Prolific Living

On the Road

A Sampling of Espresso at 7 of Seattle’s Coffee Shops

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Espresso

Why I love Espresso and What Really Happened in Seattle

I cannot remember my first cup of espresso but I have had countless sweet memories of delicious coffee over the years.

When in 2007 I decided to give up my daily coffee, I missed more than anything the idea of having a cup of espresso, the preparation, and the aroma. It takes great courage to break an addiction, and greater risk still to return to it on occasion. While I have ditched the daily habit, I slightly bend the rules when visiting cities which take local pride in their delicious local beans. Besides, what fun is life if we don’t sometimes throw caution to the wind and indulge on our most sinful cravings, and live to write a post about it? And so it is with that determination that we set out to thoroughly delight in the Emerald city’s coffee shop downtown haven. Here is an account of the 7 memorable stops on our path in a mid-October visit to Seattle. [Read more…] about A Sampling of Espresso at 7 of Seattle’s Coffee Shops

Where to yoga, Where not to: Virginia, DC & Montreal Yoga Studios

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Post#3 in Series of Where to Yoga, Where not to! — The Experience, perspective, and reflections on Yoga Studios in Washington DC, Northern Virginia and Montreal.

Yoga-Camel-Pose

Traveling near or far should not interfere with our yoga path and plans. Getting into a habit of taking a yoga class where you go can be a habit that will extend your life and well-being and leave you feeling relaxed in the midst of travel chaos, be it fun or business. As I continue the series of posts on Where to Yoga, I share with you my experience from frequent trips to Washington DC, Northern Virginia areas, and a pop in to the lovely Montreal city of Canada. [Read more…] about Where to yoga, Where not to: Virginia, DC & Montreal Yoga Studios

Where to Yoga, Where Not to: West Coast & Hawaii Yoga Studios

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Post#2 in Series of Where to Yoga, Where not to! – The Experience and Reflections on Yoga Studios in California, Las Vegas, Colorado and Hawaii.

As we deepen and diversify our yoga practice, taking our yoga everywhere that we go and integrating it into our travels is important. Every studio, every teacher, every ambiance brings something unique to the practice. Here I write about how this uniqueness enriches or changes my yoga experience on visits to California, Las Vegas, and vacations in Hawaii, and I share my impressions of the yoga instructors, techniques, styles, and even the intangibles of the ambiance.

1. YiY (Yoga is Youthfulness), (Mountain View, California):  Highly recommended. This beautiful studio welcomes with its mesmerizing design of long 10-feet long bright yellow drapes, deep blue art, long mirrors, bamboo hardwoods, and a lovely most welcoming staff. My first class was free, and if I had not insisted, I would think they didn’t want me to pay the 2nd time back! They have some of the best yoga I have enjoyed in all of Silicon Valley. The studio is located in the hip, fun downtown Mountain View’s posh little neighborhood surrounded with shops, restaurants and bookstores. My absolute favorite teacher is the Persian Ashtanga teacher Mojdeh.  She leads a very solid and rhythmic Ashtanga class with her beautiful voice. I remember her complimenting me on my practice, and adjusting me gently and firmly – the perfect hands of a great teacher. Later in one of my other visits to the studio, I took a Vinyasa class with Beatty which was good, although nothing in particular impressed me about the teacher.  Last class I took at YiY was Amy’s Anusara class which I found to be easy, fun and clear instructions. Overall, a very well-run studio with impressive staff and gorgeous studio.
Time spent @ YiY:  During 2005 and 2006, took Ashtanga from Mojdeh and Vinyasa classes 3 or 4 times. In October 2008,  Anusara.


2. Yoga Center of Palo Alto, (California): Located in one of the most established, posh, and hip neighborhoods of Northern California, the home of Standford University, downtown Palo Alto, this studio was definitely promising from locale alone. As I was waiting for the 10:30 class in the lounge, Lily who was teaching the on-going class there came outside, saw me and invited me very nicely to join her class. She said I can stretch out, do whatever I want. I went in thinking this is just a bonus before the real class. Then as I was getting ready for class, she boldly asked me to pay the full $15 fee of a class for remaining 25 minutes! Alas, I paid and went to settle down. The students were using exercise mats instead of yoga. I was just starting to enjoy it when Lily asked me to not use Ujjayi breathing because it is too loud! After that, all bets were off for Lily. Outside, I met Larry the next instructor and shared my experience with him. He was shocked that she had asked me to pay and told me to not pay for his class. Second shocker in his class: No mats! We started to do yoga on bare hardwood floors. There was very little instruction or structure. We used some mats for floor exercises. I have to admit, Larry was the absolute nicest guy but the class, the chaos, the noise all left me feeling very disappointed with the studio and the caliber of instructors. I simply do not recommend this place.
Time spent @ Yoga Center of Palo Alto: Took a class March 11, 2006

3. Club One (San Jose, CA): Located in the very posh Santana Row, this gym is everything you would want except a yoga studio. My friend checked out the place before I got in town, and yet they still did not have a single (single!!!) yoga mat for me to use during the class. The instructor was not bad, and I was determined to give it a chance so I did yoga with my yoga paws and on hardwood. The accommodations were horrible, and while I usually give this advice, now it is my hard and fast rule: Do not do yoga at a gym. Do it at a yoga studio! The staff was not friendly either, and I will neither go back to Club One, nor recommend it to anyone.
Time spent @ Club One: One class in 2006.

4. Yoga One Studio (San Diego, CA): Sherri was teaching Hatha yoga 1-2 class on Saturday morning, the only class that my schedule fit on my short trip to San Diego. The studio is in downtown next to few other shops, and it is located on the 2nd floor. The room is spacious with 2 sky lights and nice hardwoods. Sherri welcomed me and asked me to pay after class. The mats were extremely old and worn out and the studio was chilly.  She asked class about requests, then started class with a sequence of seated poses. She did not have a quiet meditation or setting of intention in the beginning, and so the get-go, I was not entirely at ease. She seemed knowledgeable and provided nice adjustments, but class was at best average for me. As Hatha has no flow, I prefer a teacher that can truly connect the poses and make them seem like the words in a song, all belonging in their place. While Sherri did have some new ways for poses against the wall, I found nothing particularly wonderful about class or the studio. I did not feel the vibe or the warmth of the ambiance I had been looking for.  Yoga One was rated one of, if not the, best studio in downtown San Diego through many sources, and I am disappointed to say that I walked out less than enchanted.
Time spent @ Yoga One Studio: Saturday, Jan 31st, 2009

5.The Studio Maui (Maui, Hawaii): Highly recommended. The studio is spacious, and can easily transform to a dance floor for 100 dancers.  The studio is far from major attractions and a good drive from Lahaina. I was very fortunate to take a class at this beautiful paradise of studio and location on our vacation. I was luckier still to be taking class by one of the best teachers: Jennifer Lynn. She taught us so much about yoga and movement and alignment in 90minutes – I just wanted to sit still and absorb it. It was everything that a workshop would do plus the practice we had. She was incredibly beautiful to watch, light as a feather as she did her beautiful balancing poses. I’d go back again and again in a heartbeat.
Time spent @ The Studio Maui: Took a class in January, 2007.

6. Island Spirit Yoga (Maui, Hawaii): This place is a sanctuary. It is located in the quiet corner of a small shopping center in downtown Lahaina, a beautiful studio, reasonably priced, and extremely nice staff. The space is rather medium if not small but classes are also small. The mirrors make the room larger and when evening falls, and the windows are open, the Hawaii breeze and bird chirps reminds you of where you are during savasana. A sweet feeling. I first took Anusara from Marc. He is a John Friend student/trainer and I enjoyed every second of this class. In November of 2008, my husband took his very first yoga class with Debbie, the owner, and I attended along with him. Her basics class, while very good introduction to yoga for him, was  just too basic for me.  Debbie also did not do many adjustments. That afternoon, Nov 30th Sunday, I was inspired to attend the Anusara workshop by Kelly Haas.  In the 3 hours of fun and learning that ensued, we worked towards the final ultimate pose – the full dancer’s pose.  I found her to be grounded, knowledgeable, funny and caring. My last class with Tiffany was perhaps my worst experience. She started class 15 minutes late without an apology and if I had not experienced so much better in the studio, I would have never returned. Her class was at best average. Alas, we cannot win them all.
Time spent @ Island Spirit Yoga: Anusara classes taken in November 2005,  January 2007 and November 2008, February 2010

7. Om Time Yoga (Boulder, Colorado): The very heart of Boulder boasts welcoming excellent locale, large yoga store up front, warm staff, gorgeous but small studio, and a great pair of instructors.  I took the community class co-taught by Shannon and her partner, Joe . They were a beautiful couple, in sync with breath and movement, and showing us the poses and guiding us through each asana. I had never taken a class taught in equal parts by more than one instructor and I love it. My most favorite part was to see Shannon forward jump while holding her lower body up in the air, as though completely defying gravity, for a few slow seconds. It was a sight with awe, and truly inspirational. Highly recommend this beautiful studio.
Time spent @ Om Time Yoga: One class in September 2006.

8. Lululemon Athletica Store in Fashion Mall (Las Vegas, NV): I was the only one, besides the cleaning crew, to be walking the soon to be packed Fashion Mall of sunny Las Vegas on Sunday morning May 24th for Lululemon’s weekly freeyoga class. Kathleen was our instructor and she taught Expressive Yoga that day. We put our mats in a circle and watched her in the middle. The vibe in the store is inviting, and I was able to borrow a mat and find a perfect little spot for this practice. I liked Kathleen’s voice but not so much her music. The music accompanying a yoga practice plays such a key role in setting the mood, and I could have done without the tunes. Nonetheless, Expressive Yoga was interesting, consisting mostly of moving and dynamic poses, perhaps resembling Thai Chi a bit, opposing or complimenting poses, dressed to full with the breathing sounds. I went along with everything, making sounds of “ssssss”, or “shhhhh”, or a long sigh or Lion’s breath. I must have dozed off to heaven land in Savasana. Meditation and calmness found me and embraced me for the rest of the day. Lululemon happens to carry some of the best clothing quality for yoga, and their staff is warm and attentive. I’d go back and do another yoga class in a heartbeat.
Time spent @ Lululemon Athletic Yoga: One class on May 24th,  2009.

9. 8 Limbs Yoga Center at Capitol Hill (Seattle, WA): This is the closest yoga studio with highest ratings and ravings to my hotel as per Google maps. I had left a voice mail for the studio to ask about drop-ins and a very friendly girl responded right away. I ended up taking the 9:30am Level II flow with Andreas.  If you arrive earlier, the studio door is locked, and with rainy Seattle, best to go across the street to the great Coffee Kaladi Brothers shop (see my Seattle coffee tales!) until they open the doors around 9am. The drop-in rate is $16 which is most I am willing to pay for a class. The studio owns a huge real estate on 2nd floor, along with a mini boutique of yoga apparel. Not only that, the views from the large windows looking out at Downtown Seattle and buildings is exciting with a strangely quieting effect. The practice room was warm and toasty. I started to settle in with one of the many worn but still great Manduka mats, and a bolster. Andreas showed up a few minutes before class, and so did a few others making for a small to medium size class in a large space. She started with 3 Oms and a very brief meditation and centering before the flow. She mostly did the poses with us from her mat, but also got up to walk around. The flow, even though level 2, was easier than I had expected, with much slower pace and easy asanas. She adjusted me once; I would have liked more. I really liked the way she entered into some poses, especially Garudasana (Eagle pose) and Vrikshasana (tree pose). We finished with head stands and a 10-minute Savasana. It was a wonderful flow and I enjoyed the space and the instruction immensely, and I loved watching Andreas beautifully show the poses.
Time spent @ 8 Limbs Yoga: One class on October 16th, 2009.

Wherever you are, let yoga find and embrace you!

The Fabulous Toronto International Film Festival

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TIFF09-flagFor the Love of Film. The beautiful motto seen everywhere across Toronto during the fabulous, exciting, and thoroughly fun film festival, also known as TIFF. This was our very first film festival and I am eternally grateful to my friend for sharing her yearly tradition with us. The festival’s energy had completely engulfed Toronto by our arrival time Wednesday which marked the 6th day of the Sept 11-19th TIFF09 calendar, and we were happily immersed into it right away.

While our first festival package of 11 tickets shared by me and my husband is shamefully small in comparison to the serious film lover’s package, our enjoyment and experience of the film festival could not be matched. That, and we are getting the serious film lover’s 5-movie-a-day package for TIFF10. Now on to the film reviews.

I watched 5 films in total. I am sad to say that I was not lucky this time to see any of the directors or stars before the screening, unlike my husband and Naomi. The directors, producers and often the stars are known to appear before the first showing of the films, or at the Midnight Madness showing. This can be part of the better planning process for my TIFF10, where I will select the package, the film and the particular showing in a way that would maximize those chance events. My TIFF review as you can see is from the perspective of a novice, but an eager and a fascinated one, nonetheless.

However, to me, while seeing the creators of the film would be exciting, it is only icing on top of the real reason for being there. It is all about the film, the acting, the story, the theme music, the foreign films with English subtitles, the view into the intensely diverse and artistic cinematography that is created by directors and producers who are often worlds away from Hollywood. It is about the opportunity to digest this form of entertainment in good dosage, about being the first viewer, about waiting in line for the showing well over an hour at times, and about sharing the excitement of the audience that is hardly seen in the average movie theater.

Below I am sharing my unforgettable experience of watching these 5 films during the festival.

No major spoilers in my accounts of the movies below, but an avid film lover may consider some of this more than enough information prior to viewing the film.

1. Jaffa (Thur, Sept 17th, 12:15pm showing at Varsity 3 Theater):

Jaffa-TIFF09

The moment that I saw this photo, and watched the first half of the trailer, a strange feeling came over me. What a terribly sad love story, with really no hope of happiness at all, doomed from the very start, and yet spell-binding in its brilliant weaving of the tale. Keren Yedaya is an Israeli film maker, and her unique talent is obvious in this film. There is no single scene that is out of focus from the story, there is no extra character or unnecessary sub-plot. As dramatic and intense as the film is, the dialogues are minimal and so much happens during moments of silence. I must commend Keren in that there was no dramatization of the characters or the events. The film is real, so very real, as though you are watching every day lives unfold in the unfortunate circumstances that ensue when a Jew and Arab fall in love and when tragedy strikes two families.

Even the theme song, powerful as it was, never once played just to dramatize the scenes; it only played during the select scenes, brilliant choices to intensify the story appropriately. There was a purpose, a clear intention and direction for every scene. The sadness in the story was overwhelming, so much so that I could hardly produce a single tear in response. Jaffa moved me and I will remember it as one of the best films of TIFF09.

Traveling changes your mind and expands your horizons! If you like to see the other travel stories here, check the index of Travel Tales.

2. Baaria (Thur, Sept 17th, 8:30pm showing at the Winter Garden Theater):

Baaria-TIFF09

Cinema Paradiso moved me deeply. I found it to be a timeless story and mention the strengths of Giuseppe Tornatore’s directing on my movie blog post about his masterpiece. He has now created a second film very similar in plot, and characters and setting to Cinema Paradiso. I think perhaps his first mistake was just that, because you cannot create a second masterpiece by borrowing from the first one. Any masterpiece must stand alone.

Baaria disappointed on many scales. This was a loud and incoherent film, filled by unrelated sub-plots running along topics of politics and particularly Communism as it influences the main character, superstition in the form of old woman and her crazy son, the element of the dream and possible time travel, the love story, the fathers and brothers, and the loud squeaks from children, animals, festivals, armies, trains, screaming women. He was trying to do too much, and not succeeding at any one single plot. Sadly, the plots did not weave into the main story and to me, Peppino’s life seemed out of focus and scattered over too many pieces to follow.

This was a huge disappointment, as I was expecting heaps more from the reviews and reputation of the director.

3. L’Affaire Farewell (Fri, Sept 18th, 20:30pm showing at AMC 6 Theater)

L-Affaire-Farewell-TIFF09

“J’ai des papiers importants pour vous” and the manner with which Emir Kusturica, who plays KGB spy Sergei Grigoriev, uttered those words to his partner Guillaume Canet (playing Pierre Froment), hooked me from the trailer.

The movie is in French and Russian, switching back and forth between them swiftly, and adding nicely to the suspense and brilliance with which the movie is made. It is a film about the cold war era, done so well as it takes us through the scary path the two strangers, Sergie and Pierre, follow to leak information about Russia’s plans to the West and to the appropriate channels to expose them. From spying to the terrifying risks they take with their families, the secrets they keep and the price they pay, the suspense never lets up for a moment. The characters and their chemistry is superb, and the story of cold war is presented to us again in a new light.

The French dialogues were carefully chosen, and I was delighted to follow them for the most part. The slight mockery around Reagan’s obsession with his own Western flicks aside, I commend the making, directing and story telling of this movie, and highly recommend it.

4. Mao’s Last Dancer (Sat, Sept 19th, 12:45pm showing at Scotiabank Theatre 2)

Mao-s-Last-Dancer-TIFF09

A magnificent film, with gorgeous cinematography, and a magnetic story of a young boy who becomes a highly recognized ballet dancer, and in the process, tastes the sweetest reward, that of gaining freedom, although as is always the case, not without a price. Mao’s Last Dancer leaves you with a bittersweet aftertaste. Bruce Beresford brings to us a film with a gripping story of young Lee in China, growing up in utter poverty with his family during a time when communism was taking strong hold, a peasant with 5 brothers who is chosen for his talent to be sent to Beijing to train for the ballet. Personally, I have never been able to appreciate ballet, and shockingly, this story and not the best performance of Taming of the Shrew which I saw in Boston, was my eye opening view into the silent beauty that is conveyed through performances of ballerina and the “ballerino” (must see film to get the expression!). I thought that most gripping parts happened during Lee’s childhood in China, but when Lee is faced with the expiration of his visa and denial for extension, the series of events which follow prove to be just as heart-breaking. Based on a true story, and done superbly well, I recommend and applaud this film for the simplicity of its gripping story, the stunning acting of Lee as a little boy, the precisely sufficient level of humor, and for exposing the beauty of ballet and the ugliness of communism in one single film.

5. Ong Bak 2 (Sat, Sept 20th, Midnight Madness at the Ryerson)

OngBak2-TIFF09

My very first Midnight Madness, under the influence of my friend and TIFF advisor Naomi and my husband’s fascination with Ong Bak 1 and Tony Jaa, and I must say that now I understand why! Midnight Madness crowd is fun, fun, fun – vibrant, full of energy, patiently waiting in line (the line had already wrapped around the block at 10:40pm for the Midnight showing, and it continued well around the other block behind us). TIFF volunteers walked up and down the line and kept us company while we chatted away. The opening was delivered by the Midnight Madness host, Colin Geddes, set the stage well. He filled us with Tony’s whereabouts before surprising us all with the “special message” broadcast from Tony straight for this audience.

The excitement of this audience did not waver until the very end. I loved it! As for Ong Bak 2, it left me speechless.  I rarely watch Kung Fu movies, and hardly share the passion of those who do. But this movie was different, and taking revenge is usually the greatest motive for me to watch a fighter seek his justice in whatever means he damn well pleases, and Tony Jaa delivers an unbelievable performance of just that. The elephant scenes mark some of my favorite scenes, and I am still confused about the crow-human fighter at the very end.

The story line was strong enough for me to keep the suspense alive and well, but the plot was criticized for being too weak. Did these guys not watch the movie? How could Tony make time for a story when the man is training 18 hours a day and fighting hundreds of beasts alone? Give him a break. He rocked. And couldn’t join us because he was making Ong Bak 3. I think we will cut him a slack this time.

Photo credits: The first photo is taken by me outside TIFF box office in Toronto. The rest are the unedited public photos from the TIFF website. I claim neither ownership nor copyright to them.

Frequent Flyer Miles: Executive Platinum on American Airlines

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Travel with ConfidenceAmerican Airlines and Frequent Flyer Miles

I was not expecting to get a call from the Executive Platinum desk at American Airlines this week.

This year (2009) has been really tough on our travels – we moved, we did a ton of things before the move, we got busy with the daily minutia of life and we forgot to, gasp, travel much!

As someone that even wrote a book on travel, I was certainly not proud to admit to these calls but alas here it came!

“Hello Mrs. Brock, this is the AA Executive Desk”
“Oh yes, hi. How can I help you?”
“Well, we were just wondering where you are spending the holidays next year. We haven’t seen you fly as much this year.”
“Uhm. Oh. Yeah I am fine. I am sorry. We moved this year – and well they have cut corporate travel. You know? But has it really been that long since I flew? I suppose it has been – gasp – months…”

So I assure the nice lady at American Airlines that I will start flying again – especially with the fantastic use of ExpertFlyer, which my husband so smartly puts to amazing use for us and you should totally try it. It helps us accumulate those frequent flyer miles. [Read more…] about Frequent Flyer Miles: Executive Platinum on American Airlines