Digging up roots in Sacramento
I’ve been visiting Sacramento my entire life. As a kid, my family ventured into the state’s capital numerous times, mainly to learn more about where my mother was born in 1927 before her family uprooted and moved to China for the next 15 years....
Weekend getaway to Las Vegas turns into a hunt for delicious gems
A trip to Las Vegas typically calls for a long walk along the Las Vegas Strip for great entertainment and, in my case, delicious food. This past weekend my fiancée, Luisa, and I made the seven-hour trek to Sin City in search of some...
Taking in a slice of Half Moon Bay
While our travels have taken us to far away spots like Finland, Mexico City, China and Quebec, the road trips my wife Sarah and I have taken over the last several years have also proven to be tremendously fulfilling and loaded with surprises.
In April...
Berlin, past and present | Travel
Short trip to German capital offers glimpse into famous city
Editor’s note: This is the third installment in a series about England, Germany and the Netherlands.
From 1970 to 1971, my father lived in Germany. He was a student for a few months of the year,...
Part 2: Through a storm and into the calm of the desert
On day two of our two-week road trip, my wife Sarah and I said goodbye to Bakersfield and drove southeast on Hwy 58 toward the Mohave Desert.
We were greeted with fierce rain as we climbed Tehachapi Pass on Highway 58. Our interest in taking...
How to survive traveling with others
Let’s just say I’ve been around a bit and have traveled with various combinations of people from small to large groups that have included family, friends, colleagues, and mates; yes, it can make or break a trip. I have traveled on my own too,...
Simple drive, rich rewards through San Jose
On a recent one-day drive through San Jose, my wife, Sarah, and I took in a wealth of rich sites, from the red salty shore of Alviso Marina County Park, the splashy shops of Santana Row, and to the north, the calm and rolling...
Heading east to The Dalles | Travel
With the first part of this story wrapping up in Fort Bragg on the Northern California Coast, Sarah and I continued our road trip north for a night in Klamath, the home of the Yurok Indigenous people.
A small museum there gave us a valuable...
A road trip through California and Arizona, part 1
Thanksgiving this year included a 2,575-mile road trip, 21 relatives, two states, eight motels and a wide array of restaurants, both great and not so great.
My wife Sarah and I left Watsonville on Highway 129 to Highway 152 in Gilroy for breakfast in Casa...
Knowing the way to—and through—San Jose
I’ve been visiting San Jose since the mid-1970s.
My first stop there was when a friend dropped me off at the airport after we drove from Eugene, Oregon. I was headed to San Diego to see my parents and that drive cut my trip in...
Cabrillo-UCSC housing units ready to lease
The leasing office for Cabrillo College’s Costa Vista student housing development is now open, and college officials say interest is already strong.
Cabrillo College President...























