i left my heart ...

I was in San Francisco this past week for a medical school interview.

Everyone warned me that I would fall in love when I least expected it. And I did.

Unfortunately, not with a man. But with the city. And the state. And the sunshine.

Pray tell, East Coasters, why do we live here amongst the career focused, money hungry, stressed out masses simmering in such cacophany? I know I am romanticizing the lovely Bay Area, especially since I was a relative virgin to its seductive wares. But the city mesmerized me with good weather and friendly people.

Rather than bore you with the minutae, I will just tell you that I spent four days with one of my closest friends, who is a graduate student at Stanford. We drove all around the place, had good food and great conversations. We hiked (sort of) and took a tour of wine country (perhaps the most beautiful scenery in these here United States). I did notice the following things:

• People are pretty darn healthy out in California. They hike and run and play tennis instead of Nintendo. They wear less makeup. I stood out like a sore thumb as I get winded climbing a set of stairs and swear by lip gloss as if it's the elixir of life.
• Sun makes me happy.
• They're not kidding about the, um, diversity of San Fran. My last day there, I took the BART (public transport) to the airport. A transgendered/transsexual/i-have-no-idea-what-the-correct-terminology-is teenage boy (with lipstick and a hybrid outfit consisting of jeans with a skirt on top and some kind of muumuu blouse) sat next to me. Suddenly s/he said "I loooove your hair." Huh? I thanked him and told him I was contemplating what to do with it. But the salient point here was that s/he was nice and pointed me in the right direction to the airport.

So, ladies and gents, I loved California. My interview went well, but as always it's a big crapshoot and I still have no idea where the heck I will be next year. Exciting? Yes. Frustrating? HELL yes.

Here are some pics for your viewing pleasure:

At a winery in Sonoma. The two wine glasses are shown to illustrate the color differences for wines aged in cork barrels vs. stainless steel barrels. It may not seem like it, but you can tell quite easily once made aware of the difference.

The view of the Golden Gate Bridge from the med school library. That's right. The LIBRARY.

I know I will end up where I'm supposed to be ... but wouldn't it be nice to look at that, like, every day? I loved California so much that I am going back next month. My family and I are going to do the drive along the Pacific Coast Highway from LA to San Fran.

*~*~

Random aside. I went on a pseudo-date (friend of a friend, not really a date but kind of a date. Know what I mean? I bet many of you do) a few weeks ago. The dude was desi. An ABCD, second generation, what have you. Just like me. Or so I thought. Until he asked me when I moved to the States. I stared at him and told him I was born and raised in New York. And then he asked me why I still speak with an Indian accent. Oy vey. Or should I say, Aree Yaar!