A digital travel diary. · WP v1.08 · Updated
For Inna's Birthday dinner, I made reservations at Evvia - one of our favorite Palo Alto restaurants. Evvia serves authentic Greek entrees, and we really like the high-quality dishes. . I was really tired from work and came home around 18:30. We even contemplated cancelling going to Evvia, but I decided it was worth the effort to revisit this local gem. . . We arrived…
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For Valentine's Day, Inna decided to treat me to a fun evening of guitar music at International Guitar Night at the Villa Montalvo. . . International Guitar Night (IGN) is a celebrated touring acoustic guitar festival that showcases some of the world’s most inventive and expressive guitarists. Founded in 1995 by Brian Gore, IGN brings together a rotating lineup of virtuosos from diverse countries and…
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Since Super Bowl LX between the Seahawks and Patriots was being played at Levi's Stadium in Santa Clara, I decided to arrange a place to watch it locally. I looked around at Double D's, but it was too expensive ($150/person). Many other places were already all booked. However, I found that Water Tower Kitchen in Campbell had reservations available (with a $50 per-person minimum). I…
Read More: Super Bowl LX: Seattle Seahawks vs New England Patriots
I had decided to try using my iGPSPORT BiNavi GPS Bike computer to mountain bike from my house to Lexington Reservoir and back. This is a popular, highly rated trail also available on Komoot.. My GPX directions can be downloaded here.. . It was a very difficult, 20-mile climb with 2,835 feet of elevation gain. It has some spectacular views of the surrounding mountains. It…
Read More: Mountain Biking around Lexington Reservoir
Since our tee time was not available (booked for 09:30), we decided to practice driving at the Pruneridge Golf Club. When we arrived at 09:00, the parking lot was already getting quite full. . . I had a lot of difficulty getting sufficient depth and consistency.. . Perhaps I should be looking to purchase some Golf Clubs?. Callaway Edge Regular Flex 10-piece Golf Club Set,…
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Inna decided to treat me to a concert of Vasya Oblomov, who was playing at Chez Nous Cafe in Redwood City. . . Overview . In late 2025–early 2026, the Russian musician and songwriter Vasya Oblomov is on tour, promoting his new studio album, Как всё было на самом деле (How It Really Was), and performing many of his well-known songs live. . Tour Purpose…
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After trying various bike computers, including the Garmin 1040, Wahoo Roam 3, and Wahoo Bolt, and being somewhat dissatisfied with the value for the price, I decided to mount my iPhone 14 Pro Max on my 2011 Specialized FRS S-Works mountain bike. However, all the extended front bike computer mounts were either too short or too flimsy to accommodate my heavy iPhone. . I realized…
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Today, we saw a performance of "The Book of Mormon" at the Orpheum Theater in San Francisco. We had seen it many years ago (and had forgotten a lot of the songs). This performance seemed fresh (and a bit different from the one we had seen last time). . . . . We really enjoyed the performance a lot (despite having off-center seats) - a…
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Inna decided to see the newly composed/revised version of Zolushka. This was a more mature take on the "Cinderella" children's classic with a unique (more mature) update to the themes in the original version. . "Zolushka" (Cinderella) is a unique Russian-language musical performance taking place at the Oshman Family JCC Click to open side panel for more information in Palo Alto. Described as a "musical…
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Before our planned stop at JCC to see Zolushka, Inna had made dinner reservations for 6:00 p.m. at the highly rated Ettan Indian Restaurant. . . We had eaten at Ettan last year and thoroughly enjoyed it. Ettan is extremely popular and challenging to reserve on short notice. . . . . . . . At around 17:12, I dropped off Inna at Ettan and…
Read More: Dinner at Ettan, Palo AltoInna decided to purchase tickets to Kasia Smolarek's Classical Guitar concert at De Anza College's Visual and Performing Arts Theater (VPAC). . When we arrived at De Anza College, we had difficulty finding the VPAC because I had programmed 21250 Stevens Creek Blvd. (instead of the Visual and Performing Arts Theater). Even though we arrived at 19:21 for the 19:30 opening, we still had to…
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After many years of mountain biking, I realized that GPS directions would really help me discover new trails (without the fear of getting lost). . . . I initially considered mounting my iPhone 14 Pro Max on the handlebars. Still, I learned that the mountain bike's jerky motion could damage the phone's sensitive camera system. . I did some research (with the help of ChatGPT…
Read More: Wahoo Elemnt Roam 3 Bike Computer
Inna heard about the AURA show in San Francisco's Grace Cathedral, and we decided to purchase tickets and see it for ourselves. . . Before the show, we stopped by for dinner at Dacha Kitchen & Bar (an Eastern European restaurant 15-minutes away), where we ordered the following: . . Boris: Chicken Skewers. Inna: Pojarskaya Cutlet. Alex: Seasoned Salmon. My Chicken Skewers were alright, but…
Read More: AURA at Grace CathedralLesson - 7/17/2026 - Music Village - Daniel Yarritu . Repertoire: The Cornerstone Method for Classical Guitar - Grade 1 . Malagueña (p. 123). Duet: Strange Things (p. 119). Pay attention to playing very softly while the harmonics play for a good balance. . Tasto playing and buzzing.. . Lesson 07 - 3/6/2026 - Music Village - Daniel Yarritu . Repertoire: CGC Graded Repertoire Grade…
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2025 Year in Review . . . . . Highlights . A fabulous trip to Iceland (Golden Circle) and Scotland (Edinburgh & Highlands) . A fun trip to Kauai, for surfing, sun, and relaxation. Inna's trip to Northern Italy. Inna's company trip to San Diego and Tijuana, Mexico. Fun weekend trips to . Calistoga. Incline Village (Lake Tahoe), Nevada. . Carmel-by-the-Sea. Mendocino. Sonoma. Attending concerts,…
Read More: Welcome 2026!
. . . . . . . . Sports 2025 2024 2023 2022 2021 2020 2019 2018 2017 2016 2015 . Tennis 120 187 78 146 77 77 124 147 228 241 0 . Fitness 131 97 2 0 0 14 66 90 9 0 0 . SUP Surfing 9 14 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 . Surfing 0 0 12…
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Which are the best restaurants, spas, and travel destinations? . At the end of 2025, I will rate the following (from best to worst) based on my personal experience. . . . . Restaurants. . Even though Michelin has not rated it, Mama's Fish House on Maui is our favorite restaurant worldwide. It combines an authentic Hawaiian atmosphere with exceptional cooking and a magnificent tropical…
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Is human knowledge only to be found in books?. As wonderful as books represent, document, and express human thoughts, they are not a substitute for direct, personal contact that comes from seeing, hearing, feeling, and experiencing things for oneself.. . Can any book truly capture the exhilaration of windsurfing on Bonaire, snowboarding on freshly fallen powder at Mammoth, piloting a Cessna single-engine aircraft, swimming with…
Read More: The Bucket List 2025
. A few months back, Inna purchased two tickets to the new Cirque du Soleil Echo show in San Francisco (during a Black Friday sale). We have always enjoyed watching Cirque du Soleil's many shows, including the following: . . 2001 - "O" (Bellagio, Las Vegas). 2007 - Kooza (San Francisco). 2011 - "O" (Bellagio, Las Vegas). 2011 - The Beatles Love (Mirage, Las Vegas).…
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Saturday, December 20, 2025 . After waking up at 05:00, I showered and dressed. Our Southwest Airlines Flight #4736 (SJC to HNL) was originally scheduled to depart at 07:00 but was delayed by 1 hour (new departure time: 08:06). . I ordered UberX at around 06:00, and we arrived at the San Jose Airport around 06:30. As we were a bit sleepy and tired (from…
Read More: Return to Kauai