Saratoga Sampler

West meets East in chance encounter with Dalai Lama

By Mary Ann Cook

BUSMAN'S HOLIDAYS: Jim Nevitt is a retired Delta Air Lines pilot. Before working for Delta, he flew transport planes, so his air miles are legendary. Since retiring, he takes one major trip a year and spends a month or more exploring whatever region he's chosen.

He devises his own trips and likes to go where other tourists are few or nonexistent. In Kashmir, he looked to be the only Westerner around. The Far East he finds fascinating, so several recent trips have been to India. He recommends attending the courses offered at the Asian Art Museum in Golden Gate Park. Experts in the field lecture on Friday mornings. The series is semester-long, and the course gives you a good grounding on the country--its history, its culture, its art. The subjects to be offered this year are Japan and Korea. This method enhances appreciation of the sights to be seen.

Some of the highlights of his most recent India trip: the Golden Temple in Amritsar, north of Delhi, the shrine of the Sikh. "It's overwhelming," he reports.

He took in the Taj Mahal--for the second time--at sunrise and sunset. This is the optimum time to witness this marvel because at one of those times the illusion is that the palace is moving toward you; at the other time, it appears to be moving away. "They say you have to see the Taj Mahal more than once to really appreciate it. It's a magical place." And so it proved.

He also visited the Ranakpur Temple of the Jains. They're the vegetarians. And he took in the Floating Palace, the one that Jackie Kennedy visited and suggested it be made into a hotel. Since her trip, it was converted from palace to hotel.

Nevitt also saw the Dalai Lama, but that was accidental. The spiritual leader wasn't expected to be in residence. Nevitt had planned to be in Himachal Pradesh state, because he wanted to see where he was exiled. Turned out the Dalai Lama was in residence, and Nevitt, along with several hundred others, was received--in a line that filed through and shook the leader's hand. The DL didn't speak to him personally. Still ... .

WOMEN OF ACHIEVEMENT: Here's the list of those nominated as Women of Achievement by the Santa Clara Chapter of the American Pen Women: Clarice Lincoln, Jane Hofstetter, Mary Chabiel, Alice Lee, Pam Paige, Holly Laske and Carol Greene.

Lincoln and Hofstetter are watercolorists. Chabiel and Lee are oil painters, and Lee is also a potter. Paige is a violinist/violist/teacher. Laske is a singer/teacher/composer.

Greene, who lives in the Santa Cruz mountains, is a writer and a musician. Actually, she's a singing ventriloquist, which is not someone you meet every day of the week. She taught in the Moreland School District for 33 years and was the creative arts traveling specialist for the last 11 of those years. She earned her way through college at the University of Denver by running an entertainment business and teaching piano.

Greene has a number of vent figures she uses for her shows. (She doesn't like to call them dummies.) For instance, Ludwig Van Birdoven is 5-feet tall, and she dances with him. King Hisss is 12 feet long, and there's also Rainboa Constrictor.

Children seem to retain knowledge better when it's conveyed by a puppet or vent, she says. Years later, her students tell her how well they remember her teachings. She is now retired, but continues her ventriloquist business and is the director of the Skyland Children's Choir.

"People tell me I'm a good singer, but I never think of myself as a singer. I think it's one of the vents that's a good singer," she says.

The group of nominee achievers will be honored at a luncheon Feb. 25 at the San Jose Elks Club. And, hey, I'm one of the nominees, too. Thanks, Pen Women.

FORE! AND AFT: Ed Porter is gearing up for his work at the AT&F. Porter, along with several other stalwart Saratogans, serves as a volunteer at the famed golf tournament at Pebble Beach. The others are Ron Whitcanack, Grant Adorador, Brad Zimmerman and Rick Des Marteau.

Porter will be part of the transportation staff, helping people find the right golf course. On the bus journey to each venue, transportation guides also serve as historians about the tournament, telling anecdotes and in general acting as emcees, a role right up the Porter alley.

Last year, he told the busload they had a celebrity aboard--one (blushing) Louise Webb. What with Webb being the ultimate celebrity chaser, the tables were turned that day. The tournament runs from Jan. 31 to Feb. 5.

NEW PROGRAM: The YMCA has a new program--a 12-week personal fitness program, tailored to each individual, designed for those who have let exercise slide or who never got into the exercise habit. It meets three times a week, with exercise introduced in small increments.

A separate room is set aside to ensure a private workout for those who might be timid about exercising with others. After three months, participants should see significant results, and exercise will have become a habit, is the thinking. The number is 408.288.YMCA.

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