Been over a year in the USA now. The best reminder of it were the NBA-Playoffs. Last year also I started off watching the Eastern conference finals between Detroit Pistons and the Boston Celtics, and this year I improved on it by watching and following both Eastern and Western conference finals, Le Bron James was literally a one-man army, but he couldn't sustain the momentum for the Cleveland Cavaliers, as the combined might of Orlando Magic proved too much for them.
Lakers were clinical in their Western Conference final win, as well in the NBA Finals. Pau Gasol and Kobe were amazing. and they deserved to win it.
In addition to NBA I watched the ice-hockey Stanley cup final series between the Detroit Red-Wings and Pittsburgh Penguins. The same teams as last year. I was supporting the Red-Wings due to my past six month stint in Detroit. Red Wings were the overwhelming favourites, but again sporting world is full of glorious uncertainties. The Penguins won the roller-coaster series by 4-3. The irony was that last year one of the Penguin players Hoffa left the team to come to Red-Wings as he wanted to win a Stanley Cup, to turn up again on the losing side. Maybe a bit of faith and patience in his former club would have helped.
Pittsburgh as a city must be quite thrilled as they have two of the biggest titles in American sport. The NFL Super Bowl by the Pittsburgh Steelers, and Stanley Cup by the Penguins.

San Francisco!

Been over 9 months in the San Francisco Bay Area for me. This place must rank as one of the best in terms of the natural beauty. A sprawling crystal blue bay merging into the immense Pacific, dotted with emerald islands like Alcatraz, Angel Island and Treasure Island; crisscrossed by imposing architectural marvels like the Golden Gate and Bay Bridge and flanked by undulating mountain ranges and highlands. On a clear day, a hike on any of the innumerable trails, will ensure a marvelous vista.

Few notable points about San Francisco which is a unique city in lots of ways.

• A city with no summer whatsoever, the temperature more or less remains the same throughout the year. Mark Twain once commented that "The coldest winter I ever saw was the summer I spent in San Francisco".
• Hardly a flat road in sight, it is all steep crests and troughs
• The most liberal city for people of alternate sexual orientation
• Tolerant and cosmopolitan population composition
• One can feel the history of the place with the old stately buildings and neighbourhoods
• Having the least traffic congestion among the big cities of USA
• Fitness consciousness is very high. A city of joggers and bikers