We crisscrossed the country this spring on business trips for James, spending time in Washington, DC; Orlando; Portland, Oregon; Los Angeles and New York. Jennifer has started tagging along on these trips, that we extend into the previous or following weekend. Partly this gives us more time together, but mostly we enjoy traveling and visiting…
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Mugged in Santiago
“Someone stole my necklace!” Jennifer exclaimed, as she felt her small gold chain being ripped off her neck from behind. We both turned to see a man running away through the crowd. “Is that him?” James asked. As he said that, two men tackled him to the ground. One man tried to grab the phone…
Santiago
Santiago, founded in 1541 by Spanish conquistador Pedro de Valdivia, lies in a fertile valley flanked by the Andes and the Chilean Coastal Range. With a population of roughly 7 million, it is one of the largest cities in the Americas. 19th-century neoclassical buildings fill the downtown core, while several stand-alone hills offer sweeping views…
Darlington Nuclear Generating Station
The Darlington Nuclear Generating Station just outside Toronto has a capacity of 3,512 MW and generates about 20 percent of Ontario’s electricity needs, enough for roughly two million homes. The facility came online in 1990, and was in operation when we lived in Toronto between 1986 and 1997. Three of the four reactors are now…
re:Invent
At the most recent AWS re:Invent conference, held annually in Las Vegas, Jennifer took her first ride in a self-driving car. Amazon subsidiary Zoox has been testing their purpose-built self-driving vehicles around Las Vegas since 2023, and is planning to deliver a commercial robotaxi service in Las Vegas and other major US centers. James has…
Caribbean Cruise Aboard the Norwegian Joy
In 2022, we took our first mega-ship cruise, aboard the Norwegian Encore to the Caribbean. We mostly were interested in the technology behind the ship, and had little interest in actually cruising aboard such a huge vessel. We were surprised how much we enjoyed the trip, particularly due to the Haven, Norwegian’s ship-within-a-ship concept. Haven…
Fort Nisqually
More than a century before the smoke-spewing copper smelter at Point Ruston influenced Tacoma-born Frank Herbert’s penning of his epic novel Dune, the area supported the first European trading post in the Puget Sound. About 15 miles to the south, the Hudson’s Bay Company in 1832 established Fort Nisqually, which became an important fur-trading post…
Trifecta Helicopter Tour
We often fly close to Mt. Rainier when travelling in and out of Sea Tac airport, and love getting a close-up look of the iconic volcano. For an even better view, Jennifer took James on a surprise helicopter tour of the three major mountains in the area: Mt. Rainier, Mt. Adams and Mt. St. Helens….
Winter 2024
We began the winter of 2024 in sunny Las Vegas at the annual AWS re:Invent conference, and ended it on a weekend trip to muddy Langley, Washington. In between we covered a lot of miles, including a cruise to the Falkland Islands, South Georgia and Antarctica; trips to Israel, Toronto, and Santa Barbara; and local…
Milan
Milan is a wonderful city full of striking architecture, public art, historical depth and countless excellent restaurants. The influence of Leonardo ca Vinci, the city’s most notable resident, is visible throughout. We got a small taste of the city’s offerings on a one-day exploration before returning home to Seattle. We arrived in Milan after driving…
