San Diego
A few weeks ago, we attended a family wedding in San Diego, California. We split our time between our family and did some sightseeing. We had a great time, but we did have some challenges.
We got to the airport early Thursday evening. We were so excited to see everyone, got our tickets at the kiosk, went through the security, and put our things in the trays, including our shoes. When we put our suitcases on the belt, we realized we had forgotten to check our bags. I looked at Grandpa, and he said, “we paid for the bags.” So, back to the airline’s desks and back through security again. Thank goodness, our direct flight to San Diego was good.
We had planned a four-hour scenic tour of San Diego, La Jolla, to GasLamp Quarter on Friday morning. However, after arriving in San Diego on a beautiful 70⁰ evening, I turned my phone on and got an email. The tour company canceled the tour due to mechanical troubles. They wanted to reschedule, but we couldn’t. Anyway, we got to our hotel safely.
After settling in our room, I realized I needed things from a convenience store. We asked the hotel host if a convenience store was within walking distance. He said, “Yes, turn left at the end of the block and then turn right. So, we started walking to the store. However, he didn’t tell us it was long blocks after the left turn. We walked & walked. Grandpa walks faster than me, and my butt and thighs were hurting. Also, we were walking the streets at night in a neighborhood we didn’t know. I told him we were getting Uber back.
We got to the store, got my things, and called Uber. There was a pizza place across from the hotel. So, we went to eat and watch football. Around 9:45 pm, we found out they were closing at 10. A Pizza place closing at 10 pm? We were not ready to go back to the hotel. So, we went to the Mexican restaurant across the parking lot. They were closed too. I guess San Diego people go to sleep early. So, we walked to the hotel next door for some margaritas. We were exhausted so went back to the hotel.
We had a beautiful view facing San Diego Bay. We watched as a cruise ship passed by on the way to San Diego’s cruise terminals.
Left to Right: The cruise ship passing by, note the bridge, pizza place, San Diego airport, and the morning view.
Note the freeway in the picture on the right side. I didn’t see one car cross it. The next day, I discovered the area used to be a vast Marine Corps Base. The freeway was not a freeway but a bridge where the marines marched. The marches were wide, so the bridge had to be large.
I visited San Diego about 18 years ago, but it’s even more beautiful now. The Marine Corps Base & Naval Training Center has been downsized. The area is now new hotels, restaurants, parks, etc.
Since our Friday tour was canceled, we decided to do the Old Town Trolley Tour. The tour started at Old Town San Diego. OTS is nice. We didn’t have much time there since we had to catch the trolley. The tour is a Hop On and Hop Off tour. We stayed on to save time. It’s a 2-hour tour if you stay on. It’s a good tour, but the van tours are better.
From Left to Right: Little Italy, North Island Coronado, Little Italy, Coronado Marina, Hotel del Coronado, Royal Caribbean cruise ship, Embarcadero Marina Park, CA gas prices, Balboa Park,
There is a 5-year waiting list to live on the water. Hotel del Coronado has been featured in numerous films and books. One is Marilyn Monroe’s “Some Like It Hot” movie. Also, some storylines of Baywatch were filmed there. Balboa Park is beautiful.
After the trolley tour, we had lunch at Brigantine at Portside Pier, and visited the Kissing statue adjacent to the USS Midway Museum.
Afterward, we returned to our hotel and prepared for the family wedding dinner at Liberty Station, formerly Navel TC. We had a great time visiting with our family. We laughed, hugged each other, and tried to make more great memories.
Saturday morning, we toured the USS Midway Museum. It’s a neat tour in San Diego. Afterward, we returned to the hotel to prepare for the wedding.
The beautiful six o’clock wedding was held at the Tom Ham’s Lighthouse. The wedding was planned before Covid, and they delayed it. The couple are super great individuals. He works for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. They were stationed in Italy and now are stationed in Japan.
The Tom Ham Lighthouse is off the Pacific Ocean with the San Diego downtown landscape in the background with a full moon reflecting off the ocean water. Pictures don’t do justice. Absolutely beautiful! Visiting with family was fun, the food was fantastic & we danced (tried) a little.
On our way home
Saturday, Terry told me our flight time had changed from 11 to 9 am. What? So, we had to get to the airport early after a late night out. Terry checked us in Saturday, but could not check-in our bags online. If you check your bags at the airport, it costs more. So we carried our bags on board. We arrived on time, and then the flight changed to 10 am. We had a 4-hour layover in Las Vegas on our returned flight home.
We were going through security, and I was pulled aside. TSA wanted to search my suitcase. They wanted me to open it up. When I opened it, there was powder all over my clothes in the bag. So they pulled out extra gloves and pulled out some kind of bottle of liquid to test it.
I told them it was baby powder. I’m a baby powder person, and I didn’t close the container. I guess the pressure of closing the suitcase in a hurry, forced the powder out. After testing the powder, I was allowed through security. Lesson learned, close your baby powder bottle. Who knew the x-ray machine could see powder?
We stayed inside the LAS airport. If you haven’t been to Las Vegas, it’s should be on your bucket list. We had a family reunion there years ago. I’m not a gambler, but there are many other things to do. We did tours, visited historic landmarks, and visited museums. If you plan a trip to Las Vegas for a show, plan well in advance. The performances we wanted to see were all sold-out.
Our flight from LAS to IAH was good. We had been in airports and in flight for 12 hours. We were so happy to land in Houston and be in our truck. We got to the parking lot ticket booth it was not working; the next one was not working. Finally, we were able to leave the parking lot.
Finally, we were on our way to pick up Sabrina. She was at her vacation home, my daughter’s house. We got home about 11 pm. Overall we had a great time even though we had some challenges.
