I’ve now been in Reno for one week and have heard a LOT of operatic singing.  There are a lot of talented singers at this program and they are working very hard to process all of the information doled out to them in lessons and public masterclasses.  All of the faculty are housed in extended-stay hotel accommodation, which is terrific because we all have our own rooms with a kitchenette, giving us the option of cooking our own food.  As hotel guests, we receive a discount for a gym pass at the gym down the street.  Hooray!  I bought a pro-rated gym pass for the duration of my stay and have been really impressed by the quality of the facility.  One of my goals while in Reno is to maintain a basic level of exercise.  That is the reason I checked out a spin class yesterday morning.  “Spinning” is a type of group fitness class conducted on a special stationary bicycle that focuses on endurance, strength, and high intensity.  I thought I would try it to work out my neglected leg muscles.  It wasn’t too bad.  The instructor would yell out the number of turns we had to turn the dial up or down to increase or decrease resistance.  She would then direct us to stand (and pedal furiously) or sit (and pedal furiously), all the while urging us to “push it!”  The hour-long class ended with some stretching.  During the entire hour, I had 4 thoughts that kept circling around in my brain:

1. I would rather be outside riding a bike than be inside and pretend to ride up a big hill (I know, I didn’t think I’d think that either!).
2. I have never had sweat sting my eyes before (this was because the class was in a small room with only fans to promote air circulation….I wasn’t working THAT hard!).
3. Why was the room not air-conditioned?
4. The seat of my stationary bike was way too cushy and padded.

I think I’m a bike snob now.  At least I got a workout in yesterday!

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Today, two of my colleagues and I decided to do a day hike in Tahoe National Forest.  It was such a pretty hike and we all agreed that it was the perfect thing to do on our day off.  While we would have liked to have seen Lake Tahoe, we thought that a shorter outing would suffice for today.  (I plan on visiting Lake Tahoe next Sunday and hope to hike there as well.)  We hiked the Five Lakes trail and saw beautiful granite cliffs, many shades of green, and peaceful lakes.  Since one picture is worth a thousand words, I will stop writing and show you many thousands of words with the following pictures!