Woodland Park (day 1)

Today was a day of rest. Maomao spent most of the morning exploring the house and napping on the bookcase:



I got scared a little when I couldn't find him and ascertained that he had discovered how to work the doggy door. I indeed found him outside roaming the neighbor's yard.

Gina, Grandma, and I went to the Italian restaurant next door for lunch (Primo's). We were kind of disappointed by the food. In the afternoon we went to the Rocky Mountain Dinosaur Resource Center, a for-profit organization that excavates dinosaur bones off private lands and sells casts to museums and universities around the world. They also have a small but fascinating museum in Woodland Park. Here are a couple of photos:

Black Canyon of the Gunnison

On the fifth day of the move, we started off early in the morning to see the Black Canyon of the Gunnison (while leaving Maomao in the motel). We took a few small hikes along the south rim of the canyon. It was a truly beautiful place:







After picking up Maomao, we had lunch in the car (Mexican leftovers) as we drove to Woodland Park:



We stopped briefly at Monarch Pass:



and Florissant Fossil Beds:



(this is a 34 million-year-old petrified redwood stump)

Finally, we arrived in Woodland Park just in time to enjoy Jeff's excellent pork ribs that had been stewing all day long.

Interstate 70

After a pancake breakfast (courtesy of Tim), we set off in the direction of Colorado. We wanted to stop at Arches National Park and were debating whether to take the interstates or to cut across on a surface road. We stuck to the freeway and this turned out to be a good choice. I-70 heading through eastern Utah is very beautiful:



Lunch consisted of a taco salad purchased at a Mexican restaurant in Green River and consumed in a small public park (where we could park the car in the shade for Maomao's comfort). Shortly thereafter, we left the interstate and headed south to Arches N.P.:





We headed back to I-70 along a canyon carved by the Colorado River:



And we ended the day in a motel in Montrose, Colorado. For dinner, we had more Mexican food across the street (Gina was starting to get sick of it but I wasn't) and, after eating, I took advantage of the motel wireless to update this blog.

Salt Lake City

Most of the third day of the move involved a fairly dull drive across Nevada. I listened to some books on tape for a while, but since Gina couldn't really understand anything, we didn't do that for too long. We were very happy to arrive in Salt Lake City and see our friends Tim, Fumi, and Kenji. We went to a Thai restaurant for dinner and then spent an hour or two walking around downtown (mainly Temple Square). Here's a picture of us (minus me) outside of Tim's dad's place the next morning:

Portola Redwoods to Reno

We arrived at the Portola Redwoods State Park around 5:30 p.m. and set up camp. Then we went back down the hill to Mountain View to see Michelle and Dave. Dinner at a Japanese place near Castro St.

Early the next morning (early is about the only time we can leave Maomao in the car alone), we went on a little walk among the redwoods:







Later, after my doctor's appointment down the hill, we left town in a hurry, trying to beat traffic. Heading east on the 80, we crossed beautiful Donner Pass:



before ending the day in Reno. We each gambled 30 cents (one nickel and one quarter) and lost it all.

Moving to Knoxville

Right now, we are in the process of driving to Knoxville, "we" being the three of us:



Gina and I been having a good time, eating a lot while driving (including beef jerky courtesy of Frank & My, who gave it as a present at a very nice dinner party they hosted on Friday). Maomao, on the other hand, appears to not be enjoying the trip much. He's been sleeping a lot. Sometimes on us:



But mostly in his kitty litter:



(consequently we've been keeping the kitty litter real clean...)

Gina can now drive

Disaster on Whitman Ct.

There are those who may be horrified to see how things have declined in our final days living on Whitman Ct. First, there is the mess in the living room:



Second, evil gardeners have dealt a more permanent blow to the privacy formerly enjoyed on the back patio. Two bushes have been without warning chopped down:

Ukrainian culture night

Sunday night was Ukrainian culture night at Katya's place. We were treated to a plethora of photographs from Katya's days in the Ukraine, examples of traditional Ukrainian clothing (made by Katya's mother-in-law), and folk music. However, first and foremost was the food. Dinner began with borsch:



Then came gretchka (buckwheat) with mushrooms (here photographed with Gina and Kazu):



Next came kutya (sweetened wheat grains), which is usually a Christmas specialty. Here is a picture of kutya in the hands of our chef:



Although by now I was stuffed to the brim, Katya then came out with three different kinds of varyeniki (dumplings): potato with shkvarki (fried lard), meat with shkvarki, and cheese with raisins. Here is the first type (photographed with Chihiro and Katya):



Finally, we were served paska (a type of sweet bread usually served at Easter) and "Katya's crazy tea" (crazy because it's so strong).

July 4

July 4: In the morning, Gina went to my mom's place to clean up her patio. In the afternoon, we had a bbq. We were very honored to have Allan's presence. Allan had once vowed never to venture south of the 10 freeway, so you can imagine what a trek it must have been to come down to OC. Allan & I formed the American contingent. Our remaining guests were some of Gina's ESL friends: Katya, Chihiro, Zohreh, and Frank. Frank and Zohreh are siblings; along with their father, they all took ESL classes together! My mom also stopped by a little later on. Here are some photos:







Sometime after dinner, we went off onto the grassy knoll behind the house and watched in the (far) distance a large number of firework shows in progress.

Bday dinner

For dinner Monday night, we went (on my dad's recommendation) to Sage restaurant in Newport Beach. For starters, I had gazpacho and Gina had pepper-seared ahi:



For main courses, Gina had balsamic glazed salmon and I had grilled pork tenderloin:



We had a good time. Sage is sometimes known for being noisy, but on Monday night at 8:30 out on the patio, the ambience was quite subdued.

This weekend

Saturday morning, Gina (who will be taking her behind-the-wheel driving test next Tuesday) drove me and Katya (Gina's ESL classmate) to Crystal Cove State Beach. There is a conveniently placed Starbucks at a strip mall across the street where I set myself up with my computer to work while they had fun at the beach. I nearly starved to death waiting for them, but they arrived just in time. We bought salads at Trader Joe's and ate at a table outside. Although it was hot outside, there was a cool breeze.

In the evening, Gina made excellent spaghetti with meatballs (with basil from our basil plant):



Sunday morning, while I went for a run, Gina went swimming. Then, I went to pick her up on the scooter. See how happy she is when in a pool:



At lunch we went to the tea place with my mom (Gina had three coupons for free meals)...



...and after lunch we met Sorin at the Steelhead. We had seen him at his wedding in January, but I hadn't really had a chance to talk to him in probably two years.

Today (Monday) is my birthday. For lunch (while Gina was hard at work at the tea place), I met Sean, whom I also hadn't talked to in a very long time. He provided me with a lengthy Marxist interpretation of the Bush regime. No plans yet for the rest of the day...