San Diego Trip Report - Day 1
Jun 19th, 2009, 06:02 AM
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San Diego Trip Report - Day 1
Day 1 of 5 in San Diego
My wife, 13-yr. old boy-girl twins and myself flew in from Houston on Thur., 6-18. We had an early flight and was able pick up the rental car and go straight to Bread and Cie for lunch. I had the Pastrami Casablanca Panini. Bread, relish and cheese were excellent, meat was a little tough but still very good. My wife had 1/2 Ham sandwich and Tomato soup; she said the soup was excellent. My daughter had the ham and cheese quiche which was very good. We then proceeded to the SD Zoo, what a short but beautiful trek on Laurel across part of Balboa Park. We loved the zoo, really enjoyed the 35 min bus tour (sit on the right side top or bottom to see more of the animals/habitats). Equal to the animals was the unbelievable flora, especially the vast amount of palm plants and trees. We checked in to Estancia in La Jolla (hotwire purchase) which is so beautifully landscaped and then had Fish Tacos at El Pescador. We are more-like carnivores so the kids didn't enjoy it as much as I did but the meal was healthy and good. Today we're off to kayaking, beachcombing, tide pool watching, etc. Will try to check in tonight or in the am.
My wife, 13-yr. old boy-girl twins and myself flew in from Houston on Thur., 6-18. We had an early flight and was able pick up the rental car and go straight to Bread and Cie for lunch. I had the Pastrami Casablanca Panini. Bread, relish and cheese were excellent, meat was a little tough but still very good. My wife had 1/2 Ham sandwich and Tomato soup; she said the soup was excellent. My daughter had the ham and cheese quiche which was very good. We then proceeded to the SD Zoo, what a short but beautiful trek on Laurel across part of Balboa Park. We loved the zoo, really enjoyed the 35 min bus tour (sit on the right side top or bottom to see more of the animals/habitats). Equal to the animals was the unbelievable flora, especially the vast amount of palm plants and trees. We checked in to Estancia in La Jolla (hotwire purchase) which is so beautifully landscaped and then had Fish Tacos at El Pescador. We are more-like carnivores so the kids didn't enjoy it as much as I did but the meal was healthy and good. Today we're off to kayaking, beachcombing, tide pool watching, etc. Will try to check in tonight or in the am.
Jun 19th, 2009, 08:00 AM
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Hey scorry..
Sounds like your having a great time!
Love El Pescador but they do the fish sandwiches the best..
What's on your dinner list this weekend?
If your staying at Estancia, which is so much bang for the buck and a lovely hotel, you can head into the village of LJ and have dinner at George's at the Cove upstairs on the terrace..Crab Catcher, Alfonso's or Sammy's Wood fired Pizza that the kids love and they have the best messy sundaes!
Piatti's or The Shores restaurant are good choices for dinner and down the hill from your hotel.
Make sure you take the kids to the Shell shop and walk down the steps to see the cave..walk along the path above..
Hike Torrey Pines State Park next door to your hotel and the SD Fair is going on and its considered one of the best in the country.
La Jolla Scripps Aquarium is great too.
Breakfast tomorrow, I would do the Cottage or Harry's Coffee Shop in LJ..
Sounds like your having a great time!
Love El Pescador but they do the fish sandwiches the best..
What's on your dinner list this weekend?
If your staying at Estancia, which is so much bang for the buck and a lovely hotel, you can head into the village of LJ and have dinner at George's at the Cove upstairs on the terrace..Crab Catcher, Alfonso's or Sammy's Wood fired Pizza that the kids love and they have the best messy sundaes!
Piatti's or The Shores restaurant are good choices for dinner and down the hill from your hotel.
Make sure you take the kids to the Shell shop and walk down the steps to see the cave..walk along the path above..
Hike Torrey Pines State Park next door to your hotel and the SD Fair is going on and its considered one of the best in the country.
La Jolla Scripps Aquarium is great too.
Breakfast tomorrow, I would do the Cottage or Harry's Coffee Shop in LJ..
Jun 19th, 2009, 07:09 PM
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Day 2 started with a La Jolla Cove Kayak tour (Bike and Kayak tour purchased from www.goldstar.com) The tour was great, we did not see many fish, other than girabaldis, but plenty of sea lions and a couple of dolphin. We had dbl kayaks. Our guide was very knowledgeable and we did get to enter one of the caves in the cove. The water was so clear. Lunch at Pappalulu's was very good. Kids and I had various burgers, bacon and swiss and avacodo. You have to try the Chipotle Cheese Fries, very fattening but we treated ourselves after the Kayak workout. Dessert at the Yogurt Escape (8-10 low-fat, non-fat choices and serve yourself on various toppings; I had the cake batter with strawberries, blueberries and raspberries). We are going back before we leave. Shopping on Prospect then we drove across the SD-Coronado bridge and spent a little time at the beach. Very hazy (June Gloom) but a great day. We ended up at Old Town for more shopping and snacks. Ksucat, we do have fair tickets for tomorrow, David Archuletta is performing at night, kids are looking forward to the rides. We are first going to Julian for the gold mine tour/panning and some pies! Later
Jun 19th, 2009, 07:47 PM
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Awesome scorry!
Jeremy's on the hill in Wynola right before Julian is an excellent place for lunch or dinner..reasonable and excellent.
Sounds like you are dialed into everything SD has to offer..
SD Fair to see Archuletta will be great.
Love snorkeling and swimming in LJ Shores and that whole area..it's a preserve and so nice in the summer.visibility can get up to over 60+ feet.
Kids would love Jeff's burger in the LJ Shores..great deli sandwiches at the Cheese Shop too.
Please keep us posted on your daily reports..
Totally enjoying them!
www.jeremysonthehill.com
Jeremy's on the hill in Wynola right before Julian is an excellent place for lunch or dinner..reasonable and excellent.
Sounds like you are dialed into everything SD has to offer..
SD Fair to see Archuletta will be great.
Love snorkeling and swimming in LJ Shores and that whole area..it's a preserve and so nice in the summer.visibility can get up to over 60+ feet.
Kids would love Jeff's burger in the LJ Shores..great deli sandwiches at the Cheese Shop too.
Please keep us posted on your daily reports..
Totally enjoying them!
www.jeremysonthehill.com
Jun 19th, 2009, 07:50 PM
#7
OMG, a day at Julian and then the Fair! You're nuts!! I'm exhausted just thinking about it.
If it's still daytime by the time you get to the Fair, be sure to put lots of sunscreen on. Or wear hats. It's so easy to get burned, especially when it's overcast.
Glad you're enjoying your stay.
If it's still daytime by the time you get to the Fair, be sure to put lots of sunscreen on. Or wear hats. It's so easy to get burned, especially when it's overcast.
Glad you're enjoying your stay.
Jun 19th, 2009, 08:43 PM
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kscuat - headed down in a few short weeks - just dh and I - cannot wait! Did score a great hotel spg points again.
WOW - I am with barbara - Julian and the fair - you put us to shame.
Enjoy David A. I am certain your teens will love him. The Del Mar (gasp - other wise known as the San Diego fair?) is a long standing staple.
WOW - I am with barbara - Julian and the fair - you put us to shame.
Enjoy David A. I am certain your teens will love him. The Del Mar (gasp - other wise known as the San Diego fair?) is a long standing staple.
Jun 20th, 2009, 09:42 PM
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Day 3
Drove to Julian Mining Co. What a beautiful drive, Boulders around Poway, all the views are awesome. Really liked Ramona as well. All the curves did make my son a little car-sick (you don't get the elevation change in Houston, which is 35 feet above sea level) but he recovered quick while "panning for gold" in Julian. We enjoyed that experience and stopped for lunch at the Apple Country Restaurant in Santa Ysable (I couldn't remember Jeremy's from ksucat). Very good country cooking, I had the turkey, bacon sandwich w/ jack cheese on sourdough; very hardy and great fries! We walked next door to have the best apple pie in my life. My wife and daughter split the Peach apple pie a la mode and said it was equally wonderful. We drove straight to the SD Fair where the kids rode some rides, we shopped, snacked (the best Mexican churro ever that the 4 of us could not finish) and were on the 5th row to see the David Archuleta concert. What a pure voice he has, my daughter loved it. I'm worn out but tomorrow will be relaxing, sleeping in, going to church and probably lounging at Estancia. I did forget one thing. This morning I went for a jog through the Salk Institute property to the Gliderport to a breathtaking view of the La Jolla cliffs/bluffs, Scripps pier, etc. Wow! I may have to get a massage tomorrow after today! Check in later.
Drove to Julian Mining Co. What a beautiful drive, Boulders around Poway, all the views are awesome. Really liked Ramona as well. All the curves did make my son a little car-sick (you don't get the elevation change in Houston, which is 35 feet above sea level) but he recovered quick while "panning for gold" in Julian. We enjoyed that experience and stopped for lunch at the Apple Country Restaurant in Santa Ysable (I couldn't remember Jeremy's from ksucat). Very good country cooking, I had the turkey, bacon sandwich w/ jack cheese on sourdough; very hardy and great fries! We walked next door to have the best apple pie in my life. My wife and daughter split the Peach apple pie a la mode and said it was equally wonderful. We drove straight to the SD Fair where the kids rode some rides, we shopped, snacked (the best Mexican churro ever that the 4 of us could not finish) and were on the 5th row to see the David Archuleta concert. What a pure voice he has, my daughter loved it. I'm worn out but tomorrow will be relaxing, sleeping in, going to church and probably lounging at Estancia. I did forget one thing. This morning I went for a jog through the Salk Institute property to the Gliderport to a breathtaking view of the La Jolla cliffs/bluffs, Scripps pier, etc. Wow! I may have to get a massage tomorrow after today! Check in later.
Jun 20th, 2009, 09:59 PM
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Love your daily trip reports!
Adobe has great breakfast at Estancia..make sure you have a reservation..Father's Day..could be busy.
Spa is great and it is Father's Day tomorrow.
they give out rides on tandem gliders/hangliders for around $50+ off the cliffs..
Did you all check out the famous Birch Aquarium yet right down the street from your hotel..Awesome!
Have drinks at the Marine Room..floor to ceiling right on the surf and the waves break on the windows.
www.marineroom.com
www.aquarium.ucsd.edu
Adobe has great breakfast at Estancia..make sure you have a reservation..Father's Day..could be busy.
Spa is great and it is Father's Day tomorrow.
they give out rides on tandem gliders/hangliders for around $50+ off the cliffs..
Did you all check out the famous Birch Aquarium yet right down the street from your hotel..Awesome!
Have drinks at the Marine Room..floor to ceiling right on the surf and the waves break on the windows.
www.marineroom.com
www.aquarium.ucsd.edu
.
Jun 21st, 2009, 08:22 PM
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Day 4 - The Relax Day
The last 3 days caught up with us. Slept in then attended church this am. Headed to La Jolla Shores for lunch at El Ranchero off of La Jolla Blvd. and Pearl. I picked Mexican food for Dad's Day and what a great choice. Started with the Cheese Crisp (dating back to the 1940's) then a Pollo Asada Burrito with grilled chicken, guac, pico and cheese. Wife had the Pork Carnitas and daughter had Beef tamales. All portions were huge, we should have shared. The best Mexican food we've had outside of Texas. We drove a couple of miles south on LJ Blvd. to Crystal Pier/Beach. We walked on the beach, picked up a few shells, took pics and enjoyed checking out the tide pool area. The kelp washup was huge and some areas were not pleasant to the nose but still alot of fun. Back to Estancia for a short nap, then another stroll to the glider port for pics and video. We saw at least 10 para gliders, I'll try to post pics later. Walked the grounds at Estancia and took pics. Back to church then grabbed dogs at Woodies in University City area. Son loved the chili dog, I had the kraut dog, which was very good. My wife wanted a Krispy Kreme donut so we finished dad's day at KK and guess what, the HOT light came on a minute or two after we walked in. Back early to the hotel to relax. Tomorrow will be the last full day, we have to go light on the food, its killing me! Think we are going to Torrey Pines Reserve and Balboa Park and maybe a 1-hr Harbor Tour. Today's weather was incredible, no June Gloom today!
The last 3 days caught up with us. Slept in then attended church this am. Headed to La Jolla Shores for lunch at El Ranchero off of La Jolla Blvd. and Pearl. I picked Mexican food for Dad's Day and what a great choice. Started with the Cheese Crisp (dating back to the 1940's) then a Pollo Asada Burrito with grilled chicken, guac, pico and cheese. Wife had the Pork Carnitas and daughter had Beef tamales. All portions were huge, we should have shared. The best Mexican food we've had outside of Texas. We drove a couple of miles south on LJ Blvd. to Crystal Pier/Beach. We walked on the beach, picked up a few shells, took pics and enjoyed checking out the tide pool area. The kelp washup was huge and some areas were not pleasant to the nose but still alot of fun. Back to Estancia for a short nap, then another stroll to the glider port for pics and video. We saw at least 10 para gliders, I'll try to post pics later. Walked the grounds at Estancia and took pics. Back to church then grabbed dogs at Woodies in University City area. Son loved the chili dog, I had the kraut dog, which was very good. My wife wanted a Krispy Kreme donut so we finished dad's day at KK and guess what, the HOT light came on a minute or two after we walked in. Back early to the hotel to relax. Tomorrow will be the last full day, we have to go light on the food, its killing me! Think we are going to Torrey Pines Reserve and Balboa Park and maybe a 1-hr Harbor Tour. Today's weather was incredible, no June Gloom today!
Jun 21st, 2009, 08:41 PM
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weather was incredible..sounds again like another great day!
If you head to Balboa Park which is so beautiful, lunch is great at the Prado.
Have you take the harbor excursion boats out on the bay yet?
You can water taxi over to Coronado.
Since its so nice, it would be a great day for it.
Torrey Pines state reserve is one of the best hikes.
www.sdhe.com
If you head to Balboa Park which is so beautiful, lunch is great at the Prado.
Have you take the harbor excursion boats out on the bay yet?
You can water taxi over to Coronado.
Since its so nice, it would be a great day for it.
Torrey Pines state reserve is one of the best hikes.
www.sdhe.com
Jun 21st, 2009, 08:55 PM
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ksucat, I appreciate all your suggestions, I'll have to catch some of them on our next trip to SD. We have debated on a 1 or 2 hr bay cruise. We don't have the spa, glider budgeted for the 4 of us but we may do breakfast here in the am. Any other Balboa Park suggestions, maybe 1 or 2 of the museums in addition to a general walking tour?
Jun 21st, 2009, 09:13 PM
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Cottage or Harry's Coffee Shop are classic places in LJ for breakfast..
Kono's at the pier at Crystal Pier has some of the best and cheap breakfast and you can watch the waves while you eat.
Balboa Park is stunning in design..depends on what you all like..Natural History and kids would love the Rueben H Fleet Space theatre..Prado is relatively reasonable for lunch and really pretty sitting outside and next to the SD Zoo.
You can eat at Point Loma Seafoods and then drive up to Cabrillo national monument and see the lighthouse and the views are incredible.
El Indio Mex in Little Italy on India street is good and cheap.
Did you see the USS Midway?
Kono's at the pier at Crystal Pier has some of the best and cheap breakfast and you can watch the waves while you eat.
Balboa Park is stunning in design..depends on what you all like..Natural History and kids would love the Rueben H Fleet Space theatre..Prado is relatively reasonable for lunch and really pretty sitting outside and next to the SD Zoo.
You can eat at Point Loma Seafoods and then drive up to Cabrillo national monument and see the lighthouse and the views are incredible.
El Indio Mex in Little Italy on India street is good and cheap.
Did you see the USS Midway?
Jun 22nd, 2009, 08:34 PM
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Day 5 - Last day in San Diego
We had a great day. Slept in then started with a trip to the Torrey Pines State Reserve. We trekked the Guy Flemming trail, easy trail 2/3-3/4 of a mile, great views of the ocean, cliffs, bluffs, torrey pines, etc. Plenty of photo ops. We then drove downtown for lunch at Filippi's. My son and I split the #15 pizza (sausage and pepperoni) and it was very good. I had a small salad that was huge. My wife had spaghetti and cheese ravioli, daughter had lasagna and cheese rav and they were all very good. Large portions and reasonable prices. We went to Balboa Park, first to the Fleet Science Center and Imax, kids loved the science stuff, a little disappointed in the Animalopolis Imax, we should have waited an hour to see Under the Sea ($58 for entry and 1 Imax, no discounts). We did our own walking tour to see many things in the park, wife and I went to the Japanese Friendship Garden, $4 apiece and it was nice. I wish we had more info on the age of some of the trees in the garden. I really enjoyed the park but we probably should have gone with a package deal to get into more museums. Dessert time after the park, we drove uptown to 5th street to Extraordinary Desserts. Wow!! The 4 of us split 3 desserts. The Viking chocolate themed cake was incredible and my daughter had an excellent made with a creme brulee layer that was also awesome. We drove back to La Jolla shores for a little more shopping for wife and daughter and a final drive down Cove Blvd. around sunset! We will be back. I'll try to do a summary tomorrow.
We had a great day. Slept in then started with a trip to the Torrey Pines State Reserve. We trekked the Guy Flemming trail, easy trail 2/3-3/4 of a mile, great views of the ocean, cliffs, bluffs, torrey pines, etc. Plenty of photo ops. We then drove downtown for lunch at Filippi's. My son and I split the #15 pizza (sausage and pepperoni) and it was very good. I had a small salad that was huge. My wife had spaghetti and cheese ravioli, daughter had lasagna and cheese rav and they were all very good. Large portions and reasonable prices. We went to Balboa Park, first to the Fleet Science Center and Imax, kids loved the science stuff, a little disappointed in the Animalopolis Imax, we should have waited an hour to see Under the Sea ($58 for entry and 1 Imax, no discounts). We did our own walking tour to see many things in the park, wife and I went to the Japanese Friendship Garden, $4 apiece and it was nice. I wish we had more info on the age of some of the trees in the garden. I really enjoyed the park but we probably should have gone with a package deal to get into more museums. Dessert time after the park, we drove uptown to 5th street to Extraordinary Desserts. Wow!! The 4 of us split 3 desserts. The Viking chocolate themed cake was incredible and my daughter had an excellent made with a creme brulee layer that was also awesome. We drove back to La Jolla shores for a little more shopping for wife and daughter and a final drive down Cove Blvd. around sunset! We will be back. I'll try to do a summary tomorrow.
