Clementine and tangerine..

The name of the post has nothing whatsoever to do with the post. I just came to know today that they call the small oranges clementines and the larger ones tangerines in America. Clementine was also Kate Winslet's name in Eternal Sunshine of the spotless mind...... (its funny how these things just stick to memory while a "simple" thing like the Pumping Lemma doesn't).........apart from which the musical and magical sound of the word itself has made it "one of my favorite things".
We had a long weekend half of which was spent in tackling a head cold and treating myself to all possible remedies for a quick recovery. Thats the way Tucson is nowadays....... as if it has no control on its mind, the sun is brilliantly shining in the sky and wherever the rays can reach are warm ...even hot, but wherever the shadows have stolen their place there is the chilliest of winds......... so as you walk between the shadows and the sun , you spend your time alternating between whether to wear the jacket or to take it off.

Weather talk usually means someone is either opening a conversation , or being pleasant or has nothing else to say. I am wondering which I should leave it at. :)

December 31st: We checked out of the hotel Hollywood Inn at LA finally by noon. And then it was back to the highways and wide lanes and speeding cars ........ This time the mountains had almost crept up on us, so that the highway was a winding road and when it finally gave way....you felt you were over-looking the valley. The day was cloudy ........ so the ocean on the right as you drove didn't actually shimmer in the sun-rays ........ they just lay there...limitless , a dull grey and blue ...merging with the sky in the distance.
We wanted to drive by the ocean ...... coming from Arizona, the immensity of the oceans and "water water everywhere" suddenly overwhelms you :). It was thus that we chanced upon Oceanside, a small harbor. The harbor was closed and all the boats/ships were towed in line.....each one painted in blue or red stripes. There was a very cozy looking coffee shop by the sea and thats where we settled down for brunch. If not anything else, this seemed to be the right-out-of-the-story-book part. I remember I had french fries, buttered buns, and tea. There was another family with new year hats and whistles, and we overhead them saying "we started early". :) If anywhere, I can say,............... time could just stop there and you wouldn't know where it went....it was such a picture-perfect place !
San Diego routes gave us a tough time even with Google-Yahoo maps and we finally landed up pretty tired at home. We tried our luck in the evening to go searching for Sea-port village but we missed it. New-years's eve.......we ended up in downtown San Diego. For lack of enthu to spend the night partying in one of the new year bashes, we decided we would atleast eat our dinner at an Indian restaurant. Thats how we finally landed up in Star of India. Paneer Butter Masala, Naans, Navrathna Kormas....(and I am forgetting the dinner menu surprisingly :)) topped off with Kheer which tasted like a watery rice pudding.
Once back at the hotel, Vanita and I dropped off to sleep with plans of getting up before midnight. As new year approached we sat and made our new year resolutions one by one around the room - four of us who had not even known of each other's existence just six months back.
I didn't remember then ...but now there are so many new years which flash before my eyes......dancing around bonfires with all my batch-mates in hostel..... trying to keep the fire alive with newspapers, first we as the junior most batch, then one where we were the senior most........ another new-year at home watching the new year TV shows with my family............

and I am left wishing ....I wish I had realized the values of those moments then as well.

New Year..... was get up in a hurry, get dressed , check out of the hotel and on the road to sea- world. I remember my brother being amazed at the size of the parking space. We were too. You can see the Atlantis ride from the ticket lines itself. It was the ride which would supposedly get us drenched and was scary.
Once in, we had a map and it was pretty similiar to Universal Studios, run run run to catch all the shows. The first we made it to was the dolphins. We met them in a water tank on the way with me falling in love with one of them who simply insisted on posing for me. The otters were also having quite a time of their lives in another passing pool, banging the glasses with their play-pipes.
Then first the dolphins show and then the killer-whale show.......... :) I don't think there is a moment that you can close your mouth or not blink. They are so amazing to watch. The shows are entertaining in themselves but the way Shyamu (the killer whale), Duncan (wow! am I good at names) and the rest of the dolphin troupe bowled you over with being so life-like ..........top that with their sky jumps and somersaults in the air. What was best about it all........ they seemed to enjoy it as much as we were. And I am sure you could actually make out all of them were smiling and having the time of their lives....... if not only for the ounces of food that they got after every trick.
There was a sea-lion show as well where it was equally tough to make out the sea-lions from the actors. They did miss their cue here and there but you should just sit there and watch them waddling on land on their fins......and its bound to make you smile. I am smiling even as I remember them.
These were the first times that I was overflowing with pride for my camera. I am very bad at choosing electronic gadgets but that day I could have wished for no other camera.

There were rides as well, flight simulator show to explore the arctic, and walking through penguins and polar bears. And there was Atlantis. I'll specially remember this roller-coaster if not others. It is one of those "come-down from a great height straight into the water and then continue as a roller-coaster nearly tilting you out thing". It was also the ride where for the first time I just let go and trusted the ride not to let me fall. And there was no fear. I am sorry if this is stating the obvious ..........
I have always pulled people with me on scary rides before (I pulled my father behind me when I was in my eighth standard on the Appu Columbus in Delhi Appu Ghar, and he nearly died of a heart attack ).......and it has always been a joke in the family that no sooner than the ride starts that I start laughing a nervous laughter which is probably the reason behind my courage (it supposedly releases my fear)......Other escapades have been my mother and me on Tora-tora, a class-picnic to Nicco Park in Kolkata where half the class ended up vomitting after a ride on My fair Lady..... and probably the last one in India was the 360 degree turning thing that Anshuman, Deepu, Vishnu's brother and I landed up on. At the top of that ride, its only the chair-rests that are holding you in place and you keep wondering how much weight it has been tested to support and hope and pray that you fall well below it. Well at that point , hanging and looking at the world upside down there is nothing much you can do but leave it all in god's hands
that if this is the moment then so be it. :) Its more like you give up. I remember answering that "yes i was alright" in response to one of their questions bcoz it seemed I had gone extremely quiet. I won't make a long tale out of it........ yes it was scary and no, my nervous laughter I guess got too frightened to take care of my fear this time.

Maybe that was the fear factor that made me immune or maybe this time I just left myself and put all my trust on the seat holders of Atlantis and ...... I didn't feel scared. And it felt really good to have trusted and in having been repaid in that trust bcoz thats not what always happens in real life.
Too philosophical ........ well going on from there, we had lunch at a place which had these delicious rich chocolatey desserts all arranged in front and for the first time I did not indulge myself .

After we left Sea-world, we went on to Sea-port village. Another try and this time we got it. Its a very sweet little place by the sea in downtown San Diego. The first which struck us and we went on to ride was a straight out of the Noddy book style merry-go-round complete with its own music as long as it went around, and horses which went up and down on their poles. :) There were all these shops .....like little cottages with warm inviting lights especially as it had started to rain. Vanita and I finally succumbed to Ben and Jerry's ice-creams. I had chocolate fudge brownie which is a dark chocolate ice-cream with soft brownies in-between and which was heaven to me while it lasted.

We spent the night at a friend's place, next morning a short trip to the Black beach among winds ready to wash you off your feet. But the shoreline was very pretty with the waves washing over it. Then on to the mall which is designed very prettily and is an outdoor mall. And we decided we will start our ride back to Tucson.

The journey back had sand-dunes, and lunch-tea at a place way in the desert. (much like our dhaba but not-quite with the same warmth). I slept for most part of the journey. We finally trouped back home at 8-9 in the night. Exhausted from a vacation break but I am sure all of us were satisfied and happy......... the happiness that enjoyment without any tension brings ....or which comes from a trip to a new place, seeing new faces, just a change ........