Rainbow Valley!

There has been so much going on in our lives at the speed of Vyomie ( that's my little one who loves to claim that he's faster than the speed of light :D) that I never really got a chance to sit back and introspect.

So here I am finally scribbling my heart out! Well! News is that we recently, officially declared our love for Silicon Valley by buying a cozy home for ourselves in this mind boggling, awe-inspiring, genius overloaded, supremely fast paced, technology driven Valley!

It took me a while to assimilate this new surrounding and feel belonged! Well! I finally see why no one ever wants to move out of this place once they're here! 

Undoubtedly, this place has the best weather in the WORLD as the locals here proudly declare..but that wasn't enough for me to hand over the title "home"to it just yet.

I'll list those that charmed us to take the plunge!

The PEOPLE! Their spirit, their attitude and their simplicity- all remarkable! Simply putting, they all seem HAPPY!:) We all know that Happy people are the best kind of people. So why not surround yourself with them :) 

While most saunter to work cladded in hoodies or sweatshirts either engrossed in their screens or swaying to music, some prefer cruising on their high end, top-of-the-line bikes (cycles). Oh! They are so proud of their bikes. They can go on for hours describing all the fancy features.

Nature lovers, willing to help, passionate about animations, gadgets and mostly looking forward to hike their way into the mountains on weekends or exploring a new farmer's market in the neighboring town can easily sum up the attitude of most locals.

You can at any point, run into those ultra cool, young CEOs, that recently made headlines globally, just scooting on a skateboard or grabbing a salad in a salad bar and they won't be clad in Gucci wear or have an unnecessary army of people around them. They'll mostly smile and drift back into their genius thoughts.

The idea of showing off or displaying ones riches is profoundly different than the rest of the world! It's merely limited to owning a huge mansion or 2 in Palo Alto, coupled with a vacation home in Tahoe, Hawaii or Malibu..AND AND wait a minute..not having any effect of that in their demeanor. Get it all, SHUT UP and have fun! SHUT UP- that is the catch!:D 

When they set out in their fancy electric partially self driven cars, wearing hoodies outside of their gorgeous homes they are back to being simple! Smiling graciously, day dreaming about the next cool thing they could possibly build using AI..something to make life simpler for the rest of us etc!

Marching in "Haute Coutre" UNLESS it's a holiday party or an absolutely mandatory "dress it all out" event is not at all the norm here. (I am not saying that there's anything wrong with that..I am just talking about the trend here ;) )

Open mindedness and acceptance they have towards all gender, nationalities, race, age is surreal! One can only learn from the people in this Valley the true meaning of " Acceptance". Live and let live is absolutely the mindset of most. No wonder it's prospering at the rate at which it is. People can be 100% sure that they will be rewarded based on their merit - NOTHING ELSE!

JUDGEMENT FREE!! OMG! It's absolutely unbelievable! For merely this reason, I give this place a 100 points. As a woman, as a mother we get judged for every friggin' thing we do OR don't do!
I didn't even know such a world exists. Of course, there are some people with LONG BEAKS that won't stop judging or minding their own business ;) ;) but the percentage is far less than the other places we've lived in. 

Work culture: I have only been working in this "Genius overloaded Silicon Valley for a year ( my visa may/may not permit me to work forever) but it was by far my most " life-changing" experience.

People are loaded with innovative ideas, do not shy away from speaking their heart out, are always going out of the way to help each other out and the most important of all "NOT AFRAID TO CHANGE". Things change all the time!!! I think that's why most of the genius inventions happen here.(Self driven cars, Google home, Alexa what not..) They are so accepting towards change it's hard to process for ordinary outsiders like me. 

If they believe in your idea, you have the freedom to change the old way of doing things right then and there! No bureaucracy, approvals that will kill the innovation in you. It's really unbelievable!

People talk to VPs like they are buddies and it's fascinating! You can just walk into any of their rooms, in some cases, cubicles (that's right) and hello them! :)

I just drove my absolutely genius Sr. VP to the train station the other day. (I would need a separate post just to describe how many patents this Doctor has bagged and how extraordinary this person is)

I know this is only about the people and the work environment but aren't they the driving forces of our lives? ..the society we live in and the career we embark!

Weather: The place is beautiful in every way! Seeing rainbows is as common as spotting a Kingfisher in Goa! (I was talking about the bird..no pun intended! :D)
It is surrounded by gorgeous mountains(sorry that's a given.. it is a valley :P) and possibly every kind of landscape/ terrain is at a driving distance.

Want to ski? Drive to Tahoe. Waterfalls coupled with rocky hikes? Sure- drive to Yosemite.

Beach? Why not- drive to Santa Cruz..name it and you can possibly get there in a few hours. (except rain forests)

In my opinion, Rainbow should be the emblem of Silicon Valley..it's a Unicorn Valley!!- kind of goes well with the varied culture, people and the gorgeous flowers this valley inhabits. 

"We love all shades of people! "

Simplicity: It's not just the people who are "simple minded" but also the way things work here. Everything is a drive away, a block away. Just ask for it.

Libraries, parks, trails, grocery outlets all of them pretty accessible. The malls however are absolutely outdated..but that only highlights the culture further. One would rather spend an extra hour kayaking in the Bay than visiting a mall)

"Simple living, high thinking" - that's what denizen of this 🌈 Valley have engraved in their hearts.

For now and until our awesome, always changing visa status permits us (if you know what I mean :D), this is where we will be camping!

I do not know what shades will life unfold in the future..I just hope that they are as beautiful as the ones in a rainbow! Tathasthu!

P.S: Here's the one I caught from my workplace! Happy Friday!

Rainbow spotted from my office window