Christmas in San Francisco

 

It was a quiet Christmas Day for the three of us ( Aai, Amita and me) in San Francisco. Abhay is in Pune and Adwight had an exam coming up in a few days so he was studying in Los Angeles. 

We enjoyed the almond croissants and other pastries we had picked the day before because everything would be closed for Christmas. We each spelled out what we were grateful for. 

Aai didn’t want to leave the house this day either. Amita and I went out for a drive to Crissy Field. It was windy and cold. Yet a lot of people were out there to enjoy a walk or do biking, fishing , play softball or walk their dogs. A pair of men jogging in elf outfits caught the eye of many. A fire truck arrived with divers in wet suits to rescue someone from the cold waters. We took pictures against the backdrop of the Golden Gate Bridge before heading out to lunch. Midway Amita realized one of her hand glove was missing. So we drove back to Crissy Field to look for it. Didn’t find it there but eventually found it behind her seat !

With most places closed for Christmas we didn’t have too many choices. Amita wanted me to try Chinese hot pot. So we went to one place on Geary Street. This was also my first time having hot pot. We picked two different broths and several veggies to garnish it with. The choice of spicy broths proved unwise. Spicy with boiling broth makes it taste even more spicy! Learned it the hard way. It was very tasty nevertheless but could have been more enjoyable had it been less spicy. I loved the crab rangoons at the place. The litchi ice cream at the end of the meal was simply awesome. It has bits of litchi in every single bite. 

That evening we watched a Hindi movie on Netflix, Anek. The only familiar face in the movie for me was the lead actor Ayushyamann Khurana. I thought the movie was brilliant. It put the finger on the issue of the perils when diversity is not respected in a democracy. Lack of inclusiveness, questioning the integrity and patriotism of fellow citizens based on their physical appearance, language or location and the brazen disregard for the lives of innocent powerless people eventually erodes the fabric of a nation. Awakening from these deep dark pits of ignorance is the need of the hour if we want harmony. Although the movie’s story focuses on the North Eastern states of India, the issues of inequality and bias are prevalent even in so called developed nations, big democracies like the USA. 

The saree at the outing to Crissy Field and hotpot lunch was a customized pure crepe silk in a classy deep red with embroidered borders that were called Chinese embroidery. It is hand embroidered on separate fabric that was later stitched on to the saree.