A Long, Long Way To Run

...you can contact me through my blog, my personal email, via facebook, or at mobilemarypoppins@gmail.com. Thank you all for your support so far!!

Dear Lincoln, Lilliana, Leni, Juliana, Evyn, Jack, Faye, Chloe, Emerson, Lake, Rita, Ella, Violet, and Poppy,

Bonjour! I am still living in Paris, having such great adventures, and really loving life. Much has happened since I last wrote to you. Violet has a new sister... welcome to the world, Poppy! Ella has moved to Germany with her family, which is not too far from me so I hope to see them soon. I saw Lincoln’s mom recently, I met a good friend of Juliana’s family in October, and Chloe’s mom is visiting in a few weeks. It helps keep me feeling closer to you all!

I’m writing to tell you about an exciting thing I did last Sunday. I ran a very, very long race. It was 26.2 miles. If you got off a plane at the airport (LAX) and ran to Malibu, that’s about how long I ran! It took me 5½ hours. I had hoped to do it in a slightly shorter time than that, but after 22 miles my legs were so sore I could hardly run anymore and I had to walk most of the rest of the way to the finish line.

The race was called the Paris Marathon (or, as they say in French, le Marathon de Paris). It’s held every year, in April, in Paris. People come from all over the world to run in it. 40,000 people ran this year. Can you imagine that many people all trying to run down the street?! They had to make sure all the streets were closed off to cars. And lots of people came to support the runners. They stood by the side of the road with flags, cheering. It was great. I never felt too tired for most of the race because of all the great energy coming from people in the crowd cheering me on. Because I had my name on my shirt, lots of people were shouting my name, too!

I wish I could have taken more photos of all the fun stuff I saw on the way, but I was too busy running!

Some of my new Paris friends (Jim, Sasha, Ben, Antoine, Alison, Emily, Hugues, Esther, Pierre, and Paul) came out to support me and cheer me on, and Dianne flew all the way from Chicago to come and be my number one cheerleader. She was amazing, helping me prepare before the race and giving me lots of tips, and she even ran for a few minutes with me near the end when I was feeling really tired. I can’t imagine how I would have done it without her. She was also my official photographer for the day!

The race started very early in the morning and it was freezing cold. I had a big shiny wrapper, like a massive piece of aluminum foil, to wrap around me to keep me warm. It’s amazing stuff. Although it’s really thin, because it’s so shiny it reflects the heat that leaves your body, and keeps it under the wrap to keep you warm.

I had to get into my place near the back of the big crowd of runners because I was going to be one of the slower ones. The fast people went to the front.

I did a big warm up, dancing to the music they were playing over the loudspeakers.

The man who won the whole race was from Kenya and he ran it in 2 hours and 5 minutes. Lots of his friends from Kenya also ran it in very fast times. When I was only half way around the course someone in the crowd was holding a big sign saying, “The Kenyans have finished already.” It made me laugh! Then I saw people holding a sign that said, “There’s beer at the end!” That made me laugh even more!

Getting over the start line was dangerous. Lots of people had worn cheap shirts and plastic wrappers to keep them warm and when we got going they just took them off and threw them onto the ground. It was like running on a sea of clothes!

Because the French use a metric system of measurements, they use kilometers instead of miles. There are about 1.6km in every mile. So at 22km I’d run just over 13.5 miles. I was feeling great.

The first time I saw Dianne in the crowds, I started to sprint towards her, I was so happy she was there.

Because I knew I had to keep running for five hours, I had a plan to run at a very steady pace. I knew I mustn’t try to go faster, even if I felt I wanted to, otherwise I would get too tired too early and possibly not be able to continue. I wore a backpack with lots of drinks and some snacks in it. I had to take a little drink every ten minutes. It’s very important to keep your body hydrated by drinking a little and often rather than drink big quantities all in one go. I had applesauce sachets and energy gels and chocolate to keep me going. And at 21 miles I also ate a cookie because I was really low in energy.

Crossing the finish line was an amazing feeling but I'd never been so tired in my whole life!

I couldn't believe I was still standing.

I was so happy to get my medal. Even if it was bright yellow and in the shape of a T-shirt (I’d imagined something more like an Olympic gold medal!)

I actually kind of got two medals because Dianne gave me a beautiful necklace with “26.2” on it (to show I’d run 26.2 miles) for finishing my race. I’ve worn it every day since the race so far.

I’m not kidding, kids, this was the hardest thing I’ve ever done, but I’m really proud of my achievement. It changed my life in so many ways, making me much stronger in my body and in my mind. I love running now and I hope I keep doing it for many years to come.

Although it was fun to do the run, I was also doing it for a very important reason. I asked people to sponsor me so I could raise money for a charity called Chain of Hope. They help sick children in Africa get heart operations that save their lives. You know how, if you got sick, your mom or dad could take you straight to the hospital and make you better? Well, in Africa there are many, many kids whose parents can’t do that. They need help. So I was raising money to try and help them. Here’s the link to the sponsorship page if you think you could spare a few dollars for those kids:

https://www.justgiving.com/susannahsaary/1

The reason this was such a big challenge for me is because I used to be so bad at running. Before October last year, I’d never run more than a couple of blocks before. It took me six months of really, really hard training. I honestly didn’t think I was going to do it sometimes. I nearly gave up. But I kept going and the whole experience showed me that if there is something you really want in life, you must never, ever give up. You have to keep going, no matter how painful and difficult it gets.

I hope you enjoyed reading about the marathon. Maybe some of you will run one someday. I recommend it; it’s an incredible experience!

Miss you all so much. Hope it’s not too long before I see you all again.

Gros bisous (that's French for lots of kisses to you!)

Susie

Mobile Mary Poppins Runs Paris Marathon

Dear Friends, Families, and Fans,

Thank you all for the wonderful support you have shown this project, by reading the blogs, sending me messages of support, and - of course - hosting me on my first tour and making it such a huge success.

Since relocating to Paris, I have been busy planning the next move for Mobile Mary Poppins. I wanted to do something more for children whose lives are at risk.

During the first half of 2011, I stayed with 16 different families, and I met 33 wonderful children – all of them currently healthy, and all of them lucky enough to be born to parents who would be able to get them the medical assistance they needed if they ever got sick.

Now I want to help families who are not in this fortunate position.

£4000 would save the life of just one child. Please help me to raise that.

On April 15, I will be running the Paris Marathon to raise money for Chain of Hope, a charity I learnt about a few months ago when I reconnected – quite by chance – with my very first childhood friend. Lisa Yacoub, who runs the London branch of the charity, and I met when we were 4 years old. I remember being in awe of her famous father, the heart surgeon Sir Magdi Yacoub, when I heard that he had discovered a way of saving the lives of babies born with heart defects; babies who otherwise would have died. And now, many years later, I have friends who only have their precious children with them today because of the life-saving heart surgery that was performed on them as babies. I cannot imagine a world without those adorable children in it.

This is a personal mission for me. I want to do it for the Yacoubs, for the children I know whose lives were saved by heart surgery, for the children I don’t know whose lives are at risk, and in memory of Diana, Princess of Wales, who loved Chain of Hope and often – usually without announcement – gave her personal time to sit with the children and read to them as they recovered from operations.

Before this year, I had never considered running a mile, let alone a marathon. There is no greater challenge I could have taken on. But I am motivated and determined to complete this race.

With all of my healthy heart, I thank you for giving generously to this cause and helping me raise enough money to save the life of one child.

With thanks,

Susie

Click here below to donate now:

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Paris: Practically Perfect in Every Way

...you can contact me through my blog, my personal email, via facebook, or at mobilemarypoppins@gmail.com. Thank you all for your support so far!!

WEEK 18

Dear Lincoln, Lilliana, Leni, Juliana, Evyn, Jack, Faye, Chloe, Emerson, Lake, Rita, Violet, and Ella,

This is a very special letter. You will find out why at the end of it. And you might find it’s a little longer than my previous letters. That’s because I had so many cool pictures to include in it!

This week I stayed Dario who is 7 and lives in Paris.

Paris is the capital city of France. France is a pretty big country in Europe, in between Switzerland and England. I went to acting school with Dario’s dad quite a long time ago and we hadn’t seen each other for years, so it was really nice to see him, and to meet his super cool son, Dario.

I got to Paris quite late at night. I was very tired and Dario was already at school when I woke up. The apartment is on the 7th floor (although it’s the 6th in Paris because they call the 1st floor the “Ground” floor and the 2nd floor the 1st floor... which makes things very confusing sometimes!) I could not believe the beautiful view I saw from the bathroom window. You can see The Sacré-Cœur, which means The Sacred Heart in French.

I couldn’t wait to go out and explore. First I checked out the area where Dario lives. I went to see what the Sacré-Cœur looks like up close.

It is high up on a hill in a very famous place called Montmartre.

Montmartre is famous for its beautiful buildings, and cafés and restaurants.

It's also where many artists have always lived and worked...

It's also famous for having lots and LOTS of stairs!

It’s okay if you don’t feel like walking, though, because this little train (le petit train) will take you on a guided tour!

In the afternoon, I went to see some of the very famous sights of Paris.

Like the Notre-Dame de Paris (which means Our Lady of Paris), which is a big famous cathedral that has been seen in many films.

And the Panthéon...

And the Louvre, which is one of the most famous art museums in the world!

And the Arc de Triomphe, which is one of the biggest monuments I’ve ever seen. You can go to the top and look down, but you know what I’m like with heights. And there was no one around to make me go, so I stayed on the ground!

I got my very first glimpse of the Tour Eiffel (that’s the Eiffel Tower) from the Place de la Concorde, which is one of the scariest places I’ve ever been. There are cars coming at you from all directions, and the French drive as if they are in a video game and they’ll score points for hitting pedestrians!

I stopped to have a picnic lunch in a park and noticed that people in France don’t like to work too hard. They like to take things a little easy. They take lots more holiday and vacation time than Americans. Maybe that’s why, on average, the French live longer than Americans!

All over Paris there are really cool signs to tell you about the history of Paris. The only trouble is, they are all in French. So it's really important to learn a bit of French before coming here.

On my way to the Tour Eiffel, I walked down a very important street with lots of international embassies on it, like this one, the Embassy for Iran.

And I also saw the embassy for New Zealand!

People come from all over the world to see Paris. I think this guy was from Scotland!

The French can be very fancy people, they like to dress nicely and have things very neat and tidy. Even homeless people make their beds!

When I finally got to the Tour Eiffel, I could not believe how big it is.

Under each leg there is room for a whole restaurant or café!

I stood right under the middle of it and looked up. I wasn’t going up there! This was close enough for me!

When I got back to the apartment it was time to go and pick Dario up from school. He was very pleased to see his Dad. He always gives him a huge hug.

They have a very cool way of getting around town... on a little Vespa scooter (it's like a motorcycle that’s easier to ride). Dario’s dad tells him he can only ride on the back if he wears his helmet!

Dario is very smart. He speaks three languages; French, English and Pirate. So far, though, he’s only been able to tell me two words in Pirate: “arghhh” and “rarghhh”. He also knows six different ways to meditate and taught me all of them.

He is so good at building Lego models. I think he can build just about anything!

The next day, I took Dario to a different school where he does some classes in English (his normal school is all in French, and I’m not sure when he goes to Pirate school).

After that we had the whole day to hang out together so we went to this great park with loads of things for kids to do. On the way to the park we noticed Waldo in the window of a big building.

Instead of playing Where’s Waldo, I played Where’s Dario. Dario is actually very easy to spot because of his cool hair. It is the coolest hair I’ve ever seen, it is bright red, the color of fire. I love it so much I died some of my hair that color too!

See if you can play Where’s Dario in these pictures...

Hmm, I seem to have lost him here...!

Dario loves playing this game of catching ducks.

We saw some cool robots...

And then we went to watch a movie about space in this amazing dome. There’s a movie theater inside it!

On the way to see the movie we saw this real helicopter inside the building!

When we got home I made a little dinner party for Dario’s dad and some of his friends (who are my friends now, too!)

While I was busy preparing food, Dario was busy making a pretend Mobile Mary Poppins out of some of my stuff!

The next day, Dario went on vacation with his Mom but I stayed in Paris to do some more exploring.

In Paris, like in most cities, there are many people can’t afford to take their kids on vacation, so the City of Paris does a very nice thing. It brings a vacation to them! It’s called “Paris Plages” which means “Paris Beaches” and all along the river, there are big areas with sand, and swimming pools.

It was a shame I didn't have Dario with me to talk to some of the pirates on this ship!

They have art and games for kids to do and it is all free!

And then I saw the biggest sandcastle I have ever seen!

You'll never guess who built it... I think it was Mickey and Minnie Mouse. Here they are having a rest!

Of course the real Mickey and Minnie had gone back to Disneyland Paris!

Everyone was having such a great time at the Paris Plages. I even saw some people playing Pétanque, which is a really great game that Lincoln and I learnt last year when we were in Palm Springs!

I really loved these giant plant pots...

And there were these water fountains everywhere. Paris is very proud of having great water to drink (which is unusual in many cities these days).

There are these really great misting showers. Giant showers that let out great clouds of tiny droplets of water. I saw some kids have the best time playing in them.

The next day, Dario's dad took me to a party in a beautiful old French town.

I was very excited when I saw the house where the party was going to be held. It was very beautiful and I thought it looked a little big for one family.

Well it would be big for a normal family, but this family has 10 children!!! That's right... 10! If you've ever seen The Sound of Music... that is exactly what this family is like. When I saw the drums outside on the patio, that was my first clue.

Every kid in this family plays a different instrument!

They also have their own theater built into the basement.

They have lots of space to play outside.

Inside, they were all allowed to choose a different color to paint their bedroom in. They were allowed any color they wanted!

It was too hard to get all the kids together for one photo, so I took a photo of a photo of them!

And later I got some of them dancing.

It was a big party and they all stayed up far too late and ended up sleeping on the couch!

Before I came to Paris, I didn't think it would be the best place for kids because there are so many old buildings and museums and things that adults prefer to do. But I was wrong. Paris is brilliant for kids. Especially in the summer when the weather is good.

And if you're American and you're missing American food, you can go to this store that stocks lots and lots of American food!

You always see people doing cool things in Paris. Like dressing up as clowns...

...and they have some interesting ways of getting around!

There are lots of street musicians, so Paris is always full of music...

...and they are very patriotic so there are plenty of French flags flying (though not quite as many as Switzerland!)

But you are not going to believe what I saw next... I could hardly believe my eyes. I was out walking one day and I thought I saw something I recognized. But it couldn't be! Could it?!

Wait! I was definitely still in Paris, right? I hadn't just suddenly been transported to New York had I?

No... there was the Tour Eiffel behind me...

So what was going on?!

Yes, kids, this is an exact replica of The Statue of Liberty. It was given to France by the United States in thanks for the original statue in New York that was a gift from the French to the Americans.

Later that day, I saw this statue and I wondered who it could be.

It was George Washington, the first President of the United States.

This was given to the French people by American women for helping the Americans in the War of Independence against England... so I guess, America and France really do have a long-standing, close friendship, even if they don't always get along all the time!

I'll tell you something that is nothing like America, and that is the shopping malls. This one is inside a huge dome with beautiful balconies.

And you can go all the way to the top and see an amazing view over the whole of Paris. Does it remind you of the roof tops that Mary Poppins walked along with Bert and the children?!

Paris is a really popular location for film shoots. I saw these people making a movie...

...they'd parked an old car in the middle of the sidewalk! You see some pretty unusual things on the streets of Paris.

I walked through a place where there were all these big bubbles. I couldn't imagine what they were.

They were little art museums with art inside each pod!

I saw another reminder of the Statue of Liberty, but this place is quite a sad one. This is where Princess Diana (mother of Prince William and Prince Harry) died in a car crash.

At the entrance to this tunnel is a replica of the flame of the real Statue of Liberty. It is a full-scale replica, which means that the flame is the exact size as the real one.

In French it is called Flamme de la Liberté

One of the most surprising things about Paris, is how small it is. You can walk anywhere. Just to give you some idea, if you look very closely at this photo, you will see the dome of The Sacré-Cœur in the distance. And I'm standing on the opposite side of Paris here!

But probably my favorite thing about Paris, is the river that runs through it. It is called The Seine and it is quite small and there are so many interesting things to see because you can walk along the river path, away from the cars and the roads, and there are loads of foot bridges over it.

Sometimes the river splits and there are little islands in the middle of it.

This was my favorite bridge because you could sort of walk up inside it from the river bank.

And all along it, people had locked padlocks onto the bridge. This is a tradition that people do in Paris when they are in love. They "lock" their love onto the bridge forever!

Some people get pretty serious about it and have a special lock made!

And the river banks make great places to display art. There was an exhibition of structures all the way down the river that I loved looking at and taking pictures of!

Every Sunday in Paris lots and lots of people meet to skate around the city. They get their skates on and the roads get closed, and off they go. It is SO much fun. This was one of my favorite days in Paris.

Some people wear some crazy costumes. On their bodies, their heads...

... and their skates!

Going through this tunnel was one of the scariest things I’ve ever done. You go so fast on the downhill slope, then you have to work really hard to get up the uphill slope.

On another day, a new friend of mine took me to a Flea Market. You know how much I LOVE markets. This one had lots of old things...

...and some slightly younger things. This one really made me laugh!

I saw some pretty cool things in the market.

These are lacrosse sticks. Lacrosse is a game I used to play at high school.

And this is a French globe. If you look really carefully, you’ll see Los Angeles on it. And how the French write The United States (États-Unis) and North America (Amérique Du Nord).

But the best thing I saw was probably this dog. Her name is Holly and she’s from Australia. So that’s two Hollys I know from Australia (do you remember Holly and her sister, Chloe, who took me camping near Sydney?)

And now it's time for me to tell you why this is a rather special letter. It's because this is going to be my last letter to you for the moment. I wish I could keep traveling and writing about my travels like this, but for now I have to work on another book and I’ve decided to stay in France while I do that. I love it so much here and I want to learn how to speak French. It’s also a great place for me to live while I am writing because the beauty of Paris really inspires me. It is the city where many great artists and writers created their works and I’m hoping some of the magic might rub off on me!

There are so many more countries I was invited to visit and I’m not ruling out the possibility that I might do a “second tour” next year sometime. In the meantime, if I do end up somewhere exciting (and there is one place I’m thinking of that is kind of on the cards) I will try and do a special letter from there.

And soon, hopefully, you’ll be able to buy the first Mobile Mary Poppins book.

I hope you've enjoyed reading about my adventures as much as I've enjoyed having them. I’m really quite sad to be saying goodbye for now. I have had the most incredible journey, in so many ways. I have met lifelong friends, young and old. I thank all of you who welcomed me into your homes and all of you who have been reading the letters. Your emails of support have always made me smile. Most of all I have to thank Lincoln, who very first gave me the idea to travel the world like this and meet lots of kids so that we'd know people in lots of different countries.

I will do my best to come back to LA for a visit soon.

Maybe some of you can come and visit me in Paris. It’s my birthday coming up and it would be the best birthday present ever to see any of you who could make it!

So for now I have to say “au revoir” (which is French for “until I see you again”). But I must leave you with some extra photos of Paris so you can see all the beauty that surrounds me, and why I feel so incredibly lucky and happy to be able to live here for a while. It’s a truly special place.

Maybe it was when I saw this beautiful stretch of roof tops that I thought this could be the perfect place for Mary Poppins to hang up her umbrella for a while...

...and just be Susie again. A very, very happy Susie!

All my love to you all, always,

Susie xxxx