Passport Stamp #6: Iyengar Yoga Institute, 5:00 Level 1, Sachiko. The Iyengar Institute is one of the grandaddies of yoga - in the entire United States, if not San Francisco - so I was excited to finally visit. First tip: the Institute has recently moved, and some maps (-ahem- Apple) have the wrong address; the institute is at 2201 Sutter St. The facility is exceptionally nice and clean and modern. As befits an Iyengar studio, there is a plethora of high-quality props, including some you might not expect such as wall ropes. I went with my good friend Alesia. The class was small - 4 of us. Iyengar classes are relentlessly alignment focused; don't expect to break a sweat, but do expect to be humbled. I definitely enjoyed my experience and am looking forward to going back. Two quibbles: one, there are two studios and they're separated by only a thin wall. There was another class going on at the same time as ours in the other studio and I could clearly hear the other teacher and class, which was distracting. Also, Sachiko was very nice and knowledgeable, but had difficulty with english, and specifically with speaking precisely - she would swap shoulder for elbow, front for back, foot for hand, left for right, even up for down. This is a problem for a class which is all about precision and clear instruction. But overall it was an excellent experience and I can't wait to go back!
