Husband and I will be vacationing in San Diego next week but he needs to attend a business meeting at UCSD on Thursday, no doubt for several hours. We have a car and he can drop me wherever. I'm trying to figure out walkable options for me which include a good strategy for meeting up again. He has no idea where on the campus he will be and he's a bit directionally challenged.
The Birch Aquarium looks good; also just staring at the surf is fine. Shopping is ok but not first on my list, unless it involves art galleries. I guess the index problem is that I don't know how big the La Jolla area is so I can't plan. Any help would be much appreciated.

You can easily spend a few hours wandering along the shoreline in La Jolla. The shops are fun to look in, I am not a shopper, but they are pretty nice.

Go to George's for a drink on the terrace, lunch or dessert. It is a glorious view.

Check this out for ideas, about mid page is La Jolla info:

http://www.localwally.com/agenda.html

Have a great time, LJ is a great place to be abandoned!

http://www.georgesatthecove.com/

Depending on the weather (we have had a lot of rain!) I would go to Prospect Street in La Jolla. You could do as Deb suggested and also walk down to the Children's Pool (what is it called now?) and see Seals.

agree with Deb on there is so much to do in LJ and a great place to be abandon.
Lots of galleries in LJ..Morrison hotel gallery is excellent for photographs from the 60's of rock bands.
The Museum of Contemporary Art is stunning and have lunch at the cafe..across the street from one of our fave beaches and the seals are the next cove over.
La Valencia Hotel is gorgeous to have drinks on the back patio.

www.mcasd.org

Agree with everyone else - if I were going to be abandoned for a few hours, I can't imagine a better place than LaJolla! I'd just wander around, it isn't that big. Easy enough to pick a street corner to meet at -- or if you know the time, just plan to meet at the bar at La Valencia.

sf..
Whaling Bar is wife and I's favorite especially for Christmas Eve.
So old school dining.
They have some of the best Paella.
Those villas are incredible that they built a couple of years ago.
Expedia had room rates as low as $229..for low season.

Wow..that is a great rate Ksucat! Sounds divine! My Mom's friend got married at the La V - I think she and her dh might have met at the Whaling Bar. It was a Christmas wedding and the bride wore a stunning red dress. Good memories.

Hi Mom!
What a great place to get married at La V.
The big picture window in the great room with the piano overlooking the Pacific ocean is sublime.
Christmas is always a good time there..lots of eating and drinking.

Everybody agrees that La Jolla is a wonderful place to spend a couple of hours. La Jolla is perfectly walkable. It consists of two parts: The cliffs and the beach. The beach is wide, sandy, excellent for a long barefoot walk (but otherwise not too exciting). The cliffs have bizarre rocks, coves, amazing views, and a wide array of wildlife (bring your binoculars!).
There is a small park along the shore at the cliffs and it is nice to stroll along and sit on a bench for a while (at least if you have binoculars). There is the Children's Pool, a small sandy beach which is now occupied by a large horde of seals (no binoculars necessary).
There is also a line of gorgeous restaurants and hotels. La Valencia and Grande Colonial are the most interesting historic hotels - it is fun to see the lobbies and have drinks at the bars. George's At the Cove is La Jolla's best restaurant and one of the best in the country.
A few steps behind the shoreline you find La Jolla's main street, Prospect Street, with nice boutiques, bars and all kinds of restaurants.
You will probably spend most of your time on the cliffs (there is downtown La Jolla) - the wide beach is about a mile from downtown. Take the bus or a cab if you do not want to walk all that way on the road.
For orientation, I recommend a look on Google Earth. Just enter "La Jolla, Ca".

Thank you to everyone - all of the advice was terrific. In truth I am quite happy to have the opportunity to be abandoned in La Jolla. I just wanted to make sure that I didn't waste any of my time.