We arrived in San Diego in the afternoon after flying in low over the picturesque California Tower in Balboa Park. The fresh bay air and the 70-degree temperatures felt heavenly after our chilly midwest morning. After checking into our hotel, we walked along the bay waterfront past the Maritime Museum but decided we wanted to check those out during daylight hours. At the advice of our friend Ray, we had a delicious dinner at the Fish Market, a bayside restaurant next to their “Unconditional Surrender” sculpture (identical to the one we’re familiar with in Sarasota, Florida).
We awoke early on Saturday and made our way to Harbor Breakfast: a quaint little corner cafe with spectacular food and homey atmosphere. Three young men working behind the glassed-in food preparation area efficiently prepared delicious and aesthetically pleasing dishes that filled us up to the gills. We recommend the Denver omelet or the monster-sized chorizo burrito. Mmmmmm!
After breakfast, we made our way to the San Diego Maritime Museum. Though most people who come to San Diego are interested in seeing the USS Midway, we made our way a couple blocks north to check out The San Diego Maritime Museum flotilla which includes 11 antiquated boats (many of them still in active sailing condition) including the Star of India (“oldest active merchant sailing ship”), the HMS Surprise (1700s frigate replica), two cold war submarines, a Victorian steam ferry, a Spanish galleon, and several others. Emily was most excited to see the HMS Surprise due its large part in the movie Master and Commander: a film in which two of her favorite actors, Russel Crowe and Paul Bettany, embark on a mission to intercept a French warship in an epic tale that borrows from Rime of the Ancient Mariner and Darwin’s journey aboard the Beagle. I thoroughly enjoyed all of them, though the Steam Ferry Berkeley and the Star of India were my favorites. In the evening, we drove over to Sunset Cliffs and watched the sun go down.
On Sunday, we drove less than half an hour away to Torrey Pines State Reserve. Torrey Pines gets its name from the species of pine that grows atop these beach-front desert hills. There are a number of hiking trails of varying length and we trekked across most of them as each offered a different picturesque view of the seascape or the sun-bleached, craggy desert hills. After our hike, we walked back down the steep hills to the oceanside where took off our shoes and walked through the frigid but refreshing Pacific waves. From there, we headed to La Jolla, a touristy beach town boasting tidal pools, beach caves, and seals.
By mid-afternoon, La Jolla was pretty well packed, so we decided to stop at a taco joint we’d read about on a blog Em found on Pinterest. The Taco Stand is an unassuming little building that you might pass up if you somehow missed the line of a dozen or more hungry but patient customers outside. The twenty-minute wait was well worth it for the authentic tacos, chips, and guacamole. We recommend the carne asada or the baja taco, but everything was delicious! After perusing the tide pools and returning to the heart of San Diego, we decided to sample some of Little Italy’s finest and opted for Buon Appetito and finished it off with pumpkin and salted caramel gelato and dark chocolate sorbet from Bobboi Gelato (ok, this place was so good we went here twice).
On our final day in San Diego, we chose to check out Balboa Park, a community park almost twice the size of NYC’s CentralPark. This. Place. Is. Gorgeous. Much of the sprawling landscaping and architecture dates back to 1917 when San Diego held the Panama-California Exposition. The park is the home to numerous museums, gardens, and theatres located just a few miles inland from downtown. We only had a few hours to burn before catching our flight back to the Arctic circle which was unfortunate given the number of museums and sights to explore. So, we checked out the Museum of Man (a museum focused on capturing some of the cultural markers and oddities of humanity) and wandered the many green spaces of the park. Some highlights not to be missed are the Moreton Bay Fig, the Lily Pond in front of the Botanical Garden, the replica of the Globe Theater, the California Tower (which was, regrettably, closed for seismic reinforcement), Palm Canyon, the Alcazar Gardens, and the Japanese Friendship Gardens. Honestly, it would take days or even weeks to do this place justice, but we very much enjoyed the few hours that we were able to spend here.
In short, San Diego is a great city boasting a myriad of historical, cultural, and natural attractions. It was easier to navigate than many other cities we’ve traveled to, and it had a pleasant, warm, hip vibe that made it the perfect weekend escape from our Midwest winter that decided to welcome us back with a wintry slap to the face: snow, ice, and teen temps. Oh well. If not for the less than pleasant things in life, we might forget to cherish the good stuff.
San Diego Rocks!
Looks like you two had a great trip and I always enjoy your blog. Thank you for inviting all of us on your journey.