I finally got my act together and uploaded photos from the my Asian getaway to the Philippines and Vietnam late last year.  As you'd expect, it was another great adventure!  The first leg was making my way to the remote island of Siquijor for some mountain biking and snorkeling.  There I met by far the friendliest locals on the trip, and also some really nice travelers that I got to know rather well because we were all stranded on the island due to a nearby typhoon that stopped all of the ferry services.  Eventually, after some typhoon-related flight changes, I made it to the El Nido resort in Palawan for Kim and Tara's wedding wich was set in one of the most picturesque possible locales.  Then, off to the southern parts of Vietnam where the highlight was probably exploring the Mekong River Delta.  While this included the expected touristy boat rides through backwaters and floating markets, I also had a chance to get out into the middle of nowhere on bike rides and sunrise runs.  I definitely want to return to the area soon to check out Cambodia and North Vietnam.

Pictures are here, and I also whipped up a video of the highlights:

That disagreeable orchestration of noise was matched only by its ferocious loudness.  This band was certainly not shy about the act that they were committing; they wanted to be absolutely sure that we were acurely aware of every screech and caterwaul.  I'm still too shaken to be able to rationally ascertain if this is indeed the worst music ever created.  It was definitely close to being the loudest.  But if not worst and/or loudest it's very close, and will certainly be discussed for decades to come.

Awesome.  Fantastic.  After the show we had one of the best laughs I've had in some time.  Definitely a summer highlight.

I'm such a proud frog daddy. :^)  In the off chance that the above video doesn't satisfactorily convey to you the full experience of my frogrearing, the HD version is here.

But wait, the story gets better!  Julie's birthday is a few weeks after mine, so for her gift I went into the Mission and got a princess doll to dress her up:

That's not a casket by the way, it's a princess frog display case. :^)

Here I am sharing a final tender moment with Lily in the park before handing her off to her new adoptive family:

Good luck Lily, and thanks for the memories! :^)

The second we skated in I knew this mission was going to be a success.  The place is gaudy and red-velvet foofy... or "like being in a bad rap video" as one Yelp review put it.  It was full of Russian Hill types wearing makeup, designer labels, and shoes without wheels.  We received a small "wooo wooo skaters!" cheer from the patrons upon entry.

I rolled up to the bar and ordered three cran-vodkas and a Coors Light.  The bill?  $12!  O-yeah. That's cheaper than most places in the TL.

The girls weren't alone for long before the prowling douchebags made their moves:

Prost!

I definitely foresee this becoming a regular stop on The Skate.

Everyone's seen Mt. Sutro look like this:

But not everyone has seen the reverse view.  When the Pacific fog rolls over the hill, this is what the view of SF looks like from inside that evanescing blanket of former seawater:

Here's the nighttime view.  It's really cool to hang out and watch various parts of the skyline appear and disappear as the random patches of fog blow eastward.  Market Street is the bright line, and you can see a car's headlights and taillights on a nearby hairpin turn:

Full res pics can be found here.

Well that was a cool unplanned vacation!  With only a week's notice, Sun asked me to present at the OpenSPARC workshop in Bandung, Indonesia.  I thought about it for about two seconds before saying "yes" and looking for flights. :^)

The trip was a total blast.  The Indonesian people were probably the best part overall -- almost everyone I met was super friendly and genuine, even if they also did want some of my money.  The highlight of the trip was definitely climbing Indonesia's most active and supposedly hardest-to-climb volcano, Gunung Merapi.  I started hiking at 2 AM in order to be on the summit for sunrise.  I may never wake up at 1:30 AM again, but it was oh so worth it. :^)

Check out my travel journal with detailed accounts of my daily activities and thoughts, the pictures at Larry the Llama, and my video here:

It's a bit long -- if you want to skip ahead, "Motorcycle Rides" starts at about 4:50, "Live Music" at 7:40, and "Countryside" at 12:00.

Back in the old west it was a real pain in the ass to build bridges, so people had to find other ways to cross bodies of water.  Port Costa came into existence because it was part of the transcontinental railroad and served as a water crossing point.  Up until about 1930, trains would stop just across the Carquinez Straight in Benicia, roll on to huge-ass ferries, and cross the river to Port Costa where they would then continue on to Oakland.  That created a community of dock workers and laborers which means that Port Costa had a huge demand for two things: liquor and whores.  That explains the Warehouse Cafe.  But just across the street is the bordello where even today you can get the 69'er Special which includes a night in a room named after a former hooker featuring a "worn out bed", "furniture that is reminiscent of white trash grandparents", and a greasy dinner for only $69.

But my main interest is the Cafe.  They have a purported 400 kinds of beer in the walk-in fridge that you can choose from.  Every time I go I've gotten something I've never even heard of.  Often there's a reason for a beer's rarity (e.g. "tastes like metal shavings") but some of the bottles are quite tolerable.  The walls of the bar are covered in kitsch, and there's an odd oddity shop.  The locals you meet there are super friendly (don't be intimidated by the leather biker jackets and handlebar mustaches) and a pleasure to chat with.

If you haven't been go check it out, and let me know because if it's somehow a bad weather day in SF and there's nothing else going on I'll join you. ;^)

Here are the pics.