Social+Activities

On this page, please post any dinners, hikes, trips to wineries, surf lessons, or anything else that you think people in the group might like to do. Fred has promised to organize regular trips for sushi....no surprise.

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More Whale Watching
It is still whaling season! Not whale catching, but [|whale watching]. I (Eva) would like to know if some of the newcomers are interested in doing this. I plan to use the same boats that others have used http://www.sbsail.com/whale_watching.html (cost: $30, children under 12 $10). This is best done on a weekend, but I will keep an eye on the weather forecast to avoid cloudy days. Put down your name below if you are interested in joining. Also, send me a US phone number if you have one, in case there is a sudden change of plans.

Natasha: I want to add that there is a whale in Santa Barbara harbor. For some reasons, this whale is sitting there for 2 weeks already, so you can have almost guaranteed whale watching by just coming to Stearns Wharf, you can see it from the opposite to the Sea Center side. Last year this whale was sitting there 3 weeks, so it might be his last week there. A bit more sporty people could rent a kayak in the harbor (there are 2 rental locations there) and paddle next to the whale area. Remember, though, that intentional paddling toward the whale will cost you 20k in federal penalties. You can easily spot the current whale location by dozens of kayaks in one region. Even if you missed the whel, you can paddle towards green and red buoys and see sea lions there.

= = =Movie: The Watchmen= Hello all, I (Nathan) thought I might venture over to the Camino Real Marketplace tomorrow evening and catch a showing of The Watchmen:

http://santabarbara.citysearch.com/profile/45656141/watchmen.html

While I am by no means organizing a social activity here, I thought I would extend an invite to anyone interested. I haven't formally decided on a show-time as of yet, but it appears to be playing at 6:50, 8, 9 and 10:15 so we have plenty of options. I am leaning towards the 8pm show-time but am open to suggestions. As luck would have it, "He's Just Not That Into You" (one of my picks for next year's Oscars) is also playing in an adjacent theatre so there are plenty of thrilling movie options to choose from in the event that the movie is sold out. If this interests you, please feel free to shoot me an e-mail or post up here with your preferred show-time. Jonathan M. B. Downing (Any time)

In order to make the 8pm show, we'll meet at 7pm outside of the Starbucks in the Camino Real Marketplace. You may want to grab tickets online in advance using the above link. Mario and Jonathan - I bought tickets online for you both for the 8pm show.

Bowling During the Day? Seriously!? This Friday!?! $15 Including Lunch!?!? Surely You're Joking!!!!!
== This Friday, Feb 13, we'll be going to Zodo's for their "lunch 'n' bowl". $15 includes an hour of bowling and lunch (chosen from their lunch bowling menu). Please contact Peter Anders and Evert Glebeek if you're interested. And [|read here] to get interested.

Gaming and/or bowling night
It would be great fun to come together in the evening, after a busy day filled with talks and coffee-time discussion to relax and enjoy a few social games together. We can go out for a traditional bowling evening, or if people have brought board or card games we can use one of the meeting rooms at the KITP, get pizza and enjoy a game there! This can be a regular event, of course. Please write your name below, along with your preference for board/card games or bowling and the name of any games you may have.

Evert Glebbeek (no preference, Bang! [a western-style shoot-out for 4-7 players. If there's someone here you really wish you could challenge for a duel, here's your chance], another variation of Fluxx [the animal/ecology version, these two versions can be mixed!])

Wine tasting
Since we are in a very nice wine area, we should collect a group of people and go out for a wine-tasting event! We will go on **Saturday the 21th**. One tour operator, [|We love wines], offers all-day tour incl. picnic lunch for 95$/person and pickup service throughout Santa Barbara (and Goleta I bet). There are other agencies as well, of course. If you have good experience with another tour operator, post it here. If you would like to join, please put your name on the list here (incl. the number of persons who want to join)!

Peter Anders (done it, seen and tasted it) Evert Glebbeek (done it too)

Summary: Nice tour, though no pickup in Goleta. 4 wineries, 5-8 wines each. Wineries: Koehler (good), Roblar (nice location, but average wines), Buttonwood (not so good wines), Shoestring (good). Good packaged lunch is included.

Whale Watching
It's whaling season! Not whale catching, but [|whale watching]. If you would like to join us. We will probably go with http://www.sbsail.com/whale_watching.html (cost: $30, children under 12 $10). This is also best done on a weekend. For whale watching, the weather is an even stronger constraint than for the wine tasting, so we might need to change plans on short notice. Put down your name below if you are interested in joining. If you cannot be reached on short notice by e-mail (or skype) but want to be kept up to date, let us know how to contact you.

Peter Anders (done it, seen it) Evert Glebbeek (done it too)