A digital travel diary. · WP v1.22 · Updated
Wednesday, July 27, 2022 . I felt healthier on Wednesday and returned to Crissy Field to try windsurfing. . The wind forecast on iwindsurf.com looked favorable. When I arrived at Crissy Field, I found plenty of parking space, quickly rigged my Ezzy Elite 5.0m sail, and attached a long fin to my Fanatic 105 STB FSW windsurfing board. . . . . . I managed…
Read More: Windsurfing and Wing Foiling at Crissy Field
Saturday, July 30, 2022 . It's Alex's 20th Birthday! See this link for my birthday posting.. . In the morning, we woke up early, at around 08:20, to drive to Schubert's Bakery on Clement Street to purchase the birthday cake for Alex and a few other pastries. . . . . . After we returned home, we walked to the nearby Walgreens Pharmacy to pick…
Read More: San Francisco Workation Week 2
Sunday, July 24, 2022 . Inna and I planned to work from San Francisco from mid-July to mid-August. We both enjoy the cooler summer weather and the myriad of restaurants and other entertainment options. However, since I came down with COVID-19 from July 11-15, we decided to postpone our workation in San Francisco by one week. . . . . . On Sunday, July 24,…
Read More: San Francisco Workation Week 1
On Monday, July 11, 2022, I started to develop COVID-19 symptoms (after my return flight from Kauai, Hawaii). It turned out to be a miserable week. . . . . Here is a daily run-down of my condition and symptoms:. . Monday, July 11, 2022 - High Heart Rate, Flu-like symptoms, high fever (103F) . . Tuesday, July 12, 2022 - High Heart Rate, Flu-like…
Read More: A week with Covid-19
One of our close friends offered us the opportunity to stay at the Marriott Beach Club on the Hawaiian Island of Kaua'i. We decided to rent one week, from July 2 to July 9, 2022. Since I had Alaska points from canceled trips to Boston, I could use them to purchase 3 airline tickets from San Jose to Kauai, Hawaii. . . . . .…
Read More: Back to Kauai
To explore Arnold's beautiful lakes and nearby trails, Inna reserved a charming Mountain Cottage in Blue Lake Springs (via Airbnb). The cottage is located at 1709 Manzanita Drive, Arnold. . Initially, we planned to rent a kayak, but the nearby shop charged about $80/day and required a roof rack to transport the kayak. We decided to order the Explorer K2 Kayak Inflatable Kayak from Amazon.com…
Read More: A Weekend in Arnold
Monday, May 30, 2022 . We returned to Cambridge from the Berkshires at about 6:30pm. I parked the car on Harvard Street, and we unloaded our backpacks. I started to sneeze, as Boston had a very high pollen count. . . At 7:10pm, Mounisha (our Turo host) arrived to pick up her Honda Civic. I handed off the keys, and Inna and I walked to…
Read More: Last Days in Boston
For the Memorial Day weekend, Inna made a Bed & Breakfast reservation at the Stockbridge Country Inn in Stockbridge, MA. We planned to explore the museums and hiking trails in this area. . We expected to pick up our Turo Honda Civic at 7:00pm and start our long, 2-hour drive to Stockbridge, where we would stay for 3 nights. . . However, Mounisha encountered traffic…
Read More: Exploring the Berkshires
Sunday, May 22, 2022 . We returned to Boston from Newport, Rhode Island, at around 8:40pm, after a 90-minute drive. After refilling Robert's Audi Q5 that I rented on Turo, I found a parking spot on Harvard Street (with Inna's help). . . . We returned all our items to our apartment at 334 Harvard Street and rested for a bit. I decided to do…
Read More: Boston Workation Week 4
Saturday, May 21, 2022 . I woke at 07:15 to prepare for the long drive from Boston to Newport, Rhode Island. I reserved a 2016 Audi Q5 from Robert on Turo.com and needed it ready by 8:00. At around 07:55, Robert emailed me to say he was running late, but he arrived at 08:35 (about half an hour later than requested). . . . .…
Read More: A Weekend at Newport
Monday, May 16, 2022 . After a deep sleep, I woke at 7:30, showered, shaved, dressed, and walked around the Charles River. It was warm in the morning - 68 degrees Fahrenheit - and I only needed a T-shirt and shorts. . . . . . During the walk, I finished listening to Eric Metaxas's autobiography, Fish Out of Water: A Search for the Meaning…
Read More: Boston Workation Week 3
Monday, May 9, 2022 . I woke at 07:30, dressed, and jogged around the Charles River. It was a bit chilly in the morning - 48 Fahrenheit - but sunny and pleasant. I jogged for about 2 miles and saw several other joggers and bicyclists. In addition, I saw a few Harvard racing sculls (racing rowboats) on the Charles River in 2-, 4-, and 8-person…
Read More: Boston Workation Week 2
While in Boston, Inna and I decided to visit a few famous, nearby destinations in New England. In many tourist guides, Newport, Rhode Island, showed up in the top 10. With that in mind, Inna made hotel reservations in Newport, Rhode Island, and I reserved an Infiniti Q50 car on Turo. . . . . . However, on Friday, May 6 - the day we…
Read More: Visiting Portland, Maine
With Alex attending Northeastern University and his plans for returning home uncertain, Inna and I decided to spend May in the Boston area. Our employers still allowed remote work, so we could visit him while experiencing daily life there. Inna found a reasonably priced furnished apartment at 334 Harvard Street in Cambridge, near Harvard University, and we rented it for a month. . . .…
Read More: Boston Workation Week 1
For Inna's birthday, I decided to treat her to a weekend of relaxation at the delightful Indian Springs Resort & Spa in Calistoga, California.. . . Due to the limited availability of dining options, Inna and I made the following restaurant reservations: . Friday, February 25, 19:45: Dinner at Evangeline, Calistoga . Saturday, February 26, 09:00: Breakfast at Solbar, Calistoga . . Saturday, February 26,…
Read More: Relaxing in Calistoga
With Alex starting his Spring Semester at Northeastern University as a freshman, we needed to fly him to Boston and help him move in. Inna and I would be coming along (staying at the Lenox Hotel) to help Alex move into his new residence at Northeastern's International Village.. . . I initially made travel reservations on Alaska Airlines for January 10, 2022. However, due to…
Read More: Boston Calling
Saturday, December 18, 2021 . . . On Saturday, December 18, 2021, we woke at 05:30 to prepare for the long drive to North Lake Tahoe. One of our friends offered us a room at a house on Donner Lake (near Truckee), and we planned to use it as a base to snowboard at Palisades Tahoe (formerly Squaw Valley) and at Alpine Meadows. I pre-purchased…
Read More: Snowboarding at Lake Tahoe
On November 20, 2021, Inna and I revisited Sedona, Arizona. We last visited Sedona on November 28, 2019 (before COVID-19) and were eager to hike some of our favorites again. . Since the Hilton Sedona Resort at Bell Rock was much more expensive, Inna and I decided to try the Lantern Light Inn instead. We also booked Southwest Airlines Flight #2316 from SJC to PHX,…
Read More: Back to Sedona
For our 20th Wedding Anniversary, Inna reserved the Avila La Fonda Hotel, located on the beautiful Avila Beach, California, for the two-day weekend, from Friday, October 15 to Sunday, October 17. Although we have stayed at Pismo Beach multiple times, we have never stayed at Avila Beach. . . . Friday, October 15, 2021 . We started our drive to Avila Beach on Friday, October…
Read More: Relaxing at Avila Beach
After surfing for many weeks at surfing spots along the Southern California coast: Thalia Street, Rockpile Beach, Newport Beach, San Clemente, and Trestles, I realized that my surf paddling could use improvement. . I discovered that Rob, a local surf trainer, teaches proper surf paddling techniques. He runs a website called surfingpaddling.com. He is based in the San Francisco Bay Area and offers online and…
Read More: Surf Paddling at Linda Mar