San Dayago.
San Diego is a place I really enjoy visiting. I've been there three times over the past three years because I have been lucky enough to attend ComicCon with work, and although at times it was stressful, it was always a fun and unique experience. For the record, I couldn't dress up but if I did I would probably be as Beetlejuice or Ms. Frizzle from the Magic School Bus. Anyway, ComicCon was also a great excuse for me to come out and visit my friends Jenna and Daniel who moved here just before I started coming out for the con. Funny, quirky and down to earth, the pair have always been enthusiastic for me to visit even if we only end up spending late nights and early mornings together. Since it's sort of become an annual tradition at this point how could I not visit again? I loved having Thatcher with me this time too so he could see what all the San Diego fuss was about.
We left the desert on the earlier side knowing it was going to be another scorcher and decided not to detour on our way to the coastal city. Up until now, sticking our hands out the window while going seventy on a highway, a move that in theory would bring some relief from the heat, only pushed the hot air into our faces faster. I knew we were finally out of the desert when I decided to try my luck again and was rewarded with cool air. Overly excited over something so small, Thatcher and I contently cruised straight to the beach for an afternoon of what we hoped would be beautiful, tolerable, weather. Ocean Beach was the destination we chose knowing nothing about it other than it was a beach that was sort of on the way to where we wanted to end up. Surprisingly chillier than we had imagined and a bit more overcast than we had hoped, we were driving through the packed neighborhood of colorful shops, restaurants and happy hours when we heard "Yeah, Philly! Go Sixers!" from the street corner. Confused and excited that someone noticed our bumper sticker we knew we had to go be friends with this person. Moe is one of those people who you meet and automatically like. Loud and bubbly, also from Philly, and another believer in "the process", we could instantly tell she clearly never brings a dull moment to a conversation and ended up hanging out with her before walking around Ocean Beach a bit more. Tall palm trees lined the main street and the beach was packed with acrobats and hula hoopers practicing their crafts. Couples walked their dogs and kids ran in every direction as we wove in and out of the crowd. Fun fact, the fishing pier that juts out just alongside of the beach is the longest concrete pier on the west coast, although the title of longest pier in the state goes to Santa Cruz. We ended up walking all the way out on it Saturday during the day when we came back with Daniel to see the farmer's market and festival. Being one of the only places where you can fish without a permit, we saw at least a handful of fisherman trying their luck at catching dinner from the bright blue pacific down below, surfers decorating the waves in the background like polka dots.
After spending the night downtown in the Gaslamp District, showing Thatcher all of my favorite spots I've collected over the years, gazing out over the harbor during sunset and down into the Padres stadium from the roof of the Marriott hotel, we watched as planes flew dangerously low behind the tall buildings on their way to landing. We decided to spend our second day in San Diego with another new friend, David, at Coronado Island just across the bay. Apparently it is a toss up as to whether you should drive or take the ferry to the island, both have great views. We chose the ferry and David told us all about his career as a chef, how he's from the east coast and what his experience on the west coast has been like. It was nice having someone else to hang with that wasn't just each other. Not that I don't enjoy that, though. Looking back at downtown San Diego from the island, the harbor didn't seem as bright and colorful as it should have since the morning haze that we came to know so well by the end of our visit was looming over the glass skyscrapers. Coronado Island is a very beautiful extension of San Diego. The Del Coronado Hotel is a mile down main street on the other side of the island. The octagonal shaped towers mixed with the main hotel and their red roof are reminiscent of a lighthouse, a beacon for tourists. The soft sand of the beach behind the hotel and around the island was cool to the touch where the pacific washed ashore, a common trait of the ocean here, and an elaborate sand castle was created in our path as a memorial for something we were unsure of. Strolling along the beach, I couldn't help but notice the reflections of the people running in and out of the waves cast in the inch or two of water left behind. Even though there were lots of small shops along the main road, we did manage to find a back alley covered in flowers that lead to a delicious Mexican restaurant for lunch. Satisfied and full, we hopped the free shuttle back to the ferry and downtown San Diego.
Finding what seemed like the only bar with sound, we spent our late afternoon at a sports bar watching the beginning of the NBA draft, the only part that matters really as the Sixers, for the second time in a row, selected number one of thirty teams. Oh, happy day. I woke up excited and the feeling never left. I'm surprised David stuck it out with us that long. I can't really remember, but knowing us, I'm sure all we did was talk about the draft up until it actually began at 4pm. Our first night with Jenna and Daniel was great, we grabbed Thai food up the street like Jenna and I always do when I arrive only this time my flip flop broke. I was so bummed, you guys. Someone left these comfortable, black, Havianas flip flops at my apartment forever ago and never claimed them. Naturally, I did what anyone else would do in that situation - I kept them and have been wearing them ever since. It's been a few years now and they finally died. Walking back from the Thai restaurant was the most I've laughed in a while. Thatcher lent me his right sneaker so I didn't have to walk barefoot and he decided to wear only one shoe and nothing on the other, not even his sock. We looked completely ridiculous as we strolled, no, limped, through the neighborhood, one mis-shoed foot in front of the other.
I can't speak for Thatcher, but one of my favorite things I did in San Diego this time around was visit Cabrillo National Monument out on Point Loma. I definitely recommend checking this place out if you can. The tip of Point Loma, San Diego, discovered by a man named Cabrillo, hence the name, is small but exceptional. The paved, mile long "trail" opens up to a far off view of city across the ocean inlet. The morning haze again overhead, we stopped and enjoyed our lunch on a bench at the end of the walk and were confused when we heard planes but couldn't find them in the sky. The airport being just across the way, we knew they were close. The sound of the engines echoed above us from all sides and just when we realized what was happening a giant airplane turned in front of us dipping only for a moment from the clouds before turning back into the abyss. We must have sat there for at least thirty minutes waiting for more planes to be swallowed into the clouds. The coolest part about the national monument wasn't the planes, although that was an amazing thing to witness, but rather the tide pools. Low tide was at 3pm which was perfect since that's about when we arrived there. Walking along the cliff's edge high above sea level, we were surrounded by intricately shaped drop offs and small plants and flowers clinging to the top of them. The multicolored plants stood out against the perfectly blue water and now crisp and clear sky. At one point three pelicans flew far above us and hovered in my shot. Finding the stairs to the tide pools, we headed down along the cliff's base and carefully walked right alongside the crashing ocean. The exposed cliff revealed what looked like sheets of rocks stacked on top of one another and the flat shelves we walked on left tide pools of all sizes. Only visible at low tide, they were covered in crabs no more then maybe an inch and a half in size which I almost didn't even notice until someone pointed them out to me. Some had red claws, some were brown and speckled and blended into the rocks, others were so small I was worried that with every step I was squishing another one. They roamed about and side stepped into every crevasse they could find, hoping to be out of sight and harm's way. This place was definitely detail oriented. Sure, looking at it as a whole was great and unique but it was really the little things that made it special. The tiny crabs, for example, the small red bulbs that made up the blanket of color that covered the side of the cliff, the green algae that decorated some of the rocks adding a pop of color here and there, the small shells stuck into the rocky platform that could only be appreciated up close; things like that. I loved it there, what an amazing find. If you're looking for a place that is similar but free, try Sunset Cliffs. It was nearby so we stopped to see it on the way back to Jenna and Daniel's briefly. The view from the top looking out onto the ocean is equally beautiful.
One thing we haven't done out of all the times I've visited Jenna and Daniel in San Diego is actually leave San Diego. That's exactly what we decided to do Sunday for the day. Basing our day around what we were going to eat, as hopefully at least some of you do on occasion, we first headed for Alpine. A small town east of San Diego, we stopped and had a delicious brunch in what looked like a whole new world. It was only the beginning of what would be a day spent in a much more forested area of Southern California. We sat on the porch with our oversized biscuits, salads and scrambled eggs and noticed the area around us looked like a small little village. A building that looked like a wooden greenhouse welcomed you to the entryway of shops hidden in the back and smaller cabins housed stores that sold things like hand crafted candles. We were definitely not in San Diego anymore. One thing I remember from my, what I can now call "mini", road trip up the Pacific Coast Highway last year were the fruit stands. California has some of the best roadside fruit stands and Sunday's stop was no exception. Somewhere along the way to Julian, where exactly, I'm not sure, we started to see hand written signs for local honey and fruit. Obviously that had our attention even though we had just eaten. Pulling up to the small market set up under tents we taste tested some cantaloupe and grabbed a peach or two for the road. The vibrant homegrown goodies all looked so delicious and if I wasn't so worried about them going bad before I could eat them all, I would have purchased way more produce. We continued on our way to the small, mountain town with bushels of charm along a winding two lane highway alongside the Cleveland National Forest. The ride was surrounded by white trees with no leaves but plenty of long twisty branches all along the mountains and rolling hills I've grown accustomed to seeing a lot on this trip. Finally arriving in Julian, we walked along main street, enjoyed some boysenberry apple cider from the local cider mill, wandered into the rare books shop inside of a small, colorful home, and made it to our final destination of the day, Julian Pie Company. This place is one of those local favorites where if someone mentions they had pie people get excited and hope and assume it was from Julian's. I can see why. Stepping into the bakery, we were greeted by a wave of cinnamon and apple that hung in the air, teasing us as we waited patiently for more boysenberry apple, this time in the form of a crumb topped pie. I am here to tell you all that if you ever make it to San Diego and have time to head to Julian you absolutely should.
The thing I've always enjoyed about San Diego is that while, yes, it is a city, San Diego is also made up of a bunch of distinct neighborhoods. From Hillcrest, where we stayed, to Old Town, where you can experience a taste of what things may have been like back in the day and more Mexican food than you can imagine, to the Gaslamp District where everything is within walking distance and barhopping is almost a given, each neighborhood has a new flavor to offer your experience of San Diego.
A special shoutout and humongous thank you to Jenna and Daniel for once again being amazing and of course to their big, fluffy, energetic dog Bear for being a great cuddle buddy.
See y'all next summer :)
LA is where I've been for a few days now and it's been... interesting.
- G.
The Photo:
Cabrillo National Monument.
San Diego, California.
6/24/17.
