Tuesday, April 25, 2006
I'm in San Francisco looking for an apartment. Actually I'm staying in Santa Rosa, which is absolutely gorgeous. I can't even tell you how many times I gasped at the scenery while driving up here. Absolutely beautiful.
My old job as a hotel consultant is coming in handy this week. A major part of my job was going to a city, driving around A LOT, and visiting and touring about a dozen hotels. My apartment search feels a lot like that, and I find my self asking similar questions (how many units? what's your occupancy? etc. etc.). I guess old habits die hard.
I'm really glad I'm taking the time to get to know the different parts of the Bay area - cuz all the parts ain't created equal. For instance, after seeing a particularly cute apartment online, I was excited to go and see it. Well little did I know the place was smack dab in the middle of the Oakland ghetto. Not that there's anything wrong with that!
And I'm realizing that people in the Bay area are kind of special. Three times (that's right three) I was asked if Philadelphia is a city. It was all I could do to keep myself from responding "yes, it's a city that happens to be the birthplace of our nation." One person asked me if Philadelphia was a state. Seriously. I mean there's 50 - and they haven't changed in a long time. These were all people who grew up in the US too. Makes you worry about the US' ability to compete... at least in random trivia contests.
Spring gala was last week. The gala is essentially the prom (seriously - they should rename Wharton, Wharton High), it was great to see everyone gussied up and in good spirits. The second years seemed particularly affectionate. Maybe its because for some, the Spring Gala is the last time you'll see certain people. All this second year love and good feeling means things will be VERY interesting during beach week.
My old job as a hotel consultant is coming in handy this week. A major part of my job was going to a city, driving around A LOT, and visiting and touring about a dozen hotels. My apartment search feels a lot like that, and I find my self asking similar questions (how many units? what's your occupancy? etc. etc.). I guess old habits die hard.
I'm really glad I'm taking the time to get to know the different parts of the Bay area - cuz all the parts ain't created equal. For instance, after seeing a particularly cute apartment online, I was excited to go and see it. Well little did I know the place was smack dab in the middle of the Oakland ghetto. Not that there's anything wrong with that!
And I'm realizing that people in the Bay area are kind of special. Three times (that's right three) I was asked if Philadelphia is a city. It was all I could do to keep myself from responding "yes, it's a city that happens to be the birthplace of our nation." One person asked me if Philadelphia was a state. Seriously. I mean there's 50 - and they haven't changed in a long time. These were all people who grew up in the US too. Makes you worry about the US' ability to compete... at least in random trivia contests.
Spring gala was last week. The gala is essentially the prom (seriously - they should rename Wharton, Wharton High), it was great to see everyone gussied up and in good spirits. The second years seemed particularly affectionate. Maybe its because for some, the Spring Gala is the last time you'll see certain people. All this second year love and good feeling means things will be VERY interesting during beach week.
