About

I'm an expat Californian who is obsessed with traveling to strange and exotic destinations in the former Communist Bloc. I also like tacos, beer, surfing, trapshooting, and the geopolitics of oil. I currently live in Arlington, Virginia and work in Washington, DC. Read more about me here, check out my photo album, or send me an e-mail.

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    Costa Rica photos

    Photos from my week at Witch’s Rock Surf Camp in Playa Tamarindo, Costa Rica, with daytrips to the Arenal Volcano and Playa Avellana.

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    Back to Costa Rica

    After spending nine days in SoCal, I’m off to Costa Rica for another a week of surf, beer, and nachos at Witch’s Rock Surf Camp. More on that trip (and North Korea, China, Central Europe, and London) when I return. In the meantime, I’ll be posting photos from Costa Rica on my Twitter [...]

    Costa Rica: I’m here to surf, not overthrow your government

    I didn’t have much to write about regarding my April trip to Costa Rica because it basically consisted of surfing, eating, and drinking. In fact, the only semi-funny thing that happened to me while in Costa Rica occurred when my flight landed at the Liberia airport.
    The Costa Rican government requires that visitors fill out [...]

    Costa Rica: Surf Trip to Playa Avellanas

    On Friday, our last full day in Costa Rica, we grabbed our surf gear, hopped on the Witch’s Rock Surf Camp bus at 6am and headed to Playa Avellanas, a few miles south of Tamarindo. Here are a few photos from that trip.

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    Costa Rica: Witch’s Rock Surf Camp

    So, back to my Costa Rica trip, which I returned from over a month ago.
    We stayed at Witch’s Rock Surf Camp, a beachfront hotel run by surfers, for surfers. WRSC was founded by Joe Walsh, a Californian who decided to move to Costa Rica following his graduation from UCSD. He bought an old school [...]

    Costa Rica: Pura Vida

    A few shots of surfers enjoying an afternoon/evening session at Playa Tamarindo.

    Carlos, a WRSC instructor

    I love this dog. He belonged to one of the WRSC instructors and whenever his owner went out to surf he would sit on the beach and wait for him to come in.

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    Costa Rica: Playa Tamarindo

    I arrived back in DC last night. I’m covered in various scrapes and bruises, one of my toes is probably sprained, and my neck is killing me. But man, was that a fun trip. Costa Rica is amazing. Met a lot of great people, ate a ton of excellent food, surfed [...]

    Off to Costa Rica

    Tomorrow morning I’m heading to Costa Rica and will be there for a week. I’m meeting my friend Rian (from GWU) down there. Yes, this will be a normal vacation with a beach, surfing, etc. There will be no landmines, tours of nuclear disaster sites, or heavily armed police escorts. Admittedly, this [...]

    POTD: Malibu, 1961

    Post Gidget invasion, and Dora’s nightmare.

    (Allan Grant, 1961)

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    The new love of my life

    On Thursday I got a new surfboard down in Oceanside.  It’s a 6′10″ high performance egg shaped by Tropical Visions.  It’s made with epoxy resin, which makes the board far stronger and lighter than its polyester resin counterparts.Other specs: Height: 6′ 10″ Nose: 17 1/2″ Waist: 22″ Tail: 16″ Thickness: 2 3/4″Some pics: The front, the [...]