Yesterday was my first full day in the city proper, San Francisco. It began with practice in the living room of my new hosts’ third floor flat, and as I was finishing up, one of the roommates came out we quickly dived into a deep discussion around fate versus free will. He was riding a book called ‘Power vs Force’ which is about the common pre-determining factors that lead us into making the decisions that we may think of as free will, and how the idea of ‘free will’ is influenced by things we had no say over. So where do we actually meet the truth of free will, if we didn’t make the decisions such as where we were born, who are parents were, etc etc? - After this, I walked through golden gate park on the way to find a coffee shop. @flywheelcoffee was the spot. They nailed a perfect cold brew, which I sipped while doing my daily journaling. I did a quick search of yoga spots nearby and was pleased to find a @yogatreesf 700 feet away, with a yoga class - 90 min vinyasa all levels - happening in 45 minutes. I head over there and arrive ten minutes early. - The studio is small and narrow, but welcoming nonetheless. The front desk girl is smiling and warm as she checks me in. One thing I notice here in the city is that people are a bit surprised when you pause them and sincerely ask how they are doing before going about business. It seems like everyone is in a rush. Not a big deal, just interesting to note. It’s a habit of mine and I feel very stiff and uncharacteristic when I just solemnly order people around. It’s like I am giving out commands and it doesn’t feel good. I like to have fun wherever I go.
- Class is packed, probably 30+ people. Practice itself was really enjoyable. There was enough time between transitions, the flow itself built very logically in step-by-step progression, and there were numerous little unique nuances and cues that make a yoga class standout. I was very pleased. - After thanking Jacqui for the wonderful class and collecting names of ‘must see’ yoga peeps while I am here, I meet up with my host and we set out for a midday stroll through Golden Gate park. It’s Saturday, the sun is out, and people are taking full advantage of the beautiful day. I walk barefoot through the grass with my shirt off observing the massive trees, and am just another typical ecstatic San Francisco hippie. It was awesome.
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We end up near one of the museums and the theater area in the park where we had plans to meet my host’s roommate, the guy I talked to earlier in the morning about fate and free will. He rolls up on a skateboard bringing a slack line, and we find two trees to set it up on. Hours go by with us just playing in the park , doing some yoga, juggling, and just generally have fun.
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I notice the guy next to us doing some yoga. It appears he is performing some of the first of the Shadow yoga preludes I’ve been learning and practicing known as Balakrama. Circular, spiraling dynamic movements - lots of squatting and leg work. What a coincidence. I introduce myself to him , we talk for a bit, then practice together, him offering me some pointers. Eddie is a wing chun kung fu instructor who uses yoga to supplement his martial arts, and has found Shadow yoga to be of tremendous benefit. It was great to connect with him; very serendipitous and affirming. Life is interesting.
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We wrap up playing at the park after several different groups of friends randomly come and go off in their respective directions. I had conversations with some Australian guys and a few girls visiting from LA. It was all very interesting and stimulating. The host and I take off towards an Asian market nearby around 530 pm to grab some fruit - I’ve not eaten all day.
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We get to a small fruit shop and it has an abundance of amazing tropical fruit. Papayas, mangoes (yellow and red), dragon fruit ... AND DURIAN!! Both fresh and frozen 😍
At $9.99/lb , I can’t quite justify a $55 dinner but end up getting a previously frozen one that is perfectly ready for eating and is only $22. So we pick up the durian, a mango and papaya and head back to our residence. My host stopped and grabbed a Vietnamese sandwich on the way and we happened across a tea shop which was just the most awesome experience ever.
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Jamen, pronounced “hey men” was an enthusiastic and hilarious tea shop owner with an oddly dry delivery . He had many awesome one liners and an uncharacteristic American accent. You would expect an Asian running a tea shop to have a difficult to understand language barrier but he spoke clear and concise English without a hint of an accent. It added to the already interesting unfolding of our day.
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We sat for maybe a half hour going through the whole ritualistic tea ceremony at his tea bar and sampled numerous teas before purchasing an ounce of some tea that I forgot the name of for $6. Did you know all tea comes from the same plant - a tea plant? It just depends on the drying and curating process how the tea comes out. We learned a lot about tea in that half hour. It was just so much fun.
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After arriving home, we sit at the dinner table and dig into respective dinners. My host had his Vietnamese, his roommate something he had been cooking, and me a papaya and most of the durian. I shared with the others and they could see why I was so excited about it. It was the only meal of the day for me and immensely satisfying. What a perfect ending to a very rich and fulfilling day. By this time it’s about 8 o clock so everyone is winding down. I’m grateful for the amazing experiences and thank both my new friends for being there to share them with me before retiring to bed. What a day.
Durian and flowers I purchased for the kitchen counter. How beautiful 😜