Blogs from San Diego, California, United States, North America - page 79

Finally!! San Diego!! As we were hitting the check out hour at the San Elijo State Beach campground, Evan called. I was getting nervous that we weren't going to get to see her. We spent the rest of the day up the street from the camp ground, at Solana Beach. It was the same beach Adam first saw the Pacific. We waited there until sunset. Then off to see Evan. Yeeeeah! We made a wrong turn and got stuck in some rush hour, but an hour later we were in the "heart of San Diego" neighborhood of North Park. Located just north of Balboa Park and the site of 1978's PSA 727 flight disaster. Evan's apartment is nestled among a well manicured courtyard set back from the road. Super cute!! It was so nice to see ... read more

We had a good visit with Mary Ann. She and I went to what we thought was a normal seafood market………but it was a Mexican/Filipino place where English was not the language. The fish were all “whole” in large tubs filled with ice. You had to pick them up with tongs and put them in a plastic bag so the guy behind the counter could cut them. However, they don’t “fillet” but they would “butterfly.” So, we ended up with a hacked up hunk of fish (at least the head/gills/guts/tail was gone), and Alan had to finish the job so we could cook it. By the time we got to the fillet, there was barely enough for 3…..but it turned out OK. Of course, after Mary Ann left, Alan and I found the Point Loma Seafood ... read more

As we mentioned before our adventure began, one goal was to “eat our way across the country.” (Well, not literally…..) However, here is a short recap of our gastronomic exploits: Lip-smacking BBQ in Tennessee; blackberry preserves from the Great Smoky Mountains; fine wine from the Biltmore Estate in North Carolina; splendid summer sweet corn and tomatoes in Virginia, Pennsylvania, and Indiana; local honey at the Indiana State Fair; homemade bread and butter pickles and apple butter from an Amish home in Missouri; more wine in Western Colorado; fresh dates, grapefruit and lemons in Indio, CA; olive oil and wine in Temecula, CA; and avocados in San Diego. Definitely looking forward to more local specialties! We left the Palm Springs area (sigh) and headed to Outdoor Resorts near Temecula, CA. A very nice resort, but out in ... read more

We go to pick up a car for the following 2 weeks of our trip in the States, it turns out to be one of them Chrysler PT Cruisers which looks a bit funky from the front and like a funeral hearse from the back. It was kind of cool for a rental but like all good American cars, it was wallowy, heavy, and handled like a bucket of custard. We decided not to go Las Vegas today, so booked another night in the hostel and took the car for a spin up the coast to Pacific Beach to check out some beautiful views of the coastline and admire the posh houses overlooking the ocean. That evening we ate at the free barbecue provided by the hostel.... read more

After a long journey the train arrived in Los Angeles Union station directly through the arse-end of the city, literally miles of urban industrialisation and scrap yards, not the best intro to LA but we weren't staying today. The station was an art deco masterpiece, larger than any other train station we had seen in the States, and fairly busy for a change. We waited around and took the next train to San Diego which slowly punted it's way down the more scenic coastline overlooking the pacific ocean. The view coming into San Diego was much nicer and when we arrived at the rather exotic looking station with the downtown skyscrapers behind it, we thought this was a much nicer place to stay. We had booked into Ocean Beach Backpackers and were expecting a free lift ... read more