SISTERS IN SAN DIEGO

Cynde and her sweet little pooch, Sophie.

My sister lives in San Diego in a town called San Marcos; a ten minute drive from our RV Resort in Escondido so we got to spend plenty of time together. Unfortunately for her, she is not retired (like me) and works a full week but we found plenty of time in the evening and on week-ends to have dinners and lunches with her and her husband, Bruce, who I refer to as the world's best brother in law. One excursion was the day we went to San Diego and did a little tour. When I lived in San Diego I used to go to the city quite a bit but it was to pick someone up or drop them off at the airport, to go over to Coronado, or some other outing. I don't really know the actual city all that well. Our initial reason for going was to shop at a little hat store that sells every hat known to man including a Greek Fisherman's hat that Cynde (my sister) had promised she would buy for Erik. Off we went one bright and sunny Sunday morning. Commuting the freeway in her snappy little Mazda Miata was a bit hair-raising (it's so low and I'm getting used to trucks!!) and she sure does nip in and out of lanes at will. Then I realized she does this trip on a daily basis in commuter traffic and sighed and took in the view.

The thing about San Diego is that it's a compact downtown area with pretty much everything you want to see or do within walking distance of each other. Our destination was Seaport Village, a unique little village right downtown and on the ocean with a selection of eclectic and specialized boutiques and stores and restaurants. After buying the Greek Fisherman's hat we were freed up for the rest of the day.

One of the little streets at Seaport Village.

A street magician.

Lunch of fish tacos (what else??) at this little restaurant overlooking the water.

Such a blue sky.

After lunch we wandered through the various little shops and happened to pass a little bakery that specialized in cupcakes. There is a television show in the States called 'Cupcake Wars' on the Food Network and this little shop was a winner. Not sure which season they won or which cupcake was the best but it was enough of a draw for two chocoholics to do a taste. I can't even remember what the flavour of the cupcake we got was called but I do recall it was absolutely melt in your mouth luscious.

We shared this one cupcake. It was DIVINE.

From Seaport Villages we walked along the Embarcadero to view the famous statue 'Unconditional Love' which takes pride of place in front of the USS Midway Museum, the decommissioned USS Midway. Funnily enough this statue, also known as the 'Kissing Statue', has caused a bit of controversy. The statue recreates the famous embrace between a sailor and a nurse celebrating the end of World War II in New York’s Times Square in 1945. In 2007 the Sculpture Foundation loaned the statue to San Diego and the port added it to its Greatest Generation Walk. In a nutshell, the Greatest Generation was a book written by Tom Brokaw, former NBC New Anchor, about the men and women who fought in and lived through WWII.  The spirit of those men and women is commemorated with a collection of U.S. military heritage art in Tuna Harbor Park in San Diego Bay.

The controversy occurred when the original prototype statue began to look a little worse for wear and it was removed. A bronze replica was to take its place in the shadow of the Midway but not before true art lovers deemed it repulsive and unartlike and tried to stop its erection. Luckily (I think, anyway) hearts won out over logic and at the dedication ceremony of the new bronze statue in February 2013 couples renewed their vows in front of the kissing nurse and sailor. It was reported that two of the statue committee members were so outraged that the statue would be erected they resigned.

Unconditional Love or The Kissing Statue

That's my foot (the one in the sandal).

The bridge to Coronado Island and the famous Hotel Del.

Ships in the harbour.

Couple of nice little boats.

Along the Greatest Generation Walk.

Naval Base across the water at Coronado.

USS Midway Museum.

USS Midway Museum.

Along this walk there is a monumental temporary public art exhibit called "Our Silences," by the Mexican artist Rivelino that was officially unveiled January 29, 2015.

These bronze statues weigh about a ton each.

The ten statues all have metals plates where mouths would be to depict the importance of freedom of speech.

Don't believe this is part of Our Silences but it is pretty cool.

I liked these trees. You can just see the USS Midway Museum in the background.

San Diego itself has enough attractions to keep a tourist happy for at least a week if you go out every single day from dawn until dusk. There is a tourist tram that will take you through the city with frequent stops where you can get off and pick up the next tram if you aren't inclined to drive yourself and find parking. I've done that several times with visitors and it is a great way to see the city and to show the city to others. Here's a few attractions that are at your disposal, all of which I have seen or done or been to.

Old Town is the oldest settled area in San Diego and is the site of the first European settlement in present-day California. It's a stop along the tourist trams and is worth spending some time looking around. There are funky

A pretty corner in Old Town.

restaurants, specialty shops, art galleries, hotels, historic buildings, live theatres and a heritage park to keep you busy for several hours or a day if you wish.

Balboa Park. Balboa Park is 1,200 acres right downtown that houses arts, culture and the history of San Diego, musical theatre, performing arts, exotic gardens, fabulous restaurants and shopping and houses the San Diego Zoo.

This building houses some restaurants and shops.

San Diego Zoo. A world class 100 acre zoo that offers a trolley tour of the zoo if you don't wish to walk. Part of Balboa Park.

Hotel Del Coronado. Built in 1888 the 'Hotel Del' is a landmark for residents and tourists alike. I'm partial to this place because Erik and I once spent a week-end there to celebrate our birthdays. Reportedly, the ghost of a woman who was wronged walks the halls of the hotel at night and can be heard weeping.

The mighty Hotel Del Coronado.

Star of India at the Maritime Museum of San Diego. Here visitors can walk the decks of the magnificent Star of India, the world’s oldest active sailing ship.

The Star of India.

Sea World. A theme park with rides and exhibits and, of course, the animals.

gaslamp.org Gaslamp Quarter. Sixteen and a half square blocks of artfully restored Victorian buildings to modern architecture. Over 100 shops, fine restaurants, pubs, nightclubs, theaters, art galleries, museums and concert halls. I believe this is where the widow of Jim Croce still has the late singers bar that has morphed into an upscale fine dining establishment.

San Diego bills itself as America's Finest City and quite honestly I would find that difficult to argue with. When I lived here I loved it and when we visited it on this trip I loved it. The weather is perfect (okay, okay, there's that little drought thing going on), the scenery is breathtaking, there is an abundance of outdoor activities, there are sports teams if you are so inclined, too many world class golf courses to count, tennis for me, fishing for Erik and plenty of restaurants and wineries and pubs and bistros to keep anyone happy. Let's not even talk about the shopping. You can shop until you drop if you wish; everything from outlet malls, high end boutiques, famous department stores right down to the dollar store that's pretty much in every community. As tourists this go around we were pretty fortunate. We had friends here already, we knew our way around, and I had a sister to drag me around her San Diego (she works there every day and knows it like the back of her hand) and snap pictures on my behalf and have lunch with and end the day at our favourite place, TJMAXX. Life was good in San Diego.

For anyone who remembers why Cynde and I went to San Diego in the first place - Erik loved his Greek

Fisherman's hat and can't wait until boating season to show it off.

The next leg of our adventure is north through California, Oregon, Washington and then back into Oh Canada where we will stay in Victoria for a month before taking the long trek back to eastern Ontario. All of that will be documented on this blog as well as my attempt at answering a request - How Does One Fill One's Days in an RV? Until next time.........