Speaking of San Diego, saw this in the news:

One of world’s biggest yachts docks in San Diego

One of the world’s largest privately-owned yachts — a milk-colored 390-foot boat simply known as Motor Yacht A — has arrived in San Diego for the first time, docking early today at the 10th Avenue Marine Terminal. The yacht, which resembles a submarine with a Ramada Inn stuck on top, will be here for an undetermined period and can be seen from Cesar Chavez Park in the Port of San Diego, south of downtown.

The authoritative magazine Power and Motorcraft listed “A” as the seventh largest mega-yacht in its 2009 review of the “super” boats. (The longest yacht, ‘Dubai,” is 531-feet long.) Motor Yacht A owned by Andrei Melnichenko, a Russian billionaire who amassed a fortune in steel and other businesses after dropping out of college.

I remember the time when the only Russian boats around here were the fake fishing fleet off Pt. Loma doing surveillance.

Now, we welcome them with open ports so they can park their $300 million mega-yachts here.

Oh, for the good old days…