A digital travel diary. · WP v1.08 · Updated
. When I arrived at Crissy at around 7:30 a.m., the athletes were already swimming toward Crissy from Alcatraz (they jumped off the Hornblower Cruises boat into the cold, murky waters off Alcatraz for the 1.5-mile ocean swim to shore). . . . . Many people eagerly awaited the first swimmers, and I climbed over the rocks at St. Francis Yacht Club to get a…
Read More: Escape from Alcatraz Triathlon
Saturday, August 14, 2021 . In the morning, Inna and I woke up at 8:30 and took a short stroll to Le Marais Bakery, where we purchased pastries and coffee. We were surprised by a longer-than-expected order line and the number of people on the street. The bakery was much busier than on weekdays. . . . . We ordered the following items:. Boris: Mocha,…
Read More: San Francisco Workation Week 5
Saturday, August 7, 2021 . In the morning, Inna and I woke up around 09:00 and took a short stroll to Crissy Field. After we returned, I made a couple of sandwiches with pastrami from Lucca Deli on Acme sourdough bread for Alex and me. . . . . . Alex and I spent most of the day boat surfing on the Petaluma River in…
Read More: San Francisco Workation Week 4
At about 10:30, I drove with Alex to Novato, California (about 30 minutes away from our Airbnb home in San Francisco) for a boat surfing session with Rob Case (surfingpaddling.com), scheduled for 11:15. This was part of Alex's 19th birthday present, and I was hoping that it would turn out well. . . . . . The plan was for 3 surfers to take turns…
Read More: Boat Surfing on Petaluma River
Saturday, July 31, 2021 . In the morning, Inna and I woke up around 08:00. I installed the Via Velo Bike U Lock on Inna's Specialized hybrid bike, cleaned up my windsurfing gear, started the washing machine, and loaded the dishwasher. . . . . Alex had severe allergies to ragweed pollen, so we walked to Arsicault Bakery (on Arguello) to bring him some of…
Read More: San Francisco Workation Week 3
Saturday, July 24, 2021 . I woke up at 06:30 but decided to sleep until 07:45. Inna, I went for a short walk to Crissy Field. . . . . . . . Inna hoped to photograph some of the local Night Herons and other birds who frequently inhabit the Palace of Fine Arts. She managed to take a few excellent photos. . . .…
Read More: San Francisco Workation Week 2
While we could still work from home (due to COVID-19), Inna had an idea to try living in San Francisco. She reserved an Airbnb house from July 17 to August 16, located near the Presidio, Marina Blvd, and Crissy Field, that suited our work-from-home intentions. . . Saturday, July 17, 2021 . Inna, Alex, and I packed our suitcases, but I decided to leave earlier…
Read More: San Francisco Workation Week 1
After hearing disturbing news about my 2008 Toyota Sienna Limited minivan from my auto mechanic at Foreign Affair, I decided to research possible alternatives in case I needed to replace my van. . One possible alternative was to replace it with a 2021 Tesla Model Y SUV. Another alternative was to look at the 2021 Toyota Sienna AWD XSE option. . When I priced both…
Read More: Tesla Model Y Test Drive
With Alex out surfing with his friend at San Luis Obispo, Inna and I decided to revisit Carmel-by-the-Sea on Memorial Day. . After waking up at 07:30 and getting dressed, we drove to Carmel around 08:30 (stopping for gas at Shell). I noticed that gasoline prices have really increased recently (to $4.40/gallon for 87 unleaded) . . We arrived in Carmel-by-the-Sea around 10:00, parked our…
Read More: Returning to Carmel
To celebrate my new job at Nvidia and Inna's recent promotion at Genapsys, Inna made dinner reservations at our favorite Campbell Restaurant - Naschmarkt - for 8:00pm. . . . . We ran a bit late and had trouble finding parking, but we eventually found a spot nearby. We arrived around 8:20pm and sat outside near two excellent heaters. . After looking at the menu,…
Read More: Dinner at Naschmarkt
We decided to treat Alex to a delicious dinner at our favorite Michelin-rated restaurant in Saratoga - The Plumed Horse- for Alex's graduation from Bellarmine College Preparatory School. . . . . After reviewing the Chef's Tasting menu, Inna and Alex decided to try it.. . . . It had the following items listed. As expected, they were exquisitely prepared:. . Farmer's Market Asparagus. Pea…
Read More: Dinner at Plumed Horse
Bellarmine College Preparatory held its Commencement Ceremony at 5:00pm on May 28, 2021. The graduation of Class of 2021 seniors followed a Baccalaureate Mass on the evening of May 27, with both events taking place on the San Jose campus. . . . Due to COVID-19 restrictions, only two people per senior were allowed to be present in person, and each person had to have…
Read More: Bellarmine Graduation
After surfing for many weeks at famous surfing spots in Laguna Beach: Thalia Street, Rockpile Beach, Newport Beach, San Clemente, and Trestles, I realized that my surf paddling could use improvement. . I discovered Rob - a local surf trainer who teaches proper surf paddling techniques. He runs a website called surfpaddling.com. He is based in the San Francisco Bay Area and offers online and…
Read More: Improving Surf Paddling Part 2
After trying out the Gerry Lopez 8' surfboard (that failed on me on the second day), I decided to look for a new surfboard that would get me closer to surfing my 6'6" Firewire Spitfire shortboard. After looking at Craigslist ads, I identified a few overly expensive contenders (ranging from $400 to $800). In addition, I stopped by to look at 7' surfboards (fun-size) at…
Read More: Review: Wavestorm 7′ Surfboard
With my Wavestorm 8' surfboard seriously damaged, I decided the new version might be beneficial. Since my local Costco did not have any available (either in-store or online), I decided to try ordering the Gerry Lopez 8' Foam Surfboard from Costco.com for $189.99. . The reviews at Costco.com seemed favorable, and the price (although higher than $99 for Wavestorm 8') seemed reasonable. After ordering on…
Read More: Review: Gerry Lopez 8′ Foam Surfboard
For Inna's birthday, I originally intended to treat her to a Japanese barbecue at Gyu-Kaku. However, as I developed a headache, I canceled the reservation. Later on, after taking some Tylenol, I felt much better, so we decided to drive to Los Gatos and find a nice restaurant with outdoor seating. . . . . At first, I thought about the recently opened Pastaria &…
Read More: Inna’s Birthday Dinner at North
On Saturday, January 9, 2021, on a beautiful but chilly winter day, Inna and I decided to hike the trails of the nearby Sanborn County Park in Saratoga, CA. We drove to the Costanoan Group Area parking lot and parked there. . . . . As it was a cold winter's day, we chose a shorter version of our average hike (about 2 miles) that…
Read More: Hiking Sanborn County Park
I decided that he needed a surf skateboard to improve Alex's surfing technique - maneuvers such as cutbacks, bottom turns, and slashes. . Alex already owns a 43" Cardboard, but it's not as maneuverable as an actual surfboard. After researching, I found that a Florida company called Swelltech specializes in manufacturing surf skates that closely mimic surfing.. . On October 21, 2020, I pre-ordered the…
Read More: Riding Swelltech J.O.B. Banzai Surfskate
The day after Thanksgiving, Inna and I decided to explore Half Moon Bay. She visited Half Moon Bay a few weeks ago and liked the immense beach and the surrounding restaurants. . . The drive from San Jose was relatively short, taking about an hour. When we arrived, we parked on Ave Portola. Near Surfer's Beach. Since Inna was a bit hungry (she hadn't eaten…
Read More: Exploring Half Moon Bay
On Sunday, November 22, 2020, Inna and I decided to hike the trails of the nearby Sanborn County Park in Saratoga, CA. We drove to the Costanoan Group Area parking lot and parked our car there.. . We walked to the Sequoia/Person Grove Picnic area from the parking lot, taking photos of the beautiful trees.. . . . The fall's yellow and red leaves were…
Read More: Hiking Sanborn County Park