SAN DIEGO!!!

7/30/08

Well, I finally made it to San Diego!! I got in around 2pm (5pm Ohio time). It always seems like a long flight accross the country, especially when you are jammed between two other people! :( Of course, put the chubby guy in the middle. My shoulders hurt from holding my arms in for 4 hours! Ughhh!

When I got to San Diego, it was sunny and beautiful!! I was so glad to finally be back! Its only been since the Fall of 2006, but it seems like forever! The only problem was when I went to get my baggage . . . it wasn't there!! The same thing happened last time I came out here! Grrrr! So, I filled out the report and they said it was stuck in Chicago and would be in on the next plane and arrive around 6pm. OK, so I grabbed a shuttle for AVIS and got my car! Better news this time!! They gave me a brand new Ford Mustang!!! Its white and goes ZOOM easily!! I love it!! I paid for a compact car and got that!! :) So I took off and went to the hotel and checked in and then headed for Del Mar for a *$'s and a sandwich and then headed for Torrey Pines State Beach to sit and eat, drink my coffee and just chill for a little bit! It was so nice to be back and smell the ocean and the scent of pine and sage in the air. It was a little overcast toward the West tonight, but beautiful nonetheless!

The Pine trees in this area are Torrey Pines. They only grow in a few areas in the world and are different from the pine trees on the east coast. This is a pic I took of one of the branches of a tree near where I parked.
Right over the edge of the cliff, you could see one of those "Dream Homes" of California! I could not imagine actually living there!! So beautiful!!

This is the road that leads down to the beach. That is where I parked the first time to take the picture of the house. I usually go on down the hill and park right by the beach, so I went on down there and sat on the big rocks overlooking the beach to eat and sip my coffee.

After that, I went downtown to Seaport Village. Its right on the waterfront and looks out towards Coronado Island. Behind it is the city's skyline. It has tons of little shops and restaurants. What a great place to be! I usually go there about every day when I'm out here. Sometimes, more than once a day to eat or something.

When I got there, I headed straight for Margarita's! Its a great place for authentic Mexican food! I was in the mood to grab a couple of fish tacos or a burrito or something, but this caught my attention! Its a chicken fajita plate. It came with a few fresh made corn tortillas to wrap all that goodness up in! Yum!!!

One of my other favorite places it the Upstart Crow! I love that bookstore! They have the most quirky things in there! Plus they have little seating areas all through it and even up on the next level! Their coffee is great too. I stop there just about every time I'm there.

I was also pleasantly surprised to find out that they were having a sailboat race going on in San Diego Bay right then!!! I got some great shots of the boats as they passed by. I can't include them all on here, but here are a few.

Below is the Coronado Bay Bridge. It links the Island with the downtown San Diego area more easily. You can take a water taxi across too or drive all the way down to the U.S./Tijuana border (only about 10-15 minutes) and drive up the Silver Strand which also connect to the "island" but is the loooong way around.


This tree is one of several at Seaport Village that are my favorite kind of tree out here. They remind me of the Swiss Family Robinson! I can imagine the fun I would have had as a young boy climbing and building tree houses in them!! Even now I'd probably climb them if no one was looking! Ha, Ha!

When I left Seaport Village, I was exhausted, but couldn't stand the thoughts of just going back to my room yet, so I headed back up I-5 and went back to Torrey Pines Beach. I watched the last bit of the sunset from there. Like I said, it was a bit overcast out toward the West, but I got what I could!! There was a guy out there beyond the breakers that was kayaking!! He came in to the beach just down from where I was standing. A beautiful way to end the day!!

Well, its 3am (Ohio time) and midnight here in Cali. I still don't have my luggage!! So much for 6pm (like they told me originally). Wish me luck! I'd really like to take my contacts out, but I have no contact case or glasses with me. Dumb!!! They are in my luggage!! Guess I learned my lesson right?