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 new places.

This spring we also decided to get a new SUV. Our Honda was getting pretty scratched up from all our off-road adventures. The BMW X5 is a good mix of performance and practicality, and we like the look. We took the new car on several road trips, including Westport on Washington’s west coast, Snoqualmie Falls, and Portland, Oregon.

We also made one more distant personal trip. Last fall we returned to scuba diving for the first time in a decade, and were looking forward to more in 2025. So in April we managed to fit in a quick trip to the Maldives for some spectacular diving.

The weather was unusually warm in Seattle and the more northern locations we visited, and we took meals outside wherever possible. Major sporting events tend to be pretty minimal in Seattle in the spring, but we did attend a weekend of March Madness (college football playoffs) that were held here for the first time since 2004.

Below are highlights from March 1st through May 31st, 2025. Click any image for a larger view, or click the position to view the location on a map. And a map with our most recent log entries always is available at mvdirona.com/maps.

3/1/2025

Above the Clouds Position: 47°37.00’N, -122°20.63’W The view from our apartment above a thick fog bank that is obscuring downtown Seattle and Elliott Bay.

Kraken Logo Position: 47°37.07’N, -122°20.79’W The support pillars for the monorail are decorated with a rotating set of images. Right now it is varied interpretations of the Seattle Kraken NHL team logo, this one created by native Muckleshoot artist Keith Stevenson for the Kraken’s Indigenous Peoples Night.

Kraken Flag Position: 47°37.32’N, -122°21.24’W Jennifer underneath a massive Kraken flag as it is passed across the audience at Climate Pledge Arena.

3/2/2025

BMW Seattle Position: 47°35.64’N, -122°19.45’W The Honda is getting pretty scratched up from all our off-road adventures, so we decided to get a new SUV. The BMW X5 is a good mix of performance and practicality, and we like the look.

Shawn O’Donnell’s Position: 47°36.12’N, -122°19.91’W A foam-printed shamrock on Jennifer’s Guinness at Shawn O’Donnell’s Irish pub near BMW Seattle. We went there for lunch to discuss the purchase of the X5 we’d just test-driven at BMW Seattle.

Transferring from Honda Position: 47°35.64’N, -122°19.47’W As nightfall sets in, we’re transferring the personal contents from the Honda to the new X5.

New SUV Position: 47°37.07’N, -122°20.59’W Our new X5 in its home spot. It seems strange to start a day not intending to buy a car, and have it home by the end of the day.

2120 Position: 47°36.95’N, -122°20.42’W Dinner at 2120 Restaurant to celebrate our new SUV purchase.

3/5/2025

MRI Position: 47°36.43’N, -122°19.72’W Jennifer was given these stylish short to wear for an MRI on her knee.

Le Caviste, Seattle Position: 47°36.87’N, -122°20.22’W Enjoying a tasty charcuterie board over some delicious French wines at Le Caviste wine bar in Seattle.

Deep Dive Position: 47°36.94’N, -122°20.37’W Two artfully crafted cocktails at Deep Dive, a speakeasy underneath the Amazon Spheres.

3/6/2025

The Gathering Position: 47°36.85’N, -122°18.92’W The Gathering in Capitol Hill, by Seattle artist Ben Zamora, shows different colors of the light spectrum depending on the angle of viewing.

Chakra Team Position: 47°36.84’N, -122°18.95’W Jennifer having lunch in Capitol Hill with three of her ex-teammates from Chakra, the code name for the Microsoft Internet Explorer Javascript team.

Emerald City Comic Con Position: 47°36.88’N, -122°19.75’W The streets around the new Seattle Convention Center are packed with Emerald City Comic Con attendees in full costume.

3/8/2025

Washington, DC Position: 38°53.57’N, -77°1.20’W The US Capitol Building aglow in the early evening sun as we walk towards our hotel from the Washington Capitals hockey game. Read more …

3/14/2025

Kraken vs Utah Position: 47°37.32’N, -122°21.25’W At Climate Pledge arena to watch the Seattle Kraken take on the Utah Mammoth. The Kraken didn’t have a great season this year, but we did manage to win this one 4-2.

3/15/2025

Automatic Parking Position: 47°20.17’N, -122°35.50’W Testing out the automatic parking feature in our new car. It’s pretty astonishing to have the car find the parking spot and reverse into it without any driver input.

3/16/2025

Vindicktive Wing Madness Position: 47°36.83’N, -122°20.84’W Its March Madness (college basketball playoffs) season and our favorite wing spot, Vindicktive Wings, is having their own competition to pick a new flavor for the regular menu.

3/19/2025

Figgins Winemaker’s Dinner Position: 47°36.89’N, -122°21.41’W The food and wine pairings for a Figgins Winemaker’s Dinner at Aqua on the Seattle waterfront. The Walla Walla winery produces some excellent wines, and the food was delicious.

3/21/2025

March Madness Position: 47°37.33’N, -122°21.25’W The March Madness college basketball playoffs are held all over the country, and this year Seattle is hosting a few.

Grand Canyon Fans Position: 47°37.32’N, -122°21.25’W Purple-clad fans of Grand Canyon University cheering for their team during March Madness in Seattle.

Liberty U Band Position: 47°37.26’N, -122°21.30’W A soggy Liberty University marching band playing in the rain outside Climate Pledge Arena before their team takes to the court during March Madness.

Slam Dunk Position: 47°37.33’N, -122°21.25’W Arizona forward Carter Bryant executes a slam dunk during the Wildcats’ 93-65 victory over the Akron Zips during March Madness in Seattle.

3/22/2025

Orlando Position: 28°22.56’N, -81°32.97’W We arrived into Orlando a day early for the 2025 MARS conference to spend a day at Disneyworld. We only had time for one of the four theme parks there, and picked EPCOT. Just inside the entrance is the geodesic sphere which has been a symbol of the park since it opened in 1982. Science fiction writer Ray Bradbury contributed to the design of the sphere, and the Spaceship Earth ride inside it. Read more …

3/28/2025

Westport, WA Position: 46°58.86’N, -123°46.90’W Entering Aberdeen, WA, the hometown of the band Nirvana, en route to Westport. “Come As You Are” was added to the sign in 2005 on the 10-year anniversary of lead singer Kurt Cobain’s death. Read more …

4/5/2025

Snoqualmie Falls Position: 47°31.72’N, -121°49.45’W Lunch at Snoqualmie Falls Brewery on weekend trip to nearby Salish Lodge. Read more …

4/10/2025

Portland Position: 45°30.99’N, -122°39.54’W Enjoying a pint overlooking the vats at Living Haus brewery in Portland’s east side. Read more …

4/18/2025

Virginia Inn Position: 47°36.66’N, -122°20.56’W A final drink at the Virginia Inn in Seattle before they close next week, after failing to reach a lease agreement. The historic inn opened 120 years ago and predates Pike Place Market. Fortunately a grassroots petition to save the pub was successful, and it will remain open until at least the fall while they negotiate a new lease.

Here Today Brewery Position: 47°36.89’N, -122°21.24’W Enjoying craft hazy IPAs on the sun-filled terrace at Here Today Brewery near the Seattle waterfront.

Father and Son Position: 47°36.90’N, -122°21.31’W The sculpture Father and Son, part of the Olympic Sculpture Park, by French-American artist Louse Bourgeois.

AQUA Position: 47°36.88’N, -122°21.41’W Taking advantage of the unseasonably warm April weather to have a wonderful dinner at AQUA overlooking Elliott Bay. We’re just finishing off their delicious Wicked Shrimp appetizer.

Echo Position: 47°36.90’N, -122°21.37’W We love the view as we leave AQUA to the monumental sculpture Echo in the Olympic Sculpture Park, with the Space Needle beyond. Echo, by Spanish visual artist Jaume Plensa, stands over 46ft (14 m) tall. We saw another of Plensa’s work, Anna, at the Pilane Sculpture Park on the west coast of Sweden.

4/25/2025

Maldives Position: 3°39.17’N, 72°57.08’E We made a quick trip to the Maldives for a fabulous few days of scuba diving. Here we are exiting a swim-through at Kuda Rah Thila, one of the top dive sites in South Siri Atoll. Read more …

4/29/2025

Spring into SLU Position: 47°36.99’N, -122°20.42’W Seasonal display celebrating spring on the Amazon South Lake Union (SLU) campus at Blanchard and 7th Ave.

5/1/2025

Flat Tire Position: 47°37.36’N, -122°20.39’W Not much left of this tire after the driver continued on a flat.

5/2/2025

Cloudburst Brewing Position: 47°36.70’N, -122°20.71’W Enjoying a tasty hazy IPA at Cloudburst Brewery in downtown Seattle.

Tomahawk steaks Position: 47°36.73’N, -122°20.77’W Huge Tomahawk steaks on display in the fridge at El Gaucho steakhouse in downtown Seattle.

Cherries Jubilee Position: 47°36.73’N, -122°20.77’W We’re not typically big desert eaters, but decided to try the Cherries Jubilee at El Gaucho. It tasted as good as the preparation was exciting.

5/3/2025

Edmonds Position: 47°48.79’N, -122°22.93’W Passing the Edmonds ferry dock while out for a drive. The beach is a popular Puget Sound scuba-diving site—we dove there often in the late 1990s.

ChiHo Bistro Position: 47°36.89’N, -122°20.79’W A delicious meal at the recently-opened ChiHo Bistro in Belltown near our apartment.

5/4/2025

Obec Brewing Position: 47°39.99’N, -122°22.35’W Balancing out the calories we burned on a ruck at Discovery Park with craft IPAs at Obec Brewing in Ballard.

5/6/2025

Grand Princess Position: 47°36.99’N, -122°20.59’W Princess Cruises’ Grand Princess arriving into Pier 91 in Seattle. The Alaska cruise ship season isn’t yet in full swing, but we’re seeing a lot more boats arriving every week.

Tavolata Position: 47°36.86’N, -122°20.80’W A great meal at our favorite table in Tavolata Italian restaurant in Belltown.

5/8/2025

Le Caviste Position: 47°36.89’N, -122°20.21’W Seated street-side European-style at Le Caviste in downtown Seattle for an excellent charcuterie plate with wonderful French wine.

5/9/2025

Los Angeles Position: 34°2.53’N, -118°15.79’W Graffiti-tagged Oceanwide Plaza has become a bit of a tourist attraction in Los Angeles. Construction began in 2015, but ended in 2019 when Beijing-based Oceanwide Holding ran short of funds. In late 2023, three graffiti artists broke into the unfinished buildings and spray-painted their names across the floor-to-ceiling windows. More have followed, and the three towers that comprise the development are now covered in graffiti. Read more …

5/15/2025

Gus & Lyle Position: 47°37.05’N, -122°20.31’W A fantastic evening at the Butcher’s Table with blog readers Gus and Lyle Gialamas, who were in the area for Trawlerfest Anacortes. Gus is a recently-retired orthopedic surgeon who generously gave us comprehensive remote medical support when Jennifer broke her collarbone in Barbados back in 2016, eventually needing surgery in Florida. Dealing with these issues is quite a bit harder when away from home, and Gus’ help had a huge impact on a successful outcome. We’ve corresponded a lot since then, but have only met briefly once, when we happened to see them in an airport. Gus and Lyle are excellent company and it was wonderful to finally sit down and spend some time with them both.

5/24/2025

New York City Position: 40°41.38’N, -74°2.33’W Approaching the iconic Statue of Liberty in New York Harbor. This is a bit of a “filling in the gaps” moment for us, as we would have loved to bring Dirona past the statue and into New York. We did boat past New York three times, but didn’t have time to stop on those trips. Read more …

Click the travel log icon on the left to see these locations on a map. And a map of our most recent log entries always is available at mvdirona.com/maps.