Here is my trip report for San Diego ? this trip was a long weekend built around a memorial service for my best friend?s aunt. We did have some good sightseeing though:

Day 1:
Drove from SJ to LAX via 101/152/5/405. The drive was long, but not too bad. Plenty of places to stop along the way for gas and snacks. Had breakfast at Mike?s Roadhouse Café in Kettleman City. The food was ok and the people were really nice.

I was definitely surprised at how much was built up along the interstate, especially once I got south of the Grapevine. I remember Magic Mountain being in the middle of nowhere. Now it?s in suburbia.

Picked up a friend at LAX and then continued south to San Diego. There was a lot of traffic on 405 south of LAX, even in the carpool lane it was kind of slow going. We took toll road 73 which was definitely worth the $3.50 toll ? hardly any traffic, smooth road.

Got into San Diego about dinner time, checked into our hotel ? Marriot Coronado which we got a good deal on through Priceline. The hotel was very nice ? coy ponds, little waterfalls, great pool area, view of the harbor and downtown. We requested a non-smoking room with 2 beds, which we got. Our room overlooked the driveway and entrance to the parking garage rather than the bay, but we did get a terrific deal through Priceline, so I can?t complain.

Went to Old Town and had dinner at the Coyote Café, which was good. My carnitas were excellent. The beans and salsa were very tasty. Tortillas were good. The guacamole could have used some heat. We ate out on the patio, which was really nice.

Day 2:
We got a light breakfast at a little café on Coronado called Tratinos ? nice place with a sidewalk patio.

Went to the Hotel Del Coronado to look around and wander the beach. Beautiful ? terrific location, very relaxing.

After that, went back to Old Town to do some shopping in Bazaar del Mundo, then met a friend for lunch downtown at a Brazillian place on 4th about a ? block off Broadway called Rei do Gado something or other. The food was terrific. It?s buffet style with salads and side dishes and then the waiters come around to the tables with the meat. The fillet wrapped in bacon was REALLY good. I will definitely go back to this restaurant.

Then we drove out to Point Loma to take in the views, see the lighthouse, and the tide pools. Afterwards, we wandered around the Mission Beach area until dinner time when we met up with my friend?s family ? we were in SD for a memorial service for her aunt. Everyone was staying at the Motel 6 on Hotel Circle, so we did too. It would not have been my choice of lodging, but it was ok. Definitely no frills, but our room was clean and reasonably comfortable.

Dinner was at Anthony?s Seafood Grotto near the cruise ship terminal. The food was decent ? nothing to write home about, but it was fine and the prices were reasonable. The views were terrific since the restaurant is right on the water.

Day 3:
This was a family day and the memorial service so nothing really to write. We had the memorial service on the pier at Ocean Beach and a catered BBQ on a lawn area overlooking the beach. It was really nice. We watched the surfers, collected shells (lots of shells on this beach), and flew a couple kites. Looked like a cool area to explore further. There were some homeless people hanging out in the area, which might make some people uncomfortable, but no one seemed to be bothering anyone else.

Day 4:
Said good-bye to the family and headed back to the Hotel Del Coronado for massages at the spa and then hung out on the patio overlooking the beach for quite awhile. It was a wonderful way to decompress.

Afterwards, we went to Hillcrest to the Corvette Diner for lunch (I love that place), and then headed up to LA. We took Hwy 1 through Del Mar and up the coast. It was nice until we got into LA. I wish we would have switched to the freeway because Hwy 1 took us through town, which was slow going, and we went through some dodgy areas ? not exactly scenic.

We stayed at the Crowne Plaza in Redondo Beach which was terrific ? another Priceline deal. Very comfortable, extremely helpful employees. Requested a non-smoking room with 2 beds ? not a problem, and our room overlooked the pool. The pool area was great ? on a rooftop a few storey up ? I think it was on top of the parking garage - so there were some nice views. We had dinner at the Cheesecake Factory, which was right down the street. We sat on the patio, which overlooked the boats in the marina.

Day 5:
After coffee and pastries from the Starbucks in the hotel lobby, we planned to wander around at the beach, but the weather was cold and foggy, so we headed inland. Wandered around Beverly Hills ? Rodeo Drive, cruised the neighborhoods. We had lunch at a café somewhere in Beverly Hills, although I don?t remember where.

Then I dropped my friend off at the airport for her flight and drove back to San Jose. This time I took Hwy 101 since I wanted to stop in San Luis Obispo to see some family. Hwy 101 probably took me 30 minutes longer than I5, and it was much more scenic.

Sorry about the question marks - I hope you guys can still read it. I typed it out in Word first. Aparently all my ' and - characters got turned into ? in the process.

I love the massages at the Del part of your report, J Correa! The Del is high on my list of places to stay in CA! Great report! ***kim***

The Del is wonderful. I love it there. I was hoping to get it through Priceline (there are only 2 hotels on Coronado with 4*), but we ended up at the Marriot, which was fine. It was a toss up. For this trip I couldn't afford to just stay at the Del since we are in esgrow on a house and this trip was not something I had budgetted for. Next time maybe.

Glad you were able to make the trip into a bit of fun despite the reason for it.

We had family in San Diego and always stayed at the Hotel Del Coronado when we visited. When the last one passed away, our entire group stayed there so that we could "make lemonade out of lemons". The hotel has a limo as well as a shuttle bus and it was great for us that week...we never needed a car.

Point Loma is gorgeous! My dh was stationed there for a while and it was such fun to go visit him there.

Cabrillo Natl Monument on Pt Loma is one of my fave places in the world to just sit and watch the world go by.

My fave Uncle who lived in SD since the mid-50s just passed away so SD has lost a bit of it's soul for me, but a Great City nonetheless.

J, we stayed in Coronado on our honeymoon at the El Cordova, right across the street from the Del. Is that place still around by any chance? Just curious! ***kim***

mms - what a great way to remember your family. Making lemonade out of lemons is always the best way. That's why our memorial was a BBQ on the beach and kite flying, followed by a walk on the pier to scatter the ashes.

Kal - I agree with you about the Cabrillo Monument. I could sit up there for hours.

kim - I'm not sure if the El Cordova is there or not. I didn't notice it, but that doesn't mean much - LOL.

We also stayed at the Rancho Bernardo Inn, it was a beautiful property. There's a great restaurant there, El Bizz..... something or other.

I attended summer school at SDSU. Studying at the cove in La Jolla was one of my favorite things to do! Did you spend any time in La Jolla? DS has a few buddies that attend UCSD so he makes it down that way more than I do these days! ***kim***

Kim- El Cordova is still there. The rooms are toward the back, as shops and restaurants (Miguels has nice Mexican food)are in the front ground level spaces. It is actually a quite reasonable place to stay...the rooms are basic, but clean.

I grew up in Coronado and spent much of my youth in the pinball room at the Del - always looking over our shoulders to watch for the security as they didn't like us local rats!

Spent my wedding night at the Del, but old habits die hard...I still worried they might chase me out!

J Correa--The BBQ and kite flying sound wonderful. We had the ashes interred in the wall at Pt. Loma...the wall had only been finished a few days before. That trip had another twist...after the service while everyone was having drink at the Del...my dh suddenly stood up when a man passed us...turned out to be a fraternity brother we hadn't seen in many years...then he turned out to live near us in Seattle and he and his wife were on the same flight home as us. Life is indeed strange

Thanks, Icuy, that's nice to know. I still have a shoe horn from the hotel that I saved for our wedding memory book.

I'm trying to get together a Disneyland day for all of us sometime this month. I'm getting that urge to ride Dumbo and have dinner at the Blue Bayou! LOL ***kim***

We did pass through La Jolla on our way out of town - just a quick drive by. I definitely want to spend some time wandering around there another time when we have more time.

And have dinner at George's at the Cove! And a stay at La Valencia would be marvelous! You've definitely whetted our appetites for SD, J!! ***kim***

Hi J_Correa!
What an enjoyable read! I lived in San Diego as a wee girl and have such good memories of the beauty of the place. Not to mention the times I drove down from SF to visit family for weekends..you made me want to jump in the car / or a plane, and hurry back down for another visit!

lcuy,(after our lunch the other day) I can attest to the fact that you no longer resemble a "local rat" and can play pinball without fear lol

I have to say I have never heard anyone voice an 'urge to ride Dumbo' LOL Maybe having lived in SoCal, I got that out of my system when I was a teen, but it does sound Goofy LOL

mms-welcome home from Disney East Coast!

I just realized that this is 2 years old LOL
Oh well, maybe someone will get some info from this nice Trip Report

LOL Scarlet - I openned this thread thinking that reading a trip report about San Diego would be fun since I haven't been in awhile and could live vicariously through the lucky soul who got to go recently. I was about a paragraph in when I realized it sounded awfully familiar! LOL.

It was nice to go down memory lane though. It was a good trip.