A digital travel diary. · WP v1.08 · Updated
Today, we decided to visit Truckee and the nearby Donner Lake to enjoy the last remnants of late summer at Lake Tahoe. The day was sunny and warm but became overcast in the afternoon, with a light shower.. . The beach around Donner Lake was nearly empty, and few people were around. . . . . . . Alex and Sasha did a few rounds…
Read More: Kayaking on Donner Lake
Today, I made an appointment to purchase my leased 2011 Audi Q5 2.0T sports utility vehicle at Audi of Stevens Creek. As my 3-year lease was expiring, I decided that the value of my car was much greater than the lease-purchase price.. . . . . . . When I arrived at 12:00 p.m. for my appointment, I planned to drop off the check, sign…
Read More: Purchasing an Audi Q5 2.0T from Audi of Stevens Creek
Today, we test-drove a 2013 Tesla Model S sedan. After reading about the fantastic reports of Tesla's performance, I requested a test drive after reading about the tremendous reports in Consumer Reports and Car & Driver.. . I requested an online test drive for the Model S and confirmed my appointment by phone.. When we arrived at the Santana Row showroom, we found a Tesla…
Read More: Test driving the Tesla Model S
Today, we saw the play "The Further Adventures of Three Musketeers" by the Los Gatos Shakespeare Company in Oak Meadow Park (on an outdoor stage).. . . . The play is loosely based on Alexandre Dumas' The Three Musketeers series of novels. We enjoyed the performance, and Alex liked all of the swordplay.. . It's all for one and one for all in this premiere…
Read More: Review: The Further Adventures of Three Musketeers (Oak Meadow Park)
Today, we decided to go for a mountain bike ride at the Wilder Ranch State Park near Santa Cruz/Davenport, California.. . Wilder Ranch State Park borders the Pacific Ocean, offering sweeping views of the nearby cliffs.. . . . . . There is little shade, and the trail can sizzle in the afternoon sun. Most of the vegetation was dry or burned out.. . .…
Read More: Biking the Wilder Ranch State Park
Today, Inna and I saw San Jose Repertory Theater's performance of "A Minister's Wife." . . . . The actors played and sang their parts well, but I was not moved by the music, the songs, or the performance.. . . . . . . . Musical Adaptation of George Bernard Shaw's Candida Makes its West Coast Premiere at San Jose Rep. Three hearts and…
Read More: Review: A Minister's Wife (San Jose Repertory Theater)
Today, we visited the Lawrence Hall of Science at UC Berkeley. Inna purchased a Groupon deal on tickets there.. . . . The museum has many activities and exhibits for young kids and adults, teaching them about nano-technology, bridge building, and other scientific endeavors.. . . . After seeing a few exhibits, we saw a 3-D IMAX movie on Prehistoric Animals, focusing on the Woolly…
Read More: Learning science at Lawrence Hall of Science, Berkeley
We had a wonderful hike at Castle Rock State Park. We saw a few rock climbers scaling various rocks and enjoyed the beautiful greenery.. . According to Wikipedia:. Castle Rock State Park is a state park of California, USA, located along the crest of the Santa Cruz Mountains. It embraces coast redwood, Douglas fir, and madrone forest, most of which has been left in its…
Read More: Hiking Castle Rock State Park
May 17, 2013. . After work, we decided to grab a quick bite at the Wine Cellar Restaurant in Los Gatos.. . . . Inna ordered the Roasted Beet and Goat Cheese Salad. It looked and tasted beautiful.. . . . I ordered a Vermont Waldorf Salad. Both salads were very well prepared, but nothing special. The service was quick and attentive.. . . .…
Read More: Wine Cellar Restaurant, Los Gatos
Today, we saw the musical "Mary Poppins" at the Orpheum Theater in San Francisco. This was the second time we saw Mary Poppins. Last year, we saw it in San Jose and enjoyed it very much.. . The San Francisco production was also excellent; we enjoyed all the songs. Mary Poppins was played by Madeline Trumble, a Berkeley native. Madeline sang very well and acted…
Read More: Review: Mary Poppins (Orpheum Theater)
Today, we decided to try what Yelp rates as the best gelato in San Francisco - Gelateria Naia on Columbus Ave, in North Beach of San Francisco.. . Gelateria Naia offers a lot of gelato and sorbet flavors - we counted 40 different flavors in their North Beach location. Some of the flavors were very unique, like Whiskey and Burned Caramel. This is superior to…
Read More: Tasting gelato in Gelateria Naia
After looking at Yelp reviews, Inna decided to try the Chow Restaurant in San Francisco. Chow is supposed to offer many organic, local dishes and has plenty of salads on the menu. . . . . . . . . . . . . Inna ordered a Cobb Salad, and I ordered Thai-style noodles with Steak and Chicken. Inna's Cobb Salad looked good. However, my…
Read More: Chow Restaurant, San Francisco
Today, we decided to check out the Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum in San Jose.. . The museum is not very large but houses many original artifacts from ancient Egypt.. The buildings look very new and well-decorated.. . . . . . Alex and Inna touched some ancient Egyptian artifacts inside the museum, including stones from the Pyramid of Djoser - the first Egyptian pyramid (over 5,000+…
Read More: Rosicrucian Egyptian Museum in San Jose
Today, we decided to explore the various smoothie bars in San Francisco.. . First, we stopped by Sidewalk Juice on 21st Street. The place looked like a hole-in-the-wall, but there was a long line to order juices and smoothies. I ordered a Green Energy Juice containing spinach, parsley, kale, celery, cucumber, apple, lemon, and ginger. It tasted fine, but nothing special. The shop is pretty…
Read More: Green Smoothies in San Francisco
Today, after checking the wind forecast (promising 15-26 knots of wind), I decided to start my windsurfing season at Coyote Point, near San Francisco Airport.. . When I arrived around 2:30 p.m., the wind was up, but hardly anyone was there. I started to rig my gear: an Ezzy 5.4m Transformer sail with a Mistral Flow 276 board. A bit later, a few kitesurfers launched…
Read More: Windsurfing Coyote Point
Today, we visited the beautiful city of Carmel-by-the-Sea and stayed at the excellent L'Auberge Carmel. We stayed there because I found a special deal on Jetsetter.com and wanted to try out this highly rated bed-and-breakfast/hotel.. . . . We stopped by the Patisserie Boissiere for lunch when we got to Carmel. Inna ordered the "French Onion soup," while I ordered the "Spinach, Mushroom, and Swiss…
Read More: Hiking Point Lobos State Reserve
I scheduled Valentine's Day dinner at Manresa Restaurant on February 13 - the day before Valentine's Day (as February 14 is impossible to book).. . . . . . . . Manresa is one of the few Michelin 2-star restaurants in the San Francisco Bay Area. Chef David Kinch prepares some beautiful dishes and cocktails.. . . . We arrived at 7:00 p.m. for our…
Read More: Manresa, Los Gatos
We decided to stop by Gather Restaurant in Berkeley after seeing the 7:00 p.m. performance of The Wild Bride at the Berkeley Repertory Theater.. . . . . . Inna and I ordered the Kale Salad (Rugosa Verde squash, root vegetables, nuts & seeds, citrus). The marinated kale was delicious, and we enjoyed the salad very much.. . . . . . We ordered the…
Read More: Gather Restaurant, Berkeley
Today, we went to see the Berkeley Repertory Theater's production of The Wild Bride at 7:00 p.m.. The stage was beautifully decorated. . . . . . According to Berkeley Rep:. Adapted and directed by Emma Rice, The Wild Bride is a grown-up fairy tale that follows a girl’s journey through a visual wonderland. What happens when your father accidentally sells you to the devil?…
Read More: Review: The Wild Bride (Berkeley Rep)
Today, we decided to have dinner at Steamer's Grillhouse in Los Gatos.. . . . . . For an appetizer, Inna ordered the Crispy Prawns (deep-fried coconut prawns with sunomono salad of julienned carrots & squash noodles). The prawns were well-cooked and delicious.. . . . I had the Tortilla Soup, which was good but nothing special.. . . . Inna ordered the Pan-Seared Scallops…
Read More: Steamer's Grillhouse, Los Gatos