Dinner at Cafe California in Los Gatos

Los Gatos is a very nice small town that we had totally missed.
Fortunately Robin and Byron invited us for dinner there, so we got to see what it looked like.
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And the food was good.

Lunch at Grand Cafe

We had a very nice lunch with Gregory and Greta at
the Grand Cafe in Hotel Monaco.
And Sirpa proved that the strawberries here are pretty big.

Bay to Breakers

For the raunchy photos you will have to surf the net, here are just a few a took when quickly attending the yearly Bay to Breakers event.
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Cooking for Solutions at the Monterey Bay Aquarium

I had been invited to a special VIP event at the Monterey Bay Aquarium called Cooking for Solutions.
The aquarium is headed by Julie Packard (in the middle).
Other celebrities worth mentioning :-) were Thomas Keller of French Laundry and
Alton Brown (apparently some celebrity).
The idea of the event was to get together people who are making/preparing food in a way that preserves the ocean(s). But that did not mean that there was something wrong with the food (or wine) - it was simply delicious! A great way to show that both are possible to achieve.

Vegas weelend (Day 3)

Sunday was really about relaxing, so we took it easy and had a light breakfast at the Forum Shops.
And then it was time to be very touristic, meaning watching the fountains at the Bellagio (and listening to the music).
But it really was beautiful.
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And then to some serious gambling - like USD 1, was it?
The entrance to the Forum Shops at Caesars Palace is pretty impressive.
And you can buy enything here, like oxygen.
And finally, I was there, too :-)

Vegas weekend (Day 2)

The Venetian is a pretty nice hotel.
The Junior Suite at the Venetian was
pretty nice and big, too
The fax machine in the room was a little surprising, though, especially since it had not only a greeting to me, but to some totally stranger.
Ordering breakfast to the room worked nicely, though.
Swimming pool area.
Outside the hotel...
...it did not look that bad,
either, right?
Paris...
The Paris hotel outside...
... and inside.
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The Strip.
New York, New York.
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Hotel Bellagio, a cafe.
Caesars Palace...
was just huuuuge inside...
...as you can see from all the following photos.

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... and as a Finn I would be a little suspicious about buying my clothes here.
A friend Sirpa met in the hotel...
...still inside the hotel.
Dinner at Il Mulino was one of the best we have had, and perfect service. Here our anniversary cake.
After the great dinner we walked to the Bellagio, where the entrance room to the theatre had lots of sculptures.
You were not allowed to take pictures of the show "O" by Cirque De Soleil...
... so I just have a couple ones from the theatre. It was quite a spectacular show with a water theme, though.