Sunday/Monday
Helloooo gorgeous!
After we packed our rental car full to the brim with our “necessities”
for the next week, Megann, Lascel and I headed down the 405 to Newport
Beach. It was pretty much paradise
(well, aside from it being a bit too chilly for the beach… not that we let that
stop us). We had this beautiful
condo/suite that overlooked the ocean, had tons of heated pools and Jacuzzis to
pick from, not to mention the hot tub and dual-head shower we had IN our sweet suite! There was even a life-sized game of
chess where you could be your own pieces.
Our room came complete with a kitchen stocked with appliances and
cookware… which we made use of when Lascel cooked dinner for us gals. :) We took our first Bikram class post training at Bikram Yoga Costa Mesa.
Like little kids in a candy store... this place is awesome!
First class post training :)
Wow, it would really suck to live in the OC...
Goofy-man making dinner.
Tuesday
We left our own little paradise and made our way back to LA
to return the rental car and meet up with Sarah. It wouldn’t be LA without treacherous traffic, so that
delayed our start a bit. We got
some gas to fuel the car and coffee to fuel ourselves and then we were off on
our coastal route northbound through California. We stopped in San Louis Obispo for a quick game of
tourist where we hit up a few wineries, saw a beach filled with sea lions, experienced
an amazing sunset, and of course took some yoga photos.
Starting out with a little caffeine.
Driving up "The 1"
Backseat Love
First winery of the trip! CHEERS!!!
Sea lions taking a nap
Wednesday
We woke up bright and early, checked out of our hotel and
headed over to Monterey Bay to get in our yoga fix. Sarah wasn’t up for yoga so she went back to Big Sur while
Megann, Lascel and I practiced. We
brought our stuff with us to shower and change for our day of wine touring
while we made our way to San Francisco.
When we got there, we found out that this studio was “old” and it was
built before they required showers.
Not to worry though, they conveniently had a hose out back to wash off
with! This was an interesting
experience all around. It was our
second “regular” class after training.
They had no showers. They
stayed on their mats the whole time, including the duration of the standing
series. The director was
particularly funny about sweating and not getting a single drop on her carpet
(not really the most manageable requests seeing as she owned a HOT yoga studio,
but that’s neither here nor there).
She even cut up mats to elongate the regular sized yoga mats so no one
would step beyond the boundaries of their mat.
Holy SHIT that's cold!
Mmm, kombucha on tap after yoga... yes please!!!
Heller Winery in San Louis Obispo
Wine filled chocolate truffles... ooooh yeeeaaah!
Thursday – Thanksgiving
Megann and I decided to go to Global Yoga, a studio owned by
Mary Jarvis, who is a well-known senior teacher in the Bikram community. We tried getting the holiday schedule
from their website, nothing. We
called the phone number associated with their studio, nothing. We checked their facebook page for an
updated Thanksgiving schedule, nothing.
So, we figured since it was a holiday, if they were open they would
probably have their 9:00 am class.
If not, well, it would only be a 9-minute walk in each direction, so no
love lost either way. We suited up
and headed down Lombard Street to the Global Yoga Studio. When we got there we realized why we
couldn’t get any information about their holiday schedule… Global was now Body
Temp Yoga with brand new owners.
So, we stuck around, rented towels and mats and made our way into the
hot room. It was the first hot
yoga studio I had ever practiced in with wooden floors. It was now the second studio where we
stayed on our mats the whole class instead of straddling them for a part of the
standing series. The class was
packed with everyone trying to get their yoga in before the holiday so Megann
and I were each parked in separate corners of the room where there were
conveniently open spaces. We soon
found out that the reason for these open spots was because they were directly
in front of the blowing heaters, where no one else dared practice. We are tough though, I mean, we did
just finish 9 weeks of torture, so we embraced the heat and got our sweat
on. Sweating more than either of
us had in a very long time, we completed the class with what looked like a pool
around each of our towels. We went
to the changing room after and asked about a shower. Nope, no such luck here either. This studio didn’t have a hose out back as an
alternative either, so we walked back to our hotel looking like drowned
rats. No complaints here though,
we got a great Turkey Day yoga class in.
Not to mention that along the way, we stopped at a coffee shop for a cup
of Joe, only to get hit on by Zeus and his tattoo artist son, “King” Triton. They didn’t want to let us leave but
somehow, our stinky selves managed to escape.
Next it was off to see the other side of Lombard, AKA the
“crookedest street” in the world.
Then we stopped by Ghiradelli for some chocolate samples before making
our way over to Muir Woods. This
is a state park in California with lots of Redwood and Giant Sequoia
trees. One of the neatest things
here was the abundance of clovers, HUGE clovers. These things were massive! I was expecting enormous trees but never did I expect to see
larger than life clovers. On
our way back to San Francisco, we made the necessary pit stop at the Golden
Gate Bridge to take some obligatory photos.
A terrible shot of Lombard St.
Lascel and Megann enjoying a lil Thanksgiving chocolate
The gang at Ghirardelli
Tree Pose with a REALLY big tree
Ridiculously big clovers
Yeah, those trees are massive!
Golden Gate Bridge
Of course, it wouldn’t be Thanksgiving without a turkey
dinner. We made a reservation on Fisherman’s Wharf at a placed called
Capurro’s. Out of the four of us,
Sarah was the only one to order the traditional Turkey Day dinner with all the
fixin’s. Megann and I had the
in-season, local, Dungeness crab.
MmmMmm.
Happy Thanksgiving!
Friday – Lascel Becomes a Teacher
On Friday morning, we were up bright and early. Destination: Wine country with a pit
stop in The Mission. Lascel had the opportunity to teach his
very first yoga class at Bikram Yoga in
the Mission in San Francisco with studio owner Juicy Sanchez. Nervous and stressed out, he wanted to get there early. We arrived a half-hour before Juicy so
we sat in the car, wondering and waiting for who was going to show up and
introduce herself as Juicy Sanchez.
At 6:00 am, when a teeny-tiny, blonde woman with bright pink blushed
cheeks walked up, looking around like she was expecting someone, we knew it was
her. Sarah went back to the hotel
while Megann and I took Lascel’s class; he rocked it. Ninety minutes later, the same bloke who was nerve ridden,
anxious and stressed now sported a huge smile, a well-deserved one at that. He
survived his first class up on the podium. Lascel was officially a teacher.
Lascel and Juicy before his first class
Group 13 supporting Lascel in SF
Lascel and Juicy after teaching on the podium
After class, the three of us went down the street for coffee
with Juicy. She gave him pointers
and feedback. The one word she
wanted him to make his mantra, “confidence.” My dear friend, I know that will come in time. I cannot wait to take your classes down
the road.
Then it was off to Sonoma; let the wine tour begin!
When we got to our hotel, I somehow managed to make friends
with the concierge and he upgraded our double room to a 3-bedroom suite! SCORE! Crappy hotel after crappy hotel, this was such a nice
surprise!
Saturday
After making it to seven wineries on Friday, we hit up
another 10 or so on Saturday. I
only bought one bottle of wine along the way (mostly due to a lack of
funds). St. Anne’s Crossing, was a
small winery that had some amazing zinfandels. I just so happened to love one a little bit more than any of
the others, so that bottle got to come home with me. I can’t wait to have it when I get back.
Sonoma
First winery of the Holiday Open House
In the wine cave
Cheers Ladies!
Little Vineyards
Not too shabby, eh?
With my new boyfriend... he's a bit stiff but he'll loosen up ;)
We really didn't want to leave... it's just so damn beautiful!
Strike a barrel pose
Juicy had texted and offered a morning class for me to teach
the next day. Since San Francisco
was on our way south, it worked out perfectly. The only dilemma was that we didn’t have internet at our
hotel in Sonoma so finding a place to stay was a bit tricky. Sarah wanted to go to a museum, so we
were going to need to find a place near the yoga studio because we were on our
own getting there. Obviously,
after 3 months of only spending money and not making any, price was a big
factor too. I called my sister and
asked her to help us find a hotel near the studio that was reasonably priced
and had two beds. She found two,
one was Element but they only had
single beds, the other was El Capitan
and they had a room with two full sized beds. Since there were three of us, (we dropped Megann off and the
SF airport to go see about a boy ;) ) we definitely needed more than one bed so
we went with El Capitan. Word of Caution: NEVER EVER STAY AT EL CAPITAN… EVER! Honestly, sleeping in your car would be a better option. This hotel was more like a hostel and a
very dingy one at that. We did
have two beds, two beds on wheels that moved and squeaked if you tried to lay
on it. There was no toilet or
shower, those were around the corner and communal, and very, very dirty. There was an excess of pubes on one
toilet and someone’s cigarette ashes on the other. We didn’t even contemplate the showers. There was no TV, radio, or clock but we
did have a window that opened to the sounds of the city. The room was rather warm so opening the
window seemed like a natural solution, that is, until we realized that our room
was now filled with bugs because that window had no screen. Oh, fun times at El Capitan, fun times!
Yeah, this is where we stayed the night before my big day!
Oh, El Capitan... We won't be missing you!
Sunday
Today, it was my turn.
After what was quite possibly the worst night’s sleep any of us had ever
gotten, Lascel and I went back to Bikram
Yoga in the Mission for the 8:15 am class, taught of course by yours
truly. It felt like I stood up on
that podium forever but in the end, it was exactly a 90-minute class. I wasn’t as nervous as I expected. After Pranayama Deep Breathing I was
okay. I even cracked a couple of
jokes. I also told my class to
“point their knees.” Yeah, I am
not really sure how one would do that, but apparently I really wanted them to
because I said it twice! Oh the
funny things that come out on the podium.
After my class, Lascel and I stayed for the 10:00 lead by
Juicy. She is a very energetic
young woman with a unique teaching style.
It’s very fitting, as her personality on the podium mimics her
personality outside of the classroom.
Again, we went down the street for coffee and feedback. This time, Juicy’s husband and
daughter, Steve23 and California Poppy, joined us. (Yes, those are their real names. I’m not making this up!) Juicy gave me two words for my mantra, “intensity” and
“precision.”
I am so grateful that Juicy let us to teach at her
studio. Her willingness to
offer us classes and critique us was a huge help. It feels great to get that first one under our belts. As the saying goes, “you never forget
your first time,” and I can guarantee that holds true here too. Next time I make a trip to the west
coast, I will make it a point to head back to the Mission and see Juicy. Maybe she’ll even let me teach again…
with intensity and precision of course!
With Juicy after my first time on the podium :)
The crew for my first class
Monday
I woke up to embrace my last day in California by renting a
car. Since I hadn’t ever practiced
at headquarters and I had never taken an advanced class before, I decided to
drive over to the Bikram Yoga International Headquarters for a beginner’s yoga
class followed by advanced. At
headquarters, senior instructor, 86-year old, Emmy Cleaves, teaches the
advanced classes. This eternally
young firecracker will kill you in the hot room, and that’s just what she did
to me. That class was so
hard. I basically just tried everything but actually only did about 5%! Of course, standing next to Emmy during this class, was none
other than Bikram himself. He
called me out for my terrible spine twist. “What you doing? This is easiest posture and you make it
ugliest. You pick up so many bad
habits, I don’t know what the fuck you doing.” He told another teacher in the room to “make sure Miss Blue
understands how the fuck to do spine twist before she leaves.” Needless to say, I’m Miss Blue and my
spine twist needs help, a lot of help!
After class, the staff at HQ told me that they didn’t have a
teacher for the 7:45 class that night.
I asked them if I could teach it.
They said yes. I about shit
my pants. Why on earth did I ask
to do that? Teach a class, the
second class I will have ever taught, that night, AT headquarters?! What the hell was I thinking?! I went back to the hotel, went over
dialogue, did a wee bit of packing and then headed back to teach. Lascel came with me for moral
support. I got up there, on the
huge podium with Bikram’s big, orange chair (the one no one is supposed to sit
in except him… whoops! Haha) and I did it. I taught the class, microphone and all. Lascel said that after class one of the
guys in the locker room said, “wow, that was a great class, she was really
good.” Lascel turned and said
back, “I know, and for her second class!”
When he told me that, I couldn’t help but smile. He said that was one of the best
classes he’d had in a really long time, and that made me smile even more. Not only did I do it, I did AND they
thought it was good! It’s funny
because the whole time I was standing up there, I thought, “oh man, I’m doing
so terrible.” It just goes to show
that what they say is true, it’s not
about me, it’s about them. If they liked it, that’s all that
matters!
Standing proud next to Bishnu Ghosh
Headquarters
Underneath the HQ spotlight after teaching on the big podium.
Lascel being, well, Lascel... ;)
Tuesday
After 5+ hours in the hot room and less than two hours
sleep, I got up and made my way to the airport… now toting along an extra bag
that I didn’t come here with. Thank
goodness for Lascel. I mean, how
else is one little girl supposed to lug three suitcases to LAX? Ridiculous? Most definitely.
Why I needed all that stuff is beyond me. Maybe one of these days I’ll learn how to pack for
traveling. I’m not holding my
breath though…
It was really hard saying goodbye to Laura last week but when
I left her, I was on my way south.
I still had a week in Cali and I was still with Lascel. Today, when I had to hug him for the
last time before I went through security, it hit me. I honestly have no idea when I will get to see either of them
next. I know we WILL see each
other, I know we WILL be friends for life, but just the whole idea of saying
goodbye and not knowing when or for how long we’ll be apart, that’s the hard
part. I already miss my yoga
loves.
Until next time my friends….
Namaste!
"Close friends contribute to our personal growth. They also contribute to our personal pleasure, making the music sound sweeter, the wine taste richer, the laughter ring louder because they are there."
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