (please do!), my email is koroleva@stanford.edu. Ok that’s it for now! Gotta go to bed and get some much needed rest for tomorrow :)

I am thankful for…

I didn’t think Thanksgiving was going to come so fast. The days of training in Colorado were going by so slowly but I was really enjoying myself and going home seemed so far away…But here I am, on my brother’s computer (mine is broken :( I really really hope it can be fixed tomorrow), recapping the last few days. The last  days at the OTC were pretty hectic. Lots of packing, writing thank you cards, saying goodbyes, and of course, swimming. I didn’t sleep at all the last night because my flight was at 6 in the morning so I figured I might as well enjoy myself because I had to leave for the airport at about 4 am. It was probably one of the best nights of my life so I definitely do not regret it. A few weeks ago I was so ready to go home and be with my family, but at the end of the training I was actually really sad because I made good friends at the OTC and I didn’t want to leave. I know that we will be back in a few months though and I will see everyone in good time.

I got to the airport at 5 am on Tuesday and passed out during my flight to LA. My connecting flight to San Jose was delayed so I bummed around the airport for about 2 hours. Luckily I met a very nice guy named Mike who happened to be on both of my flights and he kept me company during our wait. On the second flight I fell asleep again and I asked Mike to wake me up when they brought around the drinks and I guess he was poking me really hard to wake me up but I was out cold. Well, what can I say, I was tired! Tyler picked me up from San Jose (thank you!!!) and we stopped by In N Out on the way back because I was starving. I did miss that place in Colorado, but I discovered Sonic and that place is really frickin good. Do they have them in California?? I want to find one!

Anyways, now I am home and I still haven’t unpacked. Typical. I am really thankful for another holiday season with my family. I don’t know how many of those I will have in the future so I am grateful for each and every one of them. Can’t wait for dinner tonight so I can make my apple pie (one of the only things I know how to cook ha!) I already miss my team and everyone at the OTC…I hope everyone has an amazing Thanksgiving!!