Giants Game at Levis Stadium

I've never watched American football and don't have any clue how it is played. Yet, when Vishnu's company gave us tickets to watch the Giants game, I decided to go anyway. I just wanted to get the feel of watching a live game at a stadium.

We reached the stadium a little early fearing traffic. Since we had reserved parking, everything was a breeze. This was my first time visiting Levis stadium and I was so impressed how big it was. VMWare has a special suite so we went up there. It was so comfortable and the view from the top was wonderful.

We spent time clicking pictures and grabbing some high priced tasteless food from the food court.

The game began and I had a tough time following what was going on. Vishnu had to explain the rules and by half time I had some idea of the game. It didn't help that the Giants (the home team) were playing terribly. Most of the people left much before the game ended as it was pretty clear who the winner was going to be. We stayed until the end.

Bollywood Dance

I haven't danced since the final year of college. But I always wanted to learn how to dance. When I heard about Mona Khan Dance Company from my SIL, I was eager to give it a chance. I signed up right away.

It was a 8 week session with an hour long class each week. It being a performance quarter, we also had a technical rehearsal before the final performance. The first day I reached class, I was very excited as well as scared whether I'd be able to grasp the steps. The teacher, Shipali introduced herself as well as the assistant teacher, Dhanashri. She told us we were going to learn the choreography for two songs-Rock the party (I had never heard the song before) and High heels.

I was exhausted after the first class especially since I hadn't been doing any cardio for a while. The teacher recorded the last 5 mins of the class and sent over a detailed email on the steps that we learnt in class along with the video recording. This was super helpful in remembering the steps.

After the first few classes, all the students decided to meet on the weekend to practice. It was fun meeting at a different house each week and dancing. There was a lot of food and chit chat along with the practice. It was quite tough to get everyone to come at a common time but we tried.

On the last class, we had a dress rehearsal.

We then had the tech rehearsal at Chabot college in Hayward. It gave us the exact feel of the final performance day. It was useful to mark our positions on stage and to get over the stage fear a little.

On the final performance day, Vishnu, SIL and BIL all came to watch the show.

I was pumped and happy about my hair, makeup and overall look.

When our performance started, there was some difficulty with the stage curtain and we had to stop and restart. That was a little unsettling but we managed to give a superb performance. Everyone gave their best and I'm very happy with the final result. Our 8 weeks of hard work showed and I surprised myself with my performance.

I've signed up for the next session (non performance) and I'm looking forward to improving my skills and learning some fun steps.

Redwood Canopy Ziplining Tour

Ziplining in the Redwoods is an amazing experience. It was on my to-do list for a long time so when Anne mentioned she is interested in trying it out, I jumped at the opportunity right away. We picked a weekend and booked the tour. Did not regret it at all.

This activity is arranged by Mt Hermon Adventures in Santa Cruz. They have 3 different activities The one we chose was called Redwood canopy tour in which we zipline through 6 lines and cross two aerial bridges. Its a 2 hour activity and can accommodate up to 8 people at a time. They have several slots available so it should be fairly easy to get a booking. It costs $89-$99 per head depending on the time of the year. It is pricey and there are no discounts available as far as I searched. I would say it is totally worth the price as the activity is conducted in a very organized manner with detailed instructions from experienced and friendly guides.

Anne, Nush and I in our gear

At our allocated time, Anne, Nush and I arrived and were introduced to the two guides for the day. They helped with with the harness, gloves and helmet. All of them were super smelly so you will need to go home and shower! We practiced ziplining on a mini line just to get a feel of it and also to go over the basic safety protocols. Nothing too complicated.

Our awesome guide Mitch

The first one was very daunting. Walking across the aerial bridge onto the platform built on the tree was scary enough but from the platform when I looked down below it made me very nervous. At that point we were only 35 ft above the ground! I took a deep breath and without looking down, crossed my first line. When I reached the other end, I realized it was so simple and not at all scary. All the following ones felt easy and I actually looked around the trees and at the creek below. It was as if I was flying. A very exhilarating experience!

Walking across the aerial bridge

The highest one was 150 ft above the ground. The guides talked a little about the redwoods and the forest. They even kept throwing a challenge at each level like standing at the edge of the platform and leaning back which I was too chicken to try. They were nice enough to capture pictures for us as well. The last course does have a camera that automatically clicks pictures which you can purchase at the end of the tour.

It was time well spent and an activity that I enjoyed. They do have another tour which is like an obstacle course which looks very challenging as well as fun. That one's for another day!

What: Ziplining
Where: Mt Hermon Adventures, 17 Conference Dr, Felton CA 95018
When: Throughout the year
Cost: $89-$99

Lake Tahoe In Summer

This is a long overdue post. I took a trip to Lake Tahoe in August of last year and I have not yet blogged about it! It was such a memorable trip but soon after I started a new job and things got crazy.

Nutan, Jui and I planned this trip. We found a gorgeous cabin on airbnb and we were all set to go. Since our schedules were different, we all drove there individually. We started on Friday morning to avoid the traffic and reached there comfortably by afternoon. The rest of them got there pretty late in the evening. On the way we spotted at a few scenic spots as well as spent some time in Pope Beach.

Pope beach at sunset

Pope beach

The cabin was simply superb. Three bedrooms spread across two floors and a huge living room stacked with games and a keyboard. It was very well furnished. We spent the entire night talking, laughing and having a great time.

Cabin

The next morning we headed to the Zephyr cove beach, rented some beach chairs and sun umbrellas and spent the day there lazying and playing in the water. Vishnu and I even did parasailing which was scary initially but then super fun. The view from up top of the pristine water and mountains was gorgeous. Didn't take the camera so no pictures. In the evening, we went to Heavenly village to get some snacks and then returned to the cabin.

Zephyr Cove

Playing in Lake Tahoe

Beach chairs and Umbrellas rented at Zephyr cove

Snack stop at Heavenly Village

 

The next day morning, both of us rented out bicycles and biked on the bike trail along the beach. The dedicated bike trail meant no pedestrians or cars. It was an awesome experience. It wasn't very difficult although there were a few slopes for which I walked the bike. It was the first time I was biking such a long distance and I did quite well. Shortly after, we headed back home.

Biking Trail

 

Pope Beach

San Juan Bautista Mission

On the way back from our whale watching trip, we visited The Old Mission at San Juan Bautista. After watching the famous Hitchcock flick 'Vertigo', visiting the historic Spanish mission was on our list.

Outside the Church

 

San Juan Bautista

As soon as I reached there, I started looking for the bell tower featured in the movie, To my utter disappointment, the tower no longer exists. In fact, it did not exist even during the making of the film. Those scenes were shot on a set in a studio. The mission has a $3 entry fee.

Church

We saw the museum, the church and the gardens. As mentioned in my previous post, I was too drowsy from the tablet I had taken to pay any attention to the historical artifacts. I walked past them casting a quick glance.

Handwritten music books

Museum

I loved the gardens with all the colorful flowers and giant cacti. The stables and the Hall opposite to the museum have a separate entry fee so we skipped it.

Colorful flowers

We took a few pictures and headed to a nearby cafe to fight off our drowsiness with caffeine. The cafe, not surprisingly, was called 'Vertigo.' I chose to have the affogato and to my delight it was the best coffee I have ever had in my life! Everyone else also loved their coffee. For us, that coffee was the highlight of trip!

What: Old Mission at San Juan Bautista
Where: 406 2nd st San Juan Bautista CA
When: 9:30am-4:30pm
Fee: $3
 

Whale watching

Last weekend, I took my in-laws on a whale watching trip in Monterey. I knew they would find it interesting and fun. I personally wasn't too excited about it as I knew there is no guarantee of seeing the whales. Since I found a decent groupon deal, I decided to give it a shot.

I booked the trip through Seagoddess whale watching. A quick google search told me that morning tours have the best probability of seeing whales so I picked the 10am slot. It being the Gilroy garlic festival weekend, we started earlier at 7.45am to avoid traffic. To our surprise we didn't face any traffic and reached at 9am. There is plenty of parking although it costs $8!

We checked in and received our tickets. They offered us donuts and coffee. As I had heard that the waters can be choppy, we decided to take some sea sickness tablets. It was an overcast day with a heavy layer of smog about us (there was a very big forest fire in the Big Sur area that week). We wore several layers as we were told that it gets really windy and cold on the boat.

 

The cruise started on time and we kept our eyes peeled for whales only to be told by the marine biologist on board that we are quite a distance away until we actually locate them. On the way we saw otters, sealions, cormorants, seagulls and various migratory birds. The playful sealions could be easily mistaken for dolphins.

After about an hour, we reached the whale territory. Within minutes we spotted a humpback whale followed by a blue whale. We could see the splash caused by the whales coming out and then the huge grey/black body before it dived back in. It was an amazing site and hard to believe how large in size they were. There were a few babies too. It was so quick that it was hard to click any pictures. Anytime there was an announcement of a whale sighting in a particular direction, everyone ran to that side and crowded. That made it a little hard to actually see them unless I stood on my tip toes or elbowed my way to the front.

We then made our way back and reached back by noon. No sickness but a terrible drowsiness took over us which kind of ruined the rest of the day. We grabbed some lunch at a nearby restaurant and made our way to San Juan Bautista.

What: Whale watching
Where: Seagoddess whale watching 7881 Sandholt Rd, Moss Landing CA 95039
When: Multiple trips during the day
Cost: $45, cheaper if you get a Groupon

Gurdwara Sahib of San Jose

This weekend, our family outing was to the Gurdwara in San Jose. I had heard about it from many people but never got a chance to go there. In fact, BAO even conducted an event based on my suggestion last year but I got to go there only now.

The Gurdwara is about a 30 minute drive from Sunnyvale and is located on a hill. You get a great view of San Jose from up top. We reached there by noon. As soon as you enter, there is a place to leave your footwear and wash your hands. Entering the main prayer hall, we offered our prayers and sat down for a few minutes. A satsang in Punjabi was going on at the time. We then proceeded to the langar hall where lunch was being served. Grabbing a plate we stood in line, got the food and sat down to eat. Seniors and those who have difficulty sitting on the floor can sit at the tables.

The food was delicious and volunteers kept walking around serving more. After a satisfying meal we walked around clicking pictures and then made our way back home.

With my lovely In-laws

The noise caused by kids treating the place as a playground and adults socializing took away from the peaceful and meditative environment one expects from a holy place. The walls of the langar hall had a lot of posters explaining Sikhism and its tenets. It was an eye opener and I was amazed at how modern a religion it is. The teachings are very practical and are a good guideline to lead ones life by. The most impressive poster was the one which listed out the reasons why the Guru Granth Sahib is the most unique religious book. Some of the key points were as follows:

-Written by the original Gurus so there is nothing lost in translation or room for misinterpretation unlike other books which were compilations of word of mouth teachings.
-Followers consider the book as the ultimate truth and no one is worshipped above the book.
-Has a lot of different languages and dialects.
-Written in poetry form and has literary value
-Stress is on morals and value rather than miracles.

I'm very curious and will be taking up further reading about the book and the religion.

What: Gurdwara Sahib of San Jose
Where: 3636 Murillo Ave, San Jose CA
When: 24X7