Day 2: 7am Great Debate or Wait for Fate -- Mitch and Simeon's Excellent Adventure to Berkeley 2/15/08 - 2/19/08

Up at 0600 to the screaming windows mobile alarm sound, breakfast at "Nations" diner, then on to Dwinelle Hall on campus to find the pairings and discover against whom and where the first round will be. There are dozens of high school debaters everywhere we look.

One of my daughters named our Garmin GPS "Maya" and the name stuck. We refer to the device as "she" and talk to her as she patiently gives us directions. She navigated a much better route to Dwinelle than the printed instructions. We were early.

These pictures are from the hotel room window at 0715. There are lots of taxis whisking the kids off to Dwinelle; we are only 5 blocks away and I think we shall walk there tomorrow. In the photos you can see our little Elantra in the parking lot, the hotel's big sign, and the "Nation's Diner" across the street through the trees. The second photo shows a taxi taking debaters to Berkeley campus.

Both Simeon and I really like it here in California. The crisp air smells to me like "let's go running on a wilderness trail now!" and the cloudless sunny skies are a welcome relief from Seattle. I plan to run over to the Berkeley Costco later this morning, then meet up with Fremont friends for lunch, hiking, and nostalgic conversations in the afternoon.