black cats black high definition uncensored hong kong horse
This is the first issue of the column 'A Cat Running a Marathon'.
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Text and images by Black Cat's Black
First, I must responsibly tell you three things:
First, this article is packed with content. Why do I say that? Because it has beautiful scenery, delicious food, and beautiful women... the legendary Black Cat. Moreover, all the photos are in 'high-definition without censorship,' hahaha.
Second, as the saying goes, 'a self-praising melon seller,' this article can be considered a comprehensive guide to marathon running, with the most conscientious recommendations, the most thoughtful tips, and the most scientific and reasonable arrangements. In short, it covers everything before, during, and after the Hong Kong Marathon, not just one race but stories of three cities. Isn't that exciting?
Third, I know you are already excited, but there's more to look forward to! The Hong Kong Marathon is just the first stop of our running tour after the Chinese New Year. Next, we have the Seoul Marathon in South Korea, the Sunset Marathon in Singapore, the Cherry Blossom Marathon in Japan, the Wuhan Marathon, TNF100, Laoshan 100... and many other wonderful events. Let me scout the way for you in advance!
Back to the main point, the two main characters in this article are:
Black Cat— sometimes fierce, sometimes cute, loves running, trail running, weightlifting, and all fun and exciting sports, and can't stop at all. That's me, your Cat Bro, hehe.
Aili— Cat Bro's male best friend, known as the 'Donnie Yen of the running circle' because he looks like Donnie Yen. But his most impressive trait is not his eight-pack abs and good looks, but his ability to run fast while carrying a camera and various lenses for a full marathon!
Yo yo yo, check it out~ After reading the character introductions, don't they seem impressive? Actually, they really are. Come on, everyone, get on board now, fasten your seatbelts, and let the Hong Kong Marathon veteran take you on a thrilling ride~
At this point, many people might ask: Why go to Xiamen for the Hong Kong Marathon? Why not just fly directly to Hong Kong or cross the border from Shenzhen? Here's what Cat Bro has to say, especially for those who are still single on every Valentine's Day: When pursuing a girl, don't you give her flowers, chocolates, lipstick... and finally take her home? So, starting by taking her home is boring and leaves no stories to reminisce about when you're old and rocking in a chair. So, before the Hong Kong Marathon, we plan to do something. Besides, Xiamen is so beautiful, so close to Hong Kong, and has the annual Xiamen Marathon. Aren't you ready to join us for a look? Let's go, let's have fun, we have plenty of time!
Friendly reminder: There might be some hotels, restaurants, or brands mentioned next, but I haven't received any sponsorship from them. However, I've tried them, and they are really good, so please read on without worry, it's not product placement, hehe~
Aili and I set off from Qingdao and Shenzhen respectively to meet in Xiamen. We booked the Indigo Hotel opposite the ferry terminal, which is convenient for heading to Gulangyu Island the next day and offers an unobstructed view of the stunning sea.
After settling in, we set off.
First, strength training. As everyone knows, Cat Bro is a Virgo who is very strict with himself, doing at least 1.5 hours of strength training every day, no matter where he is. So, in the artistic Xiamen, the iron-lifting girl gets into the groove!
After lifting weights, feeling refreshed. It happened to be a beautiful day in Xiamen with blue skies and blue seas, so we went for a run, letting the sweet Codoon voice say, 'You have run X kilometers, great job,' along the seaside of Xiamen.
After lifting weights and running, dopamine comes uninvited. As the sun sets, our stomachs start to 'gurgle' with hunger.
Yes, next is a wonderful dinner. A friend from Xiamen took us to taste the local specialty, Taiwan Han Palace Ginger Duck. Of course, we went to the most distinctive restaurant. It is said that the duck is selected from authentic Muscovy ducks and cooked with more than a dozen precious Chinese herbs, which is beneficial to health. Without further ado, let's pick a few dishes and show you the pictures:
10:30, we set off from the Cruise Center Xiamen-Gulangyu Terminal to the Neicuo'ao Terminal on Gulangyu Island, a journey of about 20 minutes. You can choose to buy a hot drink and sit in the VIP seat at the bow for a better view. During the voyage, the sky was still a bit overcast, looking forward to the blue sky and white clouds later.
No guide, no strategy, just follow our instincts after disembarking. We wandered around the island and entered the first shop—Sugar Cat. It had vibrant colors, delicious candies, and rose caramel honey, and a clean, sunny young man. What attracted me the most was the word 'cat' in its name.
Eating candy and drinking tea at Sugar Cat, time flew by, and it was lunchtime. We found a restaurant that looked good, called YIKO, and walked in. Maybe it wasn't the peak tourist season, or maybe many people prefer to eat local snacks and street food on the island, so this seemingly expensive but actually not restaurant was all ours.
Sitting by the window, watching the tourists outside walking and stopping, or couples taking wedding photos, eating until we were 60-70% full, it was really nice.
After lunch, we continued walking aimlessly. Tasting some local snacks on the island, drinking a glass of juice, then a cup of coffee, sending a few postcards, talking to the cats everywhere, reading the stories of each piano in the Piano Museum, listening to the pianist play, it was relaxing and pleasant.
For afternoon tea, we chose a clean and bright shop. Listening to music, reading a book, daydreaming.
After afternoon tea, we took a boat from Sanqiutian Terminal to the Ferry Terminal, a journey of less than 5 minutes. Across the road was our hotel. After a simple rest, we set off for dinner.
The meaning of travel is not to follow a guide and visit every place, but to go with the flow and leave the most beautiful memories.
After breakfast, we took a high-speed train to Shenzhen, a 4-hour journey. After arriving in Shenzhen, Aili went home to rest and change his running and photography gear for the Hong Kong Marathon, while I visited my old workplace, Huawei.
As night fell, we crossed the border to Hong Kong separately and checked into the Marco Polo Hotel, which is very close to the starting point. Since the Hong Kong Marathon was the next day, we chose to finish dinner around 7 PM, opting for light, easily digestible, and carbohydrate-rich foods like porridge, noodles, rice, and vegetables, and fruit juice.
After dinner, we did some street photography near Harbour City, here's a treat for you~
Of course, the night before the Hong Kong Marathon was also a Saturday, and we couldn't miss the 'Black Cat Arrives' live broadcast from 8:50 to 10:20 PM every Wednesday and Saturday. So, we started on time, sharing our exercise tips with everyone~
Since Aili and I were in the challenge group starting at 6:10 AM, we arrived at the preparation area around 5:15 AM.
Warming up, storing our bags, it was still a bit cold in Hong Kong at 5 AM, so we put on disposable raincoats for warmth and slowly moved towards the starting point with the early crowd. At this time, you will notice that the runners participating in the Hong Kong Marathon are all well-equipped and well-prepared. There are many things to learn from them.
The host warmed up the crowd, and the atmosphere kept rising before the start. Finally, with the countdown, we started!
It was still dark, and the bustling Hong Kong during the day was still asleep. But it was the sixteenth day of the first lunar month, and looking up at the sky, we could see a round moon, so beautiful. Our body temperature gradually rose, and we started to sweat a little, so we took off the disposable raincoats and, for the sake of the environment, put them in Aili's backpack instead of throwing them on the roadside.
The sky gradually brightened, and we saw the most beautiful sunrise and morning glow on the Hong Kong Marathon course.
Known as the 'Three Bridges and Three Tunnels,' the Hong Kong Marathon lived up to its name. Shortly after starting, we began to climb. I even started to look forward to the upcoming hills, haha.
There were many hand-drawn signs on the course, cheering and giving tips, showing the organizers' dedication. Of course, there were also cute little chicken volunteers.
We ran into Henry, the triathlon prince, who ran the Hong Kong 100 with us last month. We ran together for a while. After finishing, we learned that Henry fell due to the crowded course and a bump on the roadside, but he simply treated it and continued to finish. According to statistics, 63,582 people participated in this year's Hong Kong Marathon, with 826 injuries, including 516 needing wound dressing, 159 cramps, 78 blisters, and 64 sprains... So, the importance of running safely and healthily should be emphasized more.
Although many people think the bridges in the Hong Kong Marathon are tough, I found them great. It was like training during the race, and we could take beautiful photos, killing two birds with one stone. Now, let's look at Aili's long legs on the bridge.
Let's take a look at the course, divided into several lanes, with runners encouraging and cheering each other, making it very lively.
On another bridge, we ran into Brother Zhou from last year's Shenzhen Marathon 530 group. This time, he wore a police horse costume to achieve a personal best, and he succeeded, improving by 118 seconds!
You would never guess what Brother Zhou said to me first: 'Cat Bro, are you full?' Covering my face... But I was really trying hard to eat.
I also heard that the Hong Kong Marathon has very strong and delicious supplies, like the sports drink in my hand, bananas, and various snacks, so I didn't bring any supplies. Some might ask, for such a tough course, didn't you prepare energy gels or salt tablets? Really, I didn't. I didn't carry a waist bag, phone, or supplies, just went light!
The course is really beautiful, and of course, it needs long legs.
Entering the tunnel, runners couldn't help but start shouting. My photochromic sports glasses were great at this time, not needing to take off sunglasses due to the dim light in the tunnel, and they would adjust to the light when exiting the tunnel, thumbs up.
Out of the tunnel, we started climbing another beautiful bridge, and of course, took beautiful photos. Did you see my bling-bling Codoon number bib buckle?
One moment a beautiful girl in a wonderful time, the next moment... blowing my pride and indulgence, look at my little hat brim...
Here, I want to mention a point, which is the supply around 33 km. I ate the best cherry tomatoes I've ever had, but I only ate three, crying... So, until the finish line, I regretted not going back for more. This reminded me of the Donghai Grand Canyon 50 km trail last month, where a volunteer gave me an orange around 30 km, which was also the best orange I've ever had. This should be a rare and special taste of running marathons!
I particularly liked an advertisement board, so we stopped again (I don't remember how many times we stopped because of the beautiful scenery) to take a photo.
A powerful cat~
Ahead, entering another tunnel...
Out of the tunnel, we could see the beautiful coastline again, with sightseeing yachts drawing a line on the sea.
After running along this coastline, we entered a construction section. To give everyone a full dynamic view of the Hong Kong Marathon, I struck a pose here, still with the cat's mysterious smile.
After running a bit more, we entered the final stage of the Hong Kong Marathon, where we saw a beautiful Ferris wheel, and my girlish heart exploded~
A particularly great little band, couldn't help but join in, following my left hand, right hand, a slow motion~
About 2 km from the finish line, the cheering crowds on both sides of the road grew larger, pushing the event to its climax. From a photo taken by an official photographer, you can see Aili running the entire course with a camera, carrying several lenses and a flash in his backpack. I just want to say, course photographers are common, but good course photographers are rare, and those who can run with a camera are truly awesome!
We ran, ate, took photos, and played all the way, and before we knew it, we reached the finish line. The blue and green track made us extra excited, but we really didn't have enough running, or rather, we hadn't had enough fun. So, while other runners rushed to the finish line, we slowed down and used the camera to capture our beautiful and handsome selves at the end (proud face), haha.
Finally, we reluctantly finished the race, kissing my medal.
Aili's finish photo~
At the finish line, there were various high-end cameras and equipment to help runners capture the most exciting memories.
At the finish line, we met some Codoon friends, like these two. Following the private message chain to their sports circle, they said they saw the real Cat, and it was indeed big and perky... hahaha, Cat Bro wants to say, eye-catching!
The exciting Hong Kong Marathon ended happily, so much so that we were still reminiscing on the way back to the hotel. Along the way, there was laughter, beautiful scenery, delicious food, chatting with photographers and volunteers, singing and dancing with the band, high-fiving and cheering with the citizens, taking photos with other runners... I think I will come to the Hong Kong Marathon every year until I collect all 12 zodiac medals.
We arrived at the hotel at 12:30 PM, and we needed to be at Shenzhen Radio Station by 3 PM to participate in the 'Burn Fat' program on Pioneer 898. So, we took a shower, put on makeup, packed our luggage, and checked out at 1 PM. Pulling the suitcase out of the hotel at that moment, I really admired myself for being a tough guy!
Taxi, eat, cross the border, arrive at the radio station, just in time, 3 PM. After a brief communication with the program host, we took a short break. From 4 PM to 5 PM, we had a smooth one-hour program, sharing my sports stories and the just-finished Hong Kong Marathon. Here, let me share a fresh female host with you~
The article will come to a temporary end here. If I continue writing, I could talk for three days and nights. There are still too many stories worth sharing and reminiscing about along the way.
This year, there are still many events waiting for me to challenge, and many beautiful things worth looking forward to.
Where is your next stop?
