08.15.06
 |
 |
| The market (click photos to enlarge) | Fresh! |
Tiszaujvaros was pretty much exactly as I had remembered it... small town with not much to do, lots of people riding cruiser bikes to get around, and a huge, enthusiastic crowd that appeared for the race. I stayed in a room with my parents at the host hotel which was pretty much the center of everything. Every night in the town square thingy there was a fair with music, games, food, and vendors. The finish line was right outside our window on the street below. There were races all weekend... a fun run, a junior race that went run/bike/swim/bike/run, and then the World Cup on Sunday.
 |
 |
| Music at the town square | Just LOOK at that crowd! |
 |
 |
| Candy vendor | Bakery vendor... mmm... donuts... |
We ate at this little Italian restaurant, "Ristorante Mamma Rosa" every night. Honestly there was nowhere else to eat, so athletes packed this place all day long. They really do have amazing food and it was pretty cheap too.
 |
Mamma Rosa's |
The river was very tame and calm compared to last year. It was still too cloudy/muddy to see underwater, but there wasn't much debris. The water level was a lot lower than last year so a bunch of huge rocks were exposed that I banged my knee on during our practice swim. It wasn't cold enough for wetsuits either.
 |
 |
| Swim practice session | Much tamer than last year |
 |
 |
| the river Tisza | Pontoon looks ghetto w/out the carpet! |
So I had a lot of fun despite my bad race. It's always exciting traveling to another country, especially when my parents were there with me. They had already spent some time in Budapest so I think my mom was pretty ready to go home after their 2 1/2 week adventure in Europe. I'm glad they got to come to my races, too. I will post some of their photos here too.
 |
