A Whirlwind Tour

I believe that what one does outside of work is just as important, if not more so, than the work one does. Having said that, for some, there isn't necessarily a need to draw a distinction between work and life. I'll save descriptions of the classes I've taken and the research project I've been working on for a later post. I'm going to attempt to summarize some of what I've been up to so far outside the world of work.

During fall (autumn) quarter, the college football season was in full-swing, and I was treated with a bunch of home football games to go see. After a string of upset wins by the underdog Stanford football team against some top seeds in our division, we fell short when it came to the one that mattered -- the Big Game. This is the much talked about annual face-off between Stanford and Cal. One reason why there is so much hype surrounding this game is because of the final play of Big Game '82, perhaps the most memorable play in college football history (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mfebpLfAt8g).

Stanford Band making an entrance pre-game in an uncharacteristically orderly fashion

In possession

Our de facto mascot, the Stanford Tree, on the right, accompanied by its cheerleaders, the Dollies

The Dish is the name of the foothills near Stanford campus, where I love to run. The trail has plenty of ups and downs, excellent for hill training. Upon reaching the summit, I am rewarded with magnificent views of the Bay Area. It is even possible to see a faint Golden Gate Bridge on a clear day.

Near the summit

A radio telescope once used for studying the atmosphere

Esther, a friend at UC Berkeley, and me (what was brown is now green)

I did some pumpkin carving in observance of Halloween:

The headless horseman

...visited the Canter Arts Center on campus:

...the birthplace of HP:

...Google headquarters:

...Koreatown in Sunnyvale:

...Palo Alto Baylands Preserve:

...McNee Ranch State Park overlooking Half Moon Bay:

Recently, a few classmates and I went hiking at Pinnacles National Monument, then snowshoeing at Sequoia National Park.

Spotted a rare Californian condor in the distance

Bioengineering classmates - Ying (left) and Joe (right)

Some awesome rock formations

The largest living organism in the world -- the General Sherman (Giant Sequoia tree)

Scaling an icy and slippery Moro Rock (children ask your parents first)

Some parts were a wee bit treacherous

We used a patch of snow as a chilly bin and each skulled a beer down at 7000 feet

Needing a solo shot

Heading back home, we drove into the sunset

My most recent trip, to New York City, was paid for by the Fulbright Program. Here, I participated in a 2010 Fulbright Enrichment Seminar entitled: Global Challenges, Local Solutions: Fostering Change Through Social Entrepreneurship. Over four days, together with fellow Fulbrighters representing 65 countries around the world, I was educated on the importance of social entrepreneurship in addressing pressing social problems prevalent in the world today. Here I met some truly amazing individuals -- future leaders and sources of inspiration in their respective fields.

Pablo (from Spain), Thomas (France), me (New Zealand), Dhilung (Nepal), Rona (Afghanistan)

Candid shot on the castle in Central Park (having had at best 5 mins sleep on the overnight flight, I may have almost dozed off here...)

Playing math games with kids at Shuang Wen School

On the Top of the Rock (Empire State Building on the left)

I wonder if anyone has coined a term describing a shot like this