The above title is in tribute to our dear friend Martin who is also leaving San Francisco. Martin is returning to Stockholm after several years in the Bay Area and we were glad to spend some time with him and other friends before our own journey.

We spent last Thursday in San Francisco wrapping up visa logistics and doctors appointments. After our adventures at both the Indian consulate and the place they outsourced visas to we had a chance to relax. We found it hilarious that the Indian government is now outsourcing to the U.S!

We took some time to enjoy a last burrito in the Mission for old time’s sake and hang out in Dolores Park.

Aaron spent the late afternoon at a wine tasting event with his childhood friend John while I went shopping in Union Square. In the evening we met up with friends at Bliss Bar in Noe Valley. It was great to see everyone and get a chance to say goodbye!

After a long day, we were happy to relax over some wine with Matt and Raish in Novato. I appreciated spending a night in my old bed, which is now housed in their guest room. Aaron had a hard time making me get up the next morning!

We spent most of the last week with Steve and Deidre (Aaron’s parents) at their beautiful home in Scotts Valley, just out of Santa Cruz. I’ve really enjoyed our time here in Scotts Valley, and Steve and Deidre have been taking great care of us. We also spent some time in Santa Cruz, eating excellent sushi and taking walks on the beach. Aaron is determined to eat as much sushi and Mexican food as he can, because it is hard to get both types of food outside of California.

Last Sunday, April 20 (our three month anniversary!) we drove up to Carmel and Monterey, which is about an hour from Scotts Valley. We drove the 17 mile drive, which takes you up the coast with stops along the way, such as the Lone Cypress, a tree embedded in an ocean cliff that has survived for 200 years. The Lone Cypress is a classic symbol of the region and is also the logo for the Pebble Beach resort.

After enjoying the beautiful scenery on this clear and sunny day, we made a stop at Pebble Beach, the famous golf resort nestled on the edge of the Pacific ocean.

Afterwards, we strolled around Carmel. Carmel was started as an artists colony, which is apparent from the plentitude of galleries that still line the streets of this small town. The town is very picturesque, and also very expensive! We ended the day with a great seafood dinner at the wharf in Monterey. While we enjoyed our clam chowder, we watched a mother otter teaching her baby to float by herself.

For the last several days Aaron has been busy packing and preparing for the trip, while I have been relaxing, reading, and looking at Aaron’s baby pictures with Deidre, much to his discomfort. I am sure the tables will be turned once we are in San Diego!

We went to The Garret in Campbell on Saturday to hang out with friends from the South Bay before heading overseas. The pizza was excellent and the pitchers were cheap! It was great to spend time with former roommates, colleagues from AIESEC and high school buddies. Thanks so much to everyone who came by!

Thursday we traveled to Santa Barbara to help Amanda move to her new spacious apartment and to explore Santa Barbara. Traveling is so rewarding when a local can show you around! Amanda took us to a sushi restaurant with super fresh fish at great happy hour prices. Yum!

We also visited Amanda’s lab and learned more about the day-to-day role of research scientists. Amanda’s company specializes in working with Bromine and is doing some very cool work in creating alternative energy sources. We weren’t allowed to take pictures of ourselves in the lab, but please enjoy this picture of Amanda in her lab coat.

Gaucho is usually used to refer to people living in the grasslands of South America, similar to a cowboy in the U.S. In Santa Barbara, the Gaucho is the mascot of the University of California campus and the students are the driving force behind the social scene and local economy.

Last Wednesday we visited Sequoia National Park where the largest tree (by volume) in the world lives. The General Sherman tree trunk is 36.5 feet across and the circumference is 102.6 feet around the base. If you were to lay the tree down, it would nearly cover the length of a (American) football field.

It seems that many tourist attractions these days have a biggest, largest, tallest something, but these giant sequoias are truly spectacular. It was amazing to think that the largest living thing was standing in front of us and its roots were spread along the topsoil under our feet.

While visiting Sequoia National Park, we also toured around the museum and trekked along snow covered paths to learn about the habitat and history of Sequoia trees. One awesome thing about visiting at this time of year is that the park was virtually empty of humans and we saw plenty of wildlife, including a coyote hanging out by the road.

We spent two days in this very charming town bordering Sequoia National Park. Two days in the country were very therapeutic and provided much appreciated downtime, as well as a chance to spend time with Aunt Susie and our cousin Terran. There are so many wonderful attributes about Three Rivers, so I’ll just mention several of our favorites:

3) Susie’s house is located on the side of a mountain with an incredible view of Kings Canyon. Her house is surrounded with decks and the wall facing the view is almost entirely made of windows!

2) Kaweah River runs through the town. The North, South and East forks of the Kaweah merge into one river, which is where Three Rivers gets its name. The rivers’ presence creates waterfalls and lakes in the area, providing a number of very scenic hikes and opportunities for fun in the water. The most prominent noise from Susie’s deck is the soothing sound of the river rushing past in the valley below.

1) Susie and Terran have such wonderful friends and are very generous hosts! We had so much fun hanging out with the locals and especially enjoyed Terran’s baseball game on Tuesday night. It was a real nail biter. Go Diamondbacks!

We started our sojourn up the California coast last Sunday, April 13 with a stop in L.A. We stayed with our friends Sprina and Anthony for two nights in Westwood and enjoyed scintillating conversation, great home cooking, and our own room with a bed and bathroom to ourselves! Quite a luxury for our homeless existence.

After delicious Thai food at a funky rock n’roll joint in Hollywood, we caught up over hookah and drinks at a pizza joint/Middle Eastern lounge with our friend Bindi. It was gorgeous weather, must have been in the 70’s that night. Perfect for relaxing outdoors. Aaron particularly enjoyed the music selection, which included such classic artists as Coolio and other masterpieces from the hip hop of the early to mid nineties. Ahh…high school. Or in my case, middle school, but who’s counting?

We also met up over coffee with Aaron’s brother David and later in the day, Fishy/Jen, who filled us on her new career as a middle school teacher. During the day we relaxed at the beach in Malibu…this is the life!

We spent our last night in San Diego having dinner at Fleming’s in La Jolla with Sophia, Khalid and Shireen. It was great to have a nice meal out with family. I wasn’t too impressed by the food, but the company was excellent! We’ve had a great time in San Diego and can’t wait to come back for a few days before going abroad.

We spent two weeks in San Diego to visit with friends and family. After having a crazy few weeks that included quitting our jobs, packing up our apartment, and encountering various unpleasant medical procedures including wisdom tooth removal, we were both ready for the beginning of our vacation. And San Diego is a great place to start!

It was gorgeous weather for much of our stay, and when not sleeping, eating, or cleaning my mom’s shed to make room for all our stuff, we took time to visit the beach. We made it to Torrey Pines, Del Mar Beach, and also P.B. Aaron skinboarded at Mission Beach while I basked in the sun. We met up with our friends Lauren, Karla and Marty for some excellent greek cuisine at Cafe Athena in Pacific Beach.

We had a chance to visit with Aaron’s grandmother Jane and all in all, spent lots of quality time with friends and family, including a fun bbq at my mom Shireen’s house. It was great to spend so much time with Sophia, Khalid and Shireen. Two weeks is definitely not enough for San Diego.

Last Wednesday we visited the beautiful coastline of the Mexican state of Baja California. Highlights include La Bufadora – one of the biggest blow holes in the world, a visit to downtown Ensenada and Karla’s grandparents, and lobster dinner in Puerto Nuevo.

A blow hole occurs when ocean waves hit shoreline cliffs. Water and air are trapped beneath the rocks of the cliff and shoot up in the air through a hole or gap in the rocks, giving the appearance of a geyser.