Travel &c.

“Not all those who wander are lost.” — J.R.R. Tolkien, The Fellowship of the Ring

• San Francisco — Jan 2. The Dancing Yak. Went for dinner. Casual, unassuming place with very tastefully done interiors. Service was very friendly and warm. Ordered kale chaat, chicken momos, lamb shapta, goat curry, and thali. Everything was super yummy. Excellent experience. Will come again for sure.
• San Francisco — Jan 10. The Dancing Yak. Went for dinner (yet again). Ordered kale chaat, chicken momos, lamb shapta, chicken chowmein, butter chicken, and lamb kebab. Everything was super yummy. Excellent experience. Will come again for sure.
• Pasadena, CA — Jan 23–25. Caltech Math Meet (CMM). Road trip with my parents. Listened to this playlist on the drive to Pasadena and this other one on the way back. The drive was beautiful in both directions — the landscape lush and green instead of desert sand and parched earth. There were several moments that reminded us of the Cotswolds. We stayed at the Pasadena Rose and Crown Hotel, which was very comfortable and functional. Had Din Tai Fung for dinner on Friday and Cava on Saturday. The contest itself went really well — we took 1st place in power, 1st place in team, and 1st place overall.
• Cambridge, MA — Feb 13–15. Harvard-MIT Math Tournament (HMMT Feb). It was cold in Boston when we arrived — plenty of snow by the side of the road and on rooftops (though the roads were dry). Dinner from Spice Delight on Friday was yummy. Contest was meh; we (AlphaStar AIR) came 4th. Met lots of friends during the contest. Had CAVA for dinner on Saturday. Also got Royce chocolates, as always. Went to Boston Commons with SE on Sunday; then hung out with TZ, chatted with AW, AL, AT, ZW, SP. Met with WZ who walked me back to my hotel at 5PM. Went to Rassa for dinner — dahi puri and lamb shank rogan josh. Went again to Next House at 7PM and met TZ, HR, HJ, AL. Reached home at noon-ish on Monday.
• Bucharest, Romania — Feb 20–28. The 17th Romanian Master in Mathematics, RMM 2026. Read my account of this trip on my blog.
• San Francisco — Mar 15. The Dancing Yak. Went for dinner (yet again). Ordered chicken momos, lamb shapta, veg chowmein, fish fry, and tofu shapta. Everything was super yummy. Excellent experience. Will keep coming for sure.
• Denver, CO — May 22–25. The 1st American Masters in Mathematics, AMM 2026.
• Miami, FL — Jun 4–6. The inaugural Citadel Securities Pathways Program 2026. An experience designed for exceptional high school students recognized for excellence in the Math, Physics, or Computing Olympiads to explore how academic achievement can translate into meaningful, long-term careers in research, engineering, and trading.