Far from the madding crowd -Part 2

PS- for Part 1 -go the previous post
here

Day 2 at Yosemite
The day, once more ,started early. We started off by going to Bridalveil Falls ... named so because of their resemblence to a Bride's Veil (obv.)

















Then we stopped by a bridge - called the Swinging Bridge-for some pictures that came out like wallpapers!


Picture perfect

Then we went to the hiking trail- to hike up to the Vernal falls- that was the mission of the day! It was a good 4 mile walk- and breathtaking it both senses of the word. There were beautiful cascades of water, and oddly shaped rocks and trees brilliant in Fall colours, standing gaily amidst subdued green; and there were vertigo inducing views such as this , that momentarily stunned us. There were mysterious forests that strtched forever and lightnig stuck trees that stook starkly agains the green.














The woods are lovely,dark and deep

And at the end there was the waterfall itself - utterly worth the journey that had brought us there( and in the rain too!)







































































We ate out that night - fast food to make up for all the exercise that we'd done ! And we left the next morning- back to LA , refreshed in body and in mind.

Far from the Madding Crowd- Part 1

Day 1 at Yosemite:

We got away from it all for the long Thanksgiving weekend, and went on a trip to Yosemite National Park ,a 5 hour drive norht of LA .

We left early in the morning... for once our excitement had inspired us to up and ready early... well relatively early at any rate, and we were on the road by 7 AM! With only one stop on the way we were at the park by 12:30- just in time for lunch! (And yes it did seem like we were eating all the time... what can I say ... fresh air makes me hungry... but so does everything else, so...)

The drive had been through dry, barren land, with only a few lonely looking trees to relieve the dreary landscape, a reminder that though in the city, there are trees and lawns... California is partly a desert- In that sense it is amazing, within a single state it seems to have every kind of landscape,- grasslands and rocks, mountains borgering the sea, and the rich pine forests that we were heading towards.

We went to one of the famous veiwing points first- Glacier point. Yosemite by the way is a Valley that was carved out of Glaciers during the Ice-Age. From this particular point you have an excellent view of the Geological formations that the Glaciers create- hence( or so I assume ) the name. (We had an argument about what erosion due to glaciers created- morasses, molasses... only the M remained constant in our guesses- the answer is Morraines- so much for 8th std Geography.)

From that point we could see some of the most famous sights in Yosemite- including the Half-Dome and the Vernal and Nevada Falls- On the river Merced.

The night we spent in a cottage on Bass Lake - an artificial lake just outside the Park itself. It was a very cozy place and had a small attich which caused no little excitement- you would have thought we were 5 years old - to see us run up and down the ladder. We were glad to get to bed that night... It had been a long day and the next day would be as long .

Dance for life

Last week there were free dance lessons in the Rotunda of the Powell library... and pukki's that we are (nothing that's free gets left out!), naturally we went for them. We were very casually dressed- just a skirt for the twirly effect, but there were ladies there, grandly dressed, in proper ballroom dresses dating back to the 19th century, and men in Tuxedos; we felt transported to another era!

We just had learnt the basic steps of the Viennese waltz. The seven step slow march, the open waltz, the closed waltz, the turning. And then came the more complicated (and exciting) ArgentinianWaltz which was about half way to a tango.

And then came to Polka and the Military Waltz. Of course we were none of us, experts and we tripped over our own feet and stepped on our partner's toes and had our toes stepped upon. But it was exhilarating all the same... the twirling and the swirling and the swaying and just letting go for a few hours!

And to add to our sense ofdelicious wickedness, they told us about the history of the waltz - how it was a scandal when it was first introduced, with the man and woman standing so close by and possibly being the only time when they could speak unchaperoned! I felt like a girl from a Georgette Heyer!

The waltz was hugely popular for the same reason- it evolved from the landler danced by the peasants in Germany and Austria and got its name from the Italian word volver which means to revolve. It became hugely popular in Vienna( hence the name Viennese Wlatz) where the Strausses both Sr and Jr composed famous waltz tunes including the "Blue Danube". The waltz was a favourite of Queen Victoria as well, although even in her day the aristocracy regarded it as being "improper"! Waltz's over the years have become fasteer ad faster( after ladies got rid of the huge hoop dresses), but we did just the early slower ones.

Next time we may go for swing or salsa... and I'll write again when that's done.

Priorities...

My sense of priorities needs to be looked at... I've been grumpy these past two weeks because my midterms haven't left me with much time for my favourite activities ... reading and writing(blogging ) ... actually regard them as having a higher priority than studying... which means I possibly need to get my head checked... my day isn't complete without at least one chapter of a book and a cup of tea( proper chai - like we have at home- not this rottenly healthy green tea stuff).

So at the end of my exams I headed straight for the library - we have an awesome one by the way- several actually- but this is my favourite- the Powell library, which is my favourite both for its shelves upon shelves of books, and for its incredibly comfortable couches - there is a favourite place of mine -on the lowest level where there are low sofas beside windows discreetly screened by curtains to let just the right amout of light through- without blinding you with light or allowing the outside distractions disturb you, and at once allowing you to enjoy the natural light without straining your eyes under artificial lamps.... you get the picture....

And at once I borrowed Irving Stone's "The Agony and the Ecstasy" ,very much reflective of what I was feeling just then I think... then Somerset Maugham's "The Moon and Sixpence" which was a great character study- oddly enough- although it was not a thought that struck me at the time when I borrowed them- they are both about the lives of artists- great men and the events that shaped them... While one is a chronicle of events in a life written more as a piece of fiction that only happens to have its basis in the life of a real person... the feelings attributed to the characters... they may have some truth in them but they are essentially what the author thinks went on in the minds of the characters... Whereas the other is more a relating of the facts that are verifyable- simply putting them into perspective so that the reader may decide for themselves what kind of a person the artist is- and the effect he had on those around him. Both agree on one thing however- that great artists are a species apart- they are driven by something that ordinary men do not understand- or perhaps that is what makes them great and us ordinary- that we choose not to be driven by a force beyond our understanding - preferring the safety of conventional life and moderate goals- rather than the fire that burns to recreate the world in our ideal of beauty.

Another long delayed update

I'd almost forgotten I had a blog, in the midst of the chaos that is my life. We had two midterms this week and I'd really rather not think about them! Another's next week... but I'm taking a short break before going nose- to- grindstone again.

People have absolutely no sense of timing though... this week was Halloween and Diwali, and while all the world was partying and celebrating, what was I doing?- I was sitting in the library studing and wishing I was anywhere but here!

Halloween's a big deal over here though. There was all sorts of ... interestingly dressed people around... A few witches a Tigger( from Winnie- the Pooh) , an angel a ghost or too... a Bumble-bee(!)... Disney character's are a favourite I think...

It was almost painful calling up home on Diwali; I could hear the sounds of crackers going off through the phone and my mouth watered as I heard about the stuff they were eating... And here I am with sandwiches and cheese as my staple diet... The good news is I seem to have lost some weight becaue of it... and if I had been home on Diwali I would have definitely added a few tires to my waist... So there's a silver lining to everything( or rather sour grapes)

(corrected the rather glaring typo in the title- selayed... ugh my typing's going from bad to worse)