San Diego - Monday, 30 November 2015

We were up early today since we wanted to make the most of our sightseeing day in San Diego. A few years ago we had a very bad historic trolley tour of Savannah, GA. When I wrote the company, they sent us 2 VIP passes that were good in a number of cities. One of those cities was San Diego and so we decided to take advantage of the San Diego Hop On, Hop Off Trolley tour. The first tour left the Old Town area at 9:00 and we were there in plenty of time to get aboard.

These tours really show you different neighborhoods so that you can get a feel for what a city is like. It is not in depth, but a good overview. We started in Old Town and traveled past the harbor and seaport. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Star of India  - oldest iron hulled merchant ship

Then over to Coronado to get a view of the famed Del Coronado Hotel.

 We got off at the next stop  - The San Diego Zoo. Wow! We love zoos and this one was just unbelievable. Had forgotten my FitZip, but I'm sure we walked 10 miles up and down to see most of the animals. They were all up close and personal. But we only got butt shots of the pandas.

We spent nearly 5 hours there and really didn't have much time to explore the rest of Balboa Park with museums, galleries, and the conservancy. Another visit, another time.

Back on the trolley to Old Town. Explored one of the cemeteries and some of the shops before having dinner at Casa Guadalajara. Sue and Ron said that it was their favorite. They were spot on. Great margarita and a Burrito Carne Asada. 

Just as we were finishing the restaurant lost power and we were all in the dark. Thank goodness mobile phones have flashlights. We managed to pay our bill and then headed back to the hotel to pack and get ready for our return trip home.

San Diego - Sunday - 29 November 2015

Another beautiful day in San Diego. In spite of the late night last night and the overindulgence in wine for one of us, it was a fairly early morning. We heard from Sue and Ron and met them with Erick and Colleen at the pool for a drive to the beach. Had a wonderful breakfast at The Fig Tree Eatery- an omelet with avocado - so California.

After breakfast we headed back to the Pacific Beach condo that Sue and Ron had rented for the week. Decided to walk off the bit of breakfast with a stroll along the beach. It really was so beautiful. I can

see how everyone is in love with San Diego. Lots of surfers out and a view of Crystal Pier.




In a real time shift, it was so strange to find NFL on at 10:00 in the morning. The Steelers were playing at 1 PST so it was off to find a Steeler Bar. We found a good one where the Black and Gold was everywhere. Bub's was rocking with "Here We Go Steelers" and jerseys galore. Unfortunately, all the atmosphere didn't make the loss to Seattle any easier to digest. Beer helped, tho.

On our  walk back to the condo we met Sue's brother and sister-in-law and and they joined us when we met Colleen and Eric for a bite to eat and a huge margarita. We decided it was best to Über it back to the hotel.

It was a fun day and so good to spend it with friends.
 

San Diego - Saturday, 28 November 2015

Woke up this morning around 4 o'clock with the realization that we are not on East Coast Time and so tried to go back to sleep for a bit.

Had a leisurely breakfast at the hotel restaurant and then we decided to go out for a walk. It was a gorgeous day with bright sunshine - a beautiful day for a wedding. There wasn't much of interest around the hotel so after about a 3 mile walk we headed back and enjoyed the beauty of the pool This was the same pool in which Johnny Weismuller.
We met Ron and Eric there and had a nice chat before they headed out to get gussied up for the wedding

Back to the room to get dressed and before the 3:30 wedding. 

In a nice surprise, Chris asked that Sue also walk her "down the aisle." What a great moment for the family. Jason was overwhelmed at the sight of his bride. There is so much love between these two. 

After the wedding there were yummy appetizers and drinks on the patio with a time for some pictures before we headed in for a scrumptious dinner and some dancing. It was such a fun day and wonderful celebration of this special couple. Oh, BTW, everything was in black and gold, a great tribute!

 Earle certainly enjoyed himself and the wine. It was a good thing we were staying only a flight of stairs above the reception!

And we are off again! Pittsburgh to San Diego Friday, 27 November 2015

After a wonderful Thanksgiving spent at home with our daughter, we are off to San Diego for the wedding of Christine Hochmuth, daughter of very special friends, Ron and Sue. Earle got all the turkey cut off the bone, leftovers were either frozen or given to Amy for her fridge. She will have some great stir fry meals this week.

Off to PIT for our flight to CLT. We listened to the media reports about long security lines and the need to get to the airport 2 hours ahead of time. We found only 1 person in queue to check in luggage and no one in front of us at TSA pre-approved line. Flight was on time and arrival in Charlotte. A very different situation at that airport. It was packed. Grabbed a bite to eat and then to the Admiral's Club to avoid the hub-bub of the waiting areas.

 

Flight to SAN left on time and we only encountered a brief spell of turbulence. Talk about bare bones airlines. American takes the cake. We only got a cup of a beverage for the duration of the 5 hour flight. Not a pretzel, not an entire can of soda or juice. And to add to the pleasure of the flight, we got to smell McDonald's, pizza, and sushi from those around us who were enjoying food. Also, no inflight entertainment. Flying is just not fun anymore, at least domestically.

Got to SAN on time, waited an eternity (40 minutes) for the flight's luggage to appear on the carousel. Super Shuttle got us to the hotel in about 15 minutes and we checked in to the Lafayette Hotel and Swim Club. The hotel is historic and the room is very large and very convenient since the wedding is right here.

A beer and and some snacks followed by bed, looking forward to tomorrow!

 

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