La Jolla, which means "the jewel," is best known for its refined elegance and beauty. It is basically a seaside suburb north of San Diego. Million dollar homes that are built on cliffs overlooking La Jolla’s shores are just part of what is…Read More

La Jolla, which means "the jewel," is best known for its refined elegance and beauty. It is basically a seaside suburb north of San Diego. Million dollar homes that are built on cliffs overlooking La Jolla’s shores are just part of what is here. For the most part, La Jolla has fancy boutiques, cafés, romantic restaurants, wine tastings, and art galleries, and yet it maintains a small-town feel. The cove and beach are beautiful and perfect places to take romantic walks and pictures, or just a place to relax and be alone on the rocks while watching the seals. The Cove has a beautiful park that is maintained by the city and is open to the public, with plenty of free parking. There are several beaches within La Jolla, including Scripps (near the hang glider park), Shores, Windansea, Touraline, and Black’s (an unofficial nude beach). All of the beaches are extremely clean, with crystal-clear Pacific-blue water. In fact, many people get married on the beach here because it is such a beautiful backdrop. There is also a hang glider park that is located off of North Torrey Pines Road, just past the University of California at San Diego. It is not exactly a place for children since there is a serious lack of gates, but a great place to watch people be fearless and free. Since this is not technically a tourist spot listed on a map, there are no facilities or food carts around. Prospect Place, which is located in downtown La Jolla, is the Rodeo Drive of San Diego. At the end of Prospect is a great place to watch the sunset and you will find lots of people there around that time to get a good view. The Museum of Contemporary Art, located between Prospect Street and Coast Boulevard, boasts a "minimalist conceptual artworks" theme. Although we did not go in, we heard that their idea of "minimalist" meant the place was basically empty – who knows? As far as I’m concerned, I didn’t come to California to go to a museum. This is a great place to go for a few hours or more.

Recommended.

Mission Beach/Belmont Park – Located north of the airport but south of La Jolla, Mission Beach is 2 miles of ocean that lies between Mission Bay and Pacific Beach. This is a favorite among tourists and locals that is filled with colorful homes, cottages, beach apartments, and big crowds of people. It is very similar to Venice Beach in Los Angeles, with the rollerbladers, tattoos, hippies, and beach goddesses. Overall, it is a long white-sand beach with plenty of room to relax and not feel cramped by the crowd. The beach is a great place to surf, and you will see plenty of rental shops offering everything from boards to bikes for rent. To get some of the best people-watching around, go to the boardwalk (wheelchair accessible) that is behind the beach and runs nearly 3 miles. You will find people rollerblading, cycling, jogging, and just strolling along, but the real scene is found on the weekends when everyone is out to play. Two blocks east of the beach is Mission Boulevard. There you can find tons of causal places to eat, with a selection ranging from taco shops to fast-food chains. Belmont Park, located on West Mission Bar Drive and Mission Boulevard, is an amusement park with a 73-foot wooden roller coaster called the "Big Dipper at Belmont Park." This area is over 70-years-old and considered a landmark since it maintains its ‘20s theme. Also included here are arcades, an indoor plunge pool, souvenir shops, and a few bars. There are plenty of interesting locals that hang out on the beach and in this area. Tattooing is a big thing here, and you will find these shops in large supply. There is parking just across the street from Belmont Park at West Mission Bay Drive and Mission Boulevard, and it’s free.

Recommended.

Gaslamp Quarter – This is located in the heart of San Diego, named the Gaslamp District because of the (gas) street lights that remain (although the current ones are not the originals). This quarter is filled with Victorian-style commercial buildings from the late 1800s, with a huge wharf built by Alonzo Horton in the 1870s on Fifth Avenue. Eight blocks long (Broadway to Harbor), two wide (Fourth to Sixth Avenue), and filled with restaurants, bars, breweries, art galleries, unique shops, Croce’s jazz and piano bar, and the like – there is something for everyone here. There are over 100 restaurants serving a variety of cuisines, but many of them charge a cover since they become bars only or clubs after hours. There is even a scene on the street if you prefer to just walk around, which many people do as well. There are parking garages available for a fee, or you can park in the Horton Plaza, where you buy a ticket that validates if you buy anything or go to see a movie. Although free parking can be hard to find, this is a great area for hanging out, meeting great people, and getting a good meal. A big favorite here is Dick’s Last Resort. The food is a step above bar food, the prices are average, and there is no cover. The premise to this place is that the staff is rude. If you don’t know that going in, you will either walk out or get ready to punch someone. They throw silverware and napkins and interrupt you while speaking, but it is all done in fun so go with an open mind if you chose to go at all. Overall, this is a more expensive area to stay in, so it might behoove you to stay in the marina, for example, and either drive in or take a 1-minute (literally) cab drive over.

Recommended.

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1500 Orange Ave., Coronado. Filled with legend and beauty, the Hotel Del Coronado is still breathtaking at the age of 117. It is a national and historical landmark located on Coronado Island and built with Victorian architecture and a red-shingled roof. It is almost…Read More

1500 Orange Ave., Coronado.

Filled with legend and beauty, the Hotel Del Coronado is still breathtaking at the age of 117. It is a national and historical landmark located on Coronado Island and built with Victorian architecture and a red-shingled roof. It is almost a small city within the grounds, where you never have to leave for anything. The lobby reeks of old-world charm, with potted palm trees, mahogany paneling, hand-carved pillars, and beautiful richly colored carpets.

Built in less than 1 year, the hotel is somewhat of maze and only four stories high. The center of the building is a courtyard, hallways get smaller as you go higher within the hotel, and it is said that there were no plans before beginning construction. Meaning, the next day’s work was decided when the current day’s job was done. Wood did not even have time to cure, so there are many floors that are now bowed because of it. Every room is different, and it’s a far cry from the modern chains you see today. Tons of famous people have graced this hotel, such as The Duke and Duchess of Windsor, Marilyn Monroe, Frank Sinatra, Charles Lindbergh, and 11 US presidents. Legend says that Kate Morgan still haunts the halls after checking in during the November of 1892 and washing up on shore 5 days later after having a fight with her estranged husband. The movies "Some Like it Hot" and "Somewhere in Time" were also filmed on location here.

The grounds include two heated pools with live entertainment and ocean views, cabanas, whirlpools, and tennis courts. They have perfectly manicured gardens that are lined throughout the property and along the cabanas, but be prepared for the tons of tourists that are not staying at the hotel and visit daily. The beach behind the hotel is beautiful, peaceful, and miles long. Most of the tourists are so busy with the hotel; they don’t venture out past the pool.

The Crown-Coronet Dining Room was the setting for Richard Nixon’s first state dinner held outside the White House. The restaurant includes crown-shaped chandeliers that were created by Frank Baum (the author of The Wizard of Oz). They also boast the largest Christmas tree in all of San Diego during the holidays – so it’s even enjoyable to visit off season.

Parking is not easy, but the hotel and the area surrounding it is an afternoon (at least) well spent. You need not feel that you must be a guest here to enjoy the grounds, shops, sights, and the eateries, like the ice creamy Moo Time. Details of the hotel’s history are chronicled in pictures along the hallways of the first floor. It is a great place for couples’ getaways, family vacations, and conventions if you don’t mind large crowds. The service is top-notch.

Highly Recommended.

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Georges at the Cove – 1250 Prospect St., La Jolla, 858/454-4244. Voted San Diego’s most popular restaurant in last year’s Zagats Survey, this place serves Californian cuisine. Offering beautiful views of the La Jolla Cove, this restaurant has two dining areas; The Ocean…Read More

Georges at the Cove – 1250 Prospect St., La Jolla, 858/454-4244.
Voted San Diego’s most popular restaurant in last year’s Zagats Survey, this place serves Californian cuisine. Offering beautiful views of the La Jolla Cove, this restaurant has two dining areas; The Ocean Terrance Bistro and Pacific View Bar and The Ocean View Room. It is a great place if you are in La Jolla enjoying an afternoon of shopping or an evening of just walking around, wine tasting, or seeing the sights.

Chef Trey Foshee (selected as one of America’s top-ten chefs by Food and Wine), tends to lean the seasonal menu more towards seafood while using a lot of local produce, but we also found ample non-fish choices as well.

The Ocean Terrance Bistro is smart-casual with outdoor seating, heat lamps, and panoramic ocean views. The menu is slightly different and slightly cheaper than downstairs, with a more laid-back atmosphere. It does get cold at night, though, even with the heat lamps, so plan ahead. Our service was great; the servers were young and fun.

We had the fried calamari with a spicy tomato sauce for dinner, and garlic aioli and a Asian salad that was great. I had the pasta with clams for dinner and my husband had the Asian-marinated skirt steak, both excellent. Desserts are delicious here as well. We had the frozen chocolate mouse cake, which was an ice cream cake-like dessert that had a devil’s food cake crust with ice cream, marshmallows, walnuts, ganache, and a lot of whip cream – ridiculously good. This is the best place to watch the sunset.

The Ocean View room is more formal and located on the main level of the restaurant. There is a beautiful decor with water views from the wall-length windows (the views are not as good as upstairs obviously). It is very romantic, upscale, and slightly stuffy, with excellent service and food. For $55, there is a tasting menu that includes a five-course sampling of the chef’s specialties that evening. It is definitely a safe choice and a less expensive way to go. For something else a little more mainstay, try their famous meatloaf, which is served with mushroom and corn mashed potatoes (served both upstairs and in the ocean-view room), or the house-smoked chicken or broccoli and bean soup. This is definitely a must-go while in San Diego, a place to see and be seen. Reservations required.

Highly Recommended.

Bertrand at Mister A’s – 2550 5th Ave., San Diego, 619/239-1377
This is a truly exquisite restaurant with incredible city views, a fantastic menu, top-of-the-line service, and half-price bottles of wine (from their entire selection) on Monday evenings. Lots of contemporary art, candles, and beautiful tapestries fill this restaurant – it is a great place for a romantic evening or to impress someone special as well.

Located on the 12th floor and just a few minutes from downtown San Diego, the restaurant has windows from wall to wall, with incredible views of the San Diego Bay, the mountains of Mexico, and everything in between. They also have an outdoor deck that wraps around three sides of the building, and you can go out there to watch the planes take off and land at Lindbergh Field. That being said, the inside of the restaurant also has clear views of everything as well.

Chef Stephane Voitzwinkler serves American cuisine that was to die for, winning awards such as "Best Continental Cuisine in California." I had the lobster bisque and Dover sole with lemon and Frank had baked goat cheese and the boneless prime beef short ribs - unbelievable. The menu is not seasonal but does change at least once a year. It is pricey but also a very special place with beautiful food presentations, a helpful and knowledgeable staff, and wonderful food. Reservations and jackets required.

Very Highly Recommended.

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We were in San Diego for just a quick visit with some relatives when we all decided it would be fun to run out to the Hotel del Coronado. We had heard much about it and we had seen pictures of it as well…Read More

We were in San Diego for just a quick visit with some relatives when we all decided it would be fun to run out to the Hotel del Coronado. We had heard much about it and we had seen pictures of it as well as seeing it from afar once, but none of us had ever set foot on its grounds. We thought it would be fun to explore it if we could. We crossed the big bridge onto Coronado Island and were fed into an enchanting village of the same name. We were able to follow the signs and finally found our way to the 'Del', as it is known to the locals. Finding a parking spot was a major accomplishment, as I squeezed our minivan into a spot seemingly too small for it. Our trip had started on a bright note! We entered from the backside walking along the tennis courts, gardens and shops.

We worked our way around to the front entrance and lingered while we viewed all of the activity there. This was a Sunday afternoon and lots of folks were coming and going. So this is how the other half live, we thought to ourselves. We went inside and were told by a 'greeter' that we could wander around the lobby and first floor of the hotel, which we did do for the next 90 minutes or so. It is a beautiful place both inside and out. There are numerous vantage points outside from which to view the spectacular architecture of this venerable lady. Adjacent to the Del is one of America's premiere beaches--a mile and a half long and three hundred yards wide of the finest beach sand anywhere in the world.

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From Las Vegas, we drove into California, and through the Mojave Desert, before reaching the suburbs of Los Angeles and heading down the Pacific Highway to San Diego. Having driven through the desert, it was a nasty shock once we were nearing LA to notice that…Read More

From Las Vegas, we drove into California, and through the Mojave Desert, before reaching the suburbs of Los Angeles and heading down the Pacific Highway to San Diego.

Having driven through the desert, it was a nasty shock once we were nearing LA to notice that visibility reduced rapidly. The smog was everywhere, and we weren't even very far into the city. We perhaps noticed it more having come from the clear desert, but it really did make the place just look dirt and horrible, and we were all pleased to be heading away from LA to the lovely San Diego.

We stayed in the Pacific Beach Mission Bay part of town, which offered a rather more relaxing stay than the hectic Las Vegas. The scenery was lovely, the people were firendly, and the beer flowed nicely as we joined the local partygoers along Garnet Street for a good night out.

San Diego's proximity to the Mexican border also gave us the opportunity to nip across and sample Tijuana. The contrast between the two adjacent cities is extreme, they are worlds apart. Just across the border there were instantly signs of poverty, and the main street of Tijuana, although nice enough, left us ill at ease, and with that common travel feeling of being pestered by the local merchants constantly. I did however manage to successfully haggle in Spanish to buy a Mexican national football shirt as a little souvenir!

It was a blessed relief to get back across the border to San Diego after Tijuana, that's for sure. A short wander around the downtown area, before heading back to Pacific Beach and the party time could continue again. I would thoroughly recommend staying in this part of San Diego for any younger travellers. My overall impressions of San Diego are of an extremely pleasant and relaxing place, which I will certainly be visiting again.

San Diego was also the only place on this trip which had a bar serving the local beer from my home town in England...Newcastle Brown Ale. It was an unexpected find, and despite the early time of day, and the fact that I was still delicate from the night before, I had to have one!

So, the trip was now over, and back to England it was for us. But it will not be long until we return to the South-West of the USA, a truly magnificent and beautiful part of the world.

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Our hotel for the next couple of nights was the Luxor, a giant glass pyramid at the south end of the Strip. I think that Las Vegas is best summed up in one word...surreal. You can see the world in Las Vegas in the space…Read More

Our hotel for the next couple of nights was the Luxor, a giant glass pyramid at the south end of the Strip.

I think that Las Vegas is best summed up in one word...surreal. You can see the world in Las Vegas in the space of a couple of miles. From Luxor pyramids, to the Eiffel Tower, having crossed New York on the Brooklyn Bridge...utterly bizarre!

Strangely enough, we didn't make our fortunes in Las Vegas, although in one particular casino we did have a run of luck on the slot machines, winning on six machines in a row, between about $30 and $100 on each machine...not too bad for a bunch of novices.

A highlight of our stay in Vegas has to be going on the Big Shot ride at the top of the Stratosphere. A bigger adrenaline rush it would be hard to imagine, and it is heartily recommended. It involves being strapped into a seat on the roof of the Stratosphere, facing outwards, so that you are looking out over the city and the desert beyond. You are then rocketed skyward at a rate of 4G's, before then returning down again at 2G's. Since the Stratosphere is so much taller than anything else in Vegas, you feel as though you are not attached to anything as you shoot upwards, since all you are staring at in front of you is open sky, with the city way down below. The feeling afterwards is one of pure exhilaration. We followed this up by riding a roller coaster which is also at the top of the Stratosphere, but once you've done the Big Shot, everything else seems rather tame! After that it was straight to the bar for some well earned alcohol, whilst looking out over Las Vegas from on high...a spectacular view as the nights draws in, and the neon lights take over.

Las Vegas was also a base for a visit to the Hoover Dam nearby. We took the informative tour of the Dam, and then baked in the sun by Lake Mead for a short while.

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Having made it across the Grand Canyon at Navajo Bridge, we headed north-west towards Utah, and ended up staying in a motel in the nice little town of Kanab, Utah. Kanab is apparently known (probably just to its residents!) as Little Hollywood, thanks to the number…Read More

Having made it across the Grand Canyon at Navajo Bridge, we headed north-west towards Utah, and ended up staying in a motel in the nice little town of Kanab, Utah.

Kanab is apparently known (probably just to its residents!) as Little Hollywood, thanks to the number of movies that have been filmed in and around Kanab. Unsurprisingly all of these films were westerns, and the secenery nearby certainly evokes memories of that film genre.

As newcomers to this region, we weren't entirely sure whether or not crossing into Utah from Arizona meant that we had changed time zomes or not! Having searched unsuccessfully for somewhere to eat that was open, we came to the conclusion that infact it was an hour later than we thought...doh!

The next morning it was off to Bryce Canyon, a truly stunning sight, and in my opinion rather more picturesque than the Grand Canyon. This is partly due to the fact that it is smaller and therefore easier to view, but also thanks to the striking colour and rock formations which make Bryce Canyon such an attraction.

We climbed right down into the Canyon on a steep winding path, walking in between the giant red rocks, and staining our shoes red in the process. The only problem with doing that of course, was that we had to then climb back up again! Like I say, it was a very steep path, and it was seeringly hot, but still, it was a climb that is well worth doing and is throughly recommended.

Having got our breath back, and also visited various viewing areas to look over the Canyon, it was off to Cedar City, Utah for some nourishment before hitting the road to Las Vegas. Cedar City served our food requirements well -- lots, and quickly! The most memorable thing I can recall of Cedar City, is several of the staff in the restaurant having hairstyles out of another age -- maybe time has stood still in this corner of Utah for a few decades!

Now we motored off in the direction of Nevada, and the promised land of Las Vegas. Well, we had to recoup our expenses somehow!

The road we took from Cedar City took us across a small mountain range intially, and overlooked Zion Park, providing us with open green views which were very familiar to us Englishmen, just like home.

It all changed after that however, as we headed across a little corner of Arizona on the way to Nevada. The road took us in between, round, next to, and on occasion under, various tall mountains practically overhanging the road. This was certainly an interesting road we'd chosen. Once clear of the overhanging mountains, we suddenly found ourselves in the desert, and the views stretched out for miles all around us.

Eventually on the horizon we could spot the unmistakeable sight of Las Vegas. As we got nearer, so the neon got brighter, and our anticipation heightened.

Soon enough, we arrived and headed on down the Strip past all the wedding chapels and tattoo parlours to the sound of Viva Las Vegas blaring out of our in car CD player...very cheesy I know, but hey, we were on holiday, so who cares!

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This is one of my favorite pictures. I took this while flying out of town one summer day. It shows the areas from Mission Beach on the left which turns into Pacific Beach which then turns into La Jolla. There is so much to do…Read More

This is one of my favorite pictures. I took this while flying out of town one summer day. It shows the areas from Mission Beach on the left which turns into Pacific Beach which then turns into La Jolla. There is so much to do just in the Bay that you could spend a week there and still not get to it all. There's windsurfing, waterskiing, kayaking, swimming, jet skiing, sunning, rollerblading, and night life all packed in this little area. It's all within walking distance too if you have a little time. There are some of the best walkways for rollerblading, bike riding, running and walking on both sides of the bay and on the ocean side. In the middle is a great area to just hang out and watch the kids play with their boats in a special model sailboat pond. This is one of the best areas to vacation in San Diego. The nightlife cannot be missed either.    Close

It was Founder's Day at the San Diego zoo. That means that admission was free for the day. Someone at the Wild Animal Park yesterday said there would be "a lot of people." That's like saying Cecil B. DeMille invited a few people to stand around during the…Read More

It was Founder's Day at the San Diego zoo. That means that admission was free for the day. Someone at the Wild Animal Park yesterday said there would be "a lot of people." That's like saying Cecil B. DeMille invited a few people to stand around during the filming of Ben Hur. Every school class south of Seattle and every toddler with a stroller and a parent was at the zoo today. English was very definitely not the dominant language. And the whole thing was...well...a real zoo. We actually kind of lucked out at the beginning of the day. We first went to the panda exhibit. I suspect it's about 10 feet from the entrance, but they route you through the wholezoo before you finally find it. We managed to get there just a few minutes before the first viewing session at 10 a.m. and there were relatively few people in the line. Best of all, the new baby panda, HuaMei was visible, sleeping in the tree, while her mother wandered around below. I've been following HuaMei's progress through "PandaCam" on the Internet ever since her birth a year ago. She's the first baby panda born in captivity to survive and so she's pretty special. I remember the early days, before her Mom let her outside to greet the public. Watching the play between mother and baby was so touching. And now I was able to see them "in the fur," as it were. After we'd seen the pandas, we did the rest of the zoo. We walked miles and miles up and down hill. Peggy says I "suffered in silence," but actually I was glad to have been forced into doing all that stuff. I saw things I would not have seen had I sat off in a corner reading a book. Of course it got more and more difficult as the day progressed and the crowds got thicker and thicker. I did overhear some interesting conversations, though. At the orangutan enclosure, two girls were talking about the grouping (large orang, two smaller ones, and then the largest off by himself). "Those are the kids," a girl said. "They're playing and the Mom is over there saying 'just go away and leave me alone.' The big one is the dad. He just wants to get away from all his responsibilities," she continued. (I decided this might be a good place to do psychotherapy!) Another girl asked "What do they eat?" Her companion helpfully replied. "Chicken. They can't give them live chickens, though, 'cause that would be cruelty to animals, so they give them whole dead chicken. Frozen chickens." We took pictures of the frozen-dead-chicken-eating orangutans and wondered if this is why they looked so fierce!    Close

One of the fun things we did was to feed the lorikeets. These colorful birds are native to Australia. To pass through their enclosure is free, or you can buy a little cup of liquid food to take in with you. If you have a cup…Read More

One of the fun things we did was to feed the lorikeets. These colorful birds are native to Australia. To pass through their enclosure is free, or you can buy a little cup of liquid food to take in with you. If you have a cup in hand, you will be covered with birds very soon. They perch on your arm, your arm, your hand, your shoulder, your head--sometimes all at once. Trying to take pictures of each other was fun, since we were covered in birds at the time. We spent a lot of time at the gorilla habitat. In contrast to the small enclosures we saw at the Sacramento Zoo, the animals here have as close as possible to what would be their habitat in the wild and it was a delight to watch the interactions among the group, the old silverback staying on top of the antics of all the younger ones, and especially keeping the young adult males in tow, while the old pregnant females sat off to the side chewing bamboo and probably talking about what to name the babies. Our last animal visit was to the Meerkats, who are such fun animals, and then the traditional half our in the gift shop after which we staggered to the parking lot and came home again. We were very definitely "stuffed."   Close