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At the End of a Long Drive


Shreesh and Neena Taskar

We didn't make the decision, the decision made us. On October 20th, 2007, we left our comfortable city of San Francisco to follow a simple algorithm - go North till the road ends then turn around and then go as far South. In between those two points was the stage, the timeline, the space, where we made things happen and things happened to us.

The past is fleeting and the stories, the sights and the feelings are perishable. One sees what one wants to see, and perhaps we are not capable of more. We saw that people are kind and helpful even if they were not materially rich. Some we could understand even though we didn't speak the same language, the motivations of others were incomprehensible even though we did. In the end fragments remain - the smell of roasting chocolate, a flock of snow Ptarmigians on snow, the creaking of the rainforest, the rough feathers of penguins, and the intoxication of Curanto.


So these are our stories. Every time you visit the site you will see a random post below. Each starts with Lo que pasa es que...

A Small Step for Man… Well, A Small Step

Oct 21st, 2007 by

Shreesh Taskar

Man in a
Yellow Jacket

And they’re off! 7.2 miles into the long drive! (Map this!)

Yay! We are now on the road, although we are just 7.2 miles from the Golden Gate, our official starting point. Our friend Barbara Kosnar was kind enough to extend an invitation to stay at her place on the way back, little did she know that we would take advantage of it on the way up! At 12:00 midnight the apartment becomes the responsibility of Skyline Properties and we are on the road.

In many ways this 7.2 miles has been one of the longest distances we have traveled – it has been eighteen months in the making, all that packing and preparing. It has been an amazing learning experience and we hope that our preparations are adequate for the trip. Most of our belongings are now either at Pier 27 in San Francisco or at Mike Andrade’s garage in Hayward. Do we really need all those things and were they worth all the pain we went through to pack and store them? In the end its just stuff…

In Mill Valley

We didn’t get very far, but we were with friends!

The view and life in Mill Valley is beautiful and tranquil. So much changes just a short distance away. Things are certainly not going according to plan, but we knew that already. If everything had gone exactly as expected then we wouldn’t be challenging ourselves as much, not learning as much.

9 Responses to “A Small Step for Man… Well, A Small Step”

  1. Bipin Pradhan says:
    October 21, 2007 at 7:11 pm

    Hi Shreesh & Neena,
    Good luck on your long drive.

    Bipin & Prachi Pradhan
    Eden Prairie, MN.

  2. Fred says:
    October 22, 2007 at 8:55 am

    At long last! We’re keeping an eye on you – so have fun!

  3. Kevin says:
    October 22, 2007 at 10:15 am

    How exciting to finally begin your trek! Please be safe and good luck.

  4. Paul Toney says:
    October 22, 2007 at 10:26 am

    Shreesh! I was wondering when this trip was going to start … Glad to hear you’re on the road. The eyes of the world are upon you! Cheers!

  5. madhuri says:
    October 22, 2007 at 10:55 am

    Congratulations on the take off!

  6. Vinay says:
    October 22, 2007 at 11:25 am

    Yay! Here’s wishing you more things that won’t go according to plan, to give you new, rich experiences and memories

  7. Shreesh says:
    October 22, 2007 at 11:41 am

    It was a little embarrassing admitting that we only got 7.2 miles on the first day, but hey, if you can’t laugh at yourself then who can you laugh at?

    Currently heading North on hwy. 99, towards Red Bluff.

  8. Arvind & Pushpa says:
    October 22, 2007 at 1:11 pm

    At last you are now road worthy!Keep it up!

  9. Ya Wen says:
    October 22, 2007 at 9:02 pm

    Shreesh & Neena:

    I am in no way to even remotely imagine what those 7.2 miles meant for you guys, but I know for sure it marks the beginning of an exciting journey ahead, a journey that would decorate your life so much richer. Jack London said: the function of man is to live, not to exist! Best Wishes and Good Luck on the Road!

    My home in Seattle will be your accomodation anytime, but first, I will see you guys on the 24th…

    Ya

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