Jan 10–12, 2026 · A Christmas present
Merry Christmas, Ann
I made you something.
This website is your present — and it’s a trip.
A few weeks from now, you and I disappear for a long weekend. First, we travel. Then, we rewind. Then, we head for the edge of the map.
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Chapter I
January 10th begins at home.
Waffles with the kids, a quiet kind of excitement, and then you and I head to the airport — not quite saying out loud where we’re going yet.
Boarding pass
Alaska Airlines AS 657
Destination withheld (for now).
From
SEA
To
████
Departs
10:57 AM
Arrives
1:08 PM
The morning in three beats
- Waffle breakfast with the kids — the ordinary part that makes the extraordinary feel real.
- Airport rituals: bags, boarding passes, the little adrenaline of a countdown.
- Wheels up at 10:57 AM — and then the story starts moving.
Departure
SEA · the trip starts moving
Drive to SEA
9:15–9:45 AM
Check in for flight
9:45–10:45 AM
Depart SEA (AS 657)
10:57 AM
Chapter II
Wheels up.
We point the nose south, touch down at 1:08 PM, grab something to eat — then pick up the keys and head north into the afternoon.
Arrival
San Jose · 1:08 PM
Lunch, a deep breath, and the feeling that the day has officially turned into a getaway.
Next
Pick up our ride — a Tesla Model Y — and start driving north. The destination stays a secret a little longer.
Arrival
SJC · 1:08 PM
Arrival
Touchdown
Arrival
Keys in hand
Arrive SJC
1:08 PM
Pick up the Tesla
1:30–2:00 PM
Head north (destination: undisclosed)
2:00 PM
Chapter III
The reveal: Stanford.
Before the coast, we go back to where it started — the halls, the paths, the feeling of being young and certain and surprised by your own life.
Then
We’ll walk the campus slowly. Not to “do” anything — just to remember. A few familiar corners. A couple of photos. The kind of nostalgia that feels like sunlight.
Stanford
The Farm
Stanford
The Quad
Stanford
Memorial Church
Then
Ann & Eric, 2000
Then
Casa Italiana
Then
Senior dinner on the Quad
Now
We take our time. We walk. We point at things. We smile at younger versions of ourselves. And then we get back in the car — because the coast is waiting.
Next: northbound to Olema.
See full itineraryChapter IV
Northbound.
We leave campus, slip onto Highway 280, and by late afternoon we cross the Golden Gate — trading lectures and quads for eucalyptus and fog.
The drive
280 · heading north
The drive
Golden Gate · almost there
Arrival
Olema House
An intimate, quiet place tucked right at the edge of the park — the kind of landing spot that makes the whole weekend feel like it’s already working.
And after dinner… there’s a fire pit. S’mores. The first night of the trip.
Drive from Stanford to Olema
4:00–6:30 PM
Arrive at Olema House
6:30 PM
Dinner at Due West Tavern
7:00 PM