Days 7-8 (Friday - Saturday 31st Dec 04' - 1st Jan 05’):
For most part of the day, Nicky and I were parading in her room, deciding what to wear! It was after long that we were doing this whole dressing-up-together act and it was fun to be all-girly again. We were going to a party in the San Jose Convention Center hosted by some DJ's called The Mythical East Company. It was to be a mainly desi event and most of Raj Sr.'s gang from work (also mainly Indian) was going there. So our attire, as Nicky and I planned would be a fusion of Indian and Western wear (as is the case in most Desi Partys')
Finally we agreed upon what to wear, after which it was time for hairstyling. We were going all out that evening, with our dressing-up:)
At this point, I must add a personal note: My best friend, Raga has always managed to screw up my hairstyles, ever since we were kids. Somehow she always persuaded me to be the model for her hairstyling experiments, at the end of which, almost always, I was left with close to a million knots and a bad hair day. Also, she came along with me for every haircut appointment and sat and browsed through magazines, inspite of my strict instructions to concentrate on the hair-cut instead. That of course left me with a bad hairdo for the next 6 months. Since then, I have been wary of taking her along for any haircut appointments or going to her for any hair-advice.
Going by my previous track record with Raga and my hair, I was skeptical to let Nicky do anything to mine. But seeing her work the curling iron on her's, I gave in and did not regret it. In fact, on returning to NYC, that was the first thing I invested in, in the new year!
All dressed and waiting for Raj Sr. to pick us up for the party. Raj Sr. and family (His wife Preeti and son Arav) were nice enough to come pick us up and together all of us drove to the venue for the evening. On entering the hall, Nicky and I lost all our previous apprehensions, about our attire for the evening.(Nicky had been going on and on about how women were dressed in evening gowns in the last New Year party she went to).
As expected, the place was desi-epitomised. I think the party had only-Indians (What else was I expecting in Indian-infested Silicon Valley anyways?), but glamorous Indians. For a moment, I was stunned to see the Indian crowd at the party, immediately realising that all these were Indians who work/ live in Silicon Valley. Whatever my thoughts may be on that genre of Indians, I could not take away the fact, that all of them were reeking of success and therefore wealth and style.
The Silicon Valley as we all know, is largely populated by Indians, but most of them from the software fields. That directly relates to their education and therefore wealth. In a lot of ways, Silicon Valley Indians differ from New York Indians, just as the two places differ from each other: in geography. Silicon Valley Indians, like their geography, form an overall unified typology with their successful lives, lavish lifestyles and Indian-American dreams. New York Indians, on the contrary, are as diverse as the city they live in themselves, they hail from all stratas of society, from cab-drivers to Investment bankers. Thus the Indian diaspora on both coasts offers diverse experiences, which directly connect to their professions.
Women at the party, were dressed in exquisite Indian wear, (As Nicky put it, it almost seemed like we had walked into a Wedding) while men wore western formals -everyone was dressed impeccably. There were hit Bollywood numbers in the air and a rather pathetic and poorly-rehearsed hostess took the stage. The food was undoubtedly Indian; we however did not end up eating as much since we were on the dance floor for the most part of the evening.
As the clock struck 12, we watched the crystal ball fall at Times' Square, another must-do phenomenon I have successfully managed to skip over the past few years. I guess when you live in a city, you take it so much for granted, that you end up missing out on some of its characteristic events. There's always so much to do, work to go to, routine to stick to, that "time to stand and stare" takes a backseat. In such a case, I usually stick to my "One place New with someone New in New York" dogma - since people are always visiting the Big Apple, the best way to make memories with them here, is to go see/ do one new thing with them, that I have never done before. So far it has worked and the best part is I have managed to see most of the touristy parts of New York, inspite of being a resident.
All in all, was a fabulous New Year's day, spent with close friends and their loved ones.
After winding up at 4 a.m the night before, Nicky and I began the new year by sleeping in till noon. Most of the day was spent packing and in the evening, I set out to come back to SF airport, to take my flight back home. The train journey through the Silicon Valley gave me time to surmise my impressions from the past week spent in California...
1. California was the first state I landed in, in the US. I stayed there for exactly a year and 14 days. That makes it my 'first' home in this country,
'first' ...Yes, 'best'...No:)
2. Going by the fact that some of my close friends reside there, it should naturally be my escape: a place I can run to, at anytime and where I will always have a place to stay. That, it is.
3. I enjoyed California more as a tourist than as a resident. Part of the reason may have to do with the fact that I was a poor student for the entire duration of my stay there. That I did not have a car, makes for the other half of the reason.
4. The fact that I do not long for a car in this largely automobile-driven nation, is also perhaps attributed to my initial year in California. The idea that a car is a necessity over a luxury does not appeal to me.
5. For the duration that I lived in California and was car-deprived (ask a native and they will tell you it's almost a crime), I navigated the city on foot.
Obviously distances were larger, neighbourhoods were spread out and the experience thus; least dynamic. What pulled me through were some very helpful classmates/ roommates, the buzzing Broadway Street, behind my apartment (with the most amount of people you can see on a LA street), a friendly nod by the watchman who probably knew me to be the only person walking on that street everyday and a ball of Mochi (Japanese sweet), in Little Tokyo, en route to school. An ocassional movie set and Hollywood film-shoot taking place below the apartment building, also helped:)
6. If I were to buy my own place, it would rather be an apartment in a high-rise with a fantastic city view than a three-storeyed, three car garage house in a proto-typical cul-de-sac. I know the former is also possible in California, but you cant account for people being part of that city view I am talking about.
7. Lastly; I thrive in a socio-cultural, populous and cosmopolitan environment, which is why I thrived at SCI_Arc (the school I did my M.Arch in, located in LA). Although the rest of California may be similar to it, it lacks in the 'populous' arena, which matters the most to me, of the three.
8. I have mentioned this before, but must repeat it again. People in California are like the weather, warm, sunny and kind. It is the random smile that you can expect from a stranger in California, that I miss at times in New York City. Not to mention the cheap wine available in sprawled out grocery stores, a dishwasher at home, laundry in the building and free alcohol in school; these would be nice too:)
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