Our move to San jose

We have moved to San Jose - heart of bay area, the silicon valley ! Anurag's transfer in Cisco has brought us here. Our new accommodation is great - pretty and plush. One can take a lot of pride being associated with Cisco here as they have a huge presence in this area. There are about 50 buildings in a stretch of 6-7 miles, a train station named Cisco way. Every where you go on Tasman Drive, its Cisco. Its also mini India here so no trouble feeling at home. Indian stores, Indian restaurants..............lots of choices.

Avi was lucky to get a spot in Cisco's preschool. Usually they run a long wait list. So far he likes it here. About me - no problems, its still California :) Anurag's work is demanding a lot of time so we have not gone out anywhere yet on weekends. I can't wait to see San Francisco. Hope to go there soon and write about it.

Avi's fourth birthday celebration in Disneyland

Avi turned 4 and we celebrated with a trip to Disneyland. I was skeptical if there was anything for the grown-ups to feel like they were at the 'happiest place on earth'. Anurag had told me about their famous customer service and how a lot of companies in service industry train their employees with Disney. It was quite evident from the minute we paid for the parking. Without exception every associate we met was tremendously polite, helpful and knew how to actually help us. Avi got special treatment with buttons pinned to his jacket which said 'Birthday Boy" and "happy birthday', a special ticket printed with 'happy birthday Avi' and the highlight was when on Mark Twain Riverboat , Captain offered Avi to take the ride in his cabin which was on the top. We all enjoyed the hospitality along the mighty river, watching the world go by from the deck of the gracious paddle wheeled Mark Twain. Avi even pulled the bell of the ship throughout the ride.
Avi was the happiest boy so far but I was still waiting for my happiest moments. It happened when we took the boat ride thru' 'its a small world' ride. It was magical and I am not ashamed of admitting that it captivated me. I loved it so much that I was ready to wait another hour for the second ride. Anurag convinced me that we should try something else which may leave me even more thrilled and though that ride proved to be my favorite thing in Disney, I loved 'Finding Nemo submarine voyage' and 'Alice in wonderland' too. Avi went on Star wars spaceship virtual ride twice and got a kick out of seeing R2D2 and PS3O navigating the spaceship. Yes, at 4 he is already a fan of Star wars and Anurag is not disappointed. We went to 'Autopia' and Avi got a 'driving license' and did pretty well driving the car (with a little help from daddy). He was a bit shy when shaking hands with 'Buzz Lightyear' but smiled for a picture anyway.
In the evening the castle looked unbelievable beautiful with snow lights. The main street , the Christmas tree, everything looked beautiful . Even though we were exhausted, we did not want to leave. It was special for Avi as it is and at the end of the day 'the happiest place on earth' left us very happy too.

A lovely winter morning

Thodi si zameen, thoda asman, tinkon ka bas ek ashiyan..... (थोडी सी ज़मीन , थोड़ा आसमान , तिनकों का बस एक आशियाँ - A bit of earth, a bit of sky , a bit of few things more for an abode)............ A group of teenage friends singing on the day of graduation from college - Saumya, Somali, Nidhi, Sandhya , Seema and I . We called ourseves 'Nisansotusalu' . It meant nothing, just the alphabets put together from everyone name and jumbled up in a way so it could at least be pronounced. The song we sang was special -hopes, dreams, aspirations and things as such.

The other day was a lovely winter morning so we went out to that church building opposite to our apartment where usually its quiet. They have swings in a circle shaped area and a big green pasture. So we went swinging for that's Neev's favorite thing to do. Later we played soccer with kids and went some more swinging. Sunshine kissed our faces as we swayed to the rhythm of going back and forth and I felt like singing that song. I did. Neev kind of liked it as was clear from his bent head against me, a sign of falling asleep. I glanced at Avi and Anurag playing soccer and continued singing...........थोडी सी ज़मीन , थोड़ा आसमान, तिनकों का बस एक आशियाँ !

Goodbye to St. Andrews Preschool

Today was the holiday program at St. Andrews Church and also Avi's last day here (we would be moving to San Jose soon). The church was packed with parents. Children entered the church in a line with bells in their hands and singing 'Joy to the world' and 'Jingle Bells'. I caught another parent (besides me ) wiping eyes. It was really special. Avi walked with his friends and teacher to the podium and sang Christmas Carols they had been practicing in school. It takes a lot of courage and confidence for little children to stand in front of a large crowd and they all did so well .We finished the program with sandwiches, soup, hot cocoa and hugs from Avi's freinds and teachers. It was his first preschool and he liked being here. We'll be taking lots of good memories with us. Goodbye St. Andrews !

Sea World Visit in San Diego

We visited Sea World in San Diego twice in a week. Their Shamu show (whale show) called 'believe' is unbelievable. We were lucky to also catch their sounds and lights holidays version in the evening with live music entertainment. Anurag and I had done whale watching tour 8 years back in Cape Cod and Shamu turned out to be a great memory refresher, actually even better. It was incredible to see 17000-22000 pounds heavy Whales so well trained and so elegant.We had visited the Aquarium in Chicago a few years back but I don't remember seeing anything like this.  Avi loved watching whales but his favorite part was going thru' the transparent tunnel on electronic walkway where we could see Sharks swimming all around us.  It was something to see those guys up close as they swam over us. Avi enjoyed simulated helicopter ride in their Arctic Zone and we were all fascinated by graceful Beluga Whales. We saw Walruses, Polar Bears, Penguins and managed to see all the holiday shows of Dolphins, Sea Lions and Pets. Yep, they had a show called "Pets rule" and it was hilarious watching dogs, cats, birds, and even pigs perform tricks that left us saying 'VOW' ! 

Neev LOVED watching Sesame Streets show in Sea World and wasn't a bit scared going on Elmo airplane ride and tea cup ride. He kept saying 'whee.....ee......' all the way and just wasn't ready to leave that place.

What did Anurag and I enjoy most - an hour's quiet ride back home with double shot of espresso (kids were so tired they had fallen asleep the minute they settled in their car seats).