San Diego Part 4

Up early again on Friday. I decided to use my rain check from No-Whales-Seen Monday cruise and went out for another sail.

Dolphins!

Success! This time we saw dolphins jumping and leaping around the boat and once we got out far enough, saw at least two gray whales! From a distance, but still. Whales! Finally saw them!

 

Back in the harbor, I had a quick lunch of street tacos before hopping on a bus to get to Balboa Park. I'd decided to use this afternoon to see more of the park. There are hiking trails, museums, lovely gardens, including a cactus/desert section that I rather liked. In the Japanese garden section, I tasted some sort of puffy bean-curd pastry thing. It was sweet, but not too sweet, with an odd texture. Not too bad, but not really to my tastes either.

Anyway, I tried some glamour shots (haha), enjoyed the loveliness of the park, then back downtown for a ramen dinner. Like a real ramen bowl, not the cheap, overly salty stuff you can buy at the store for 30 cents a piece.

The next morning (Saturday) I was again on a bus, this time to La Jolla. I wanted to see a bit more of it, and figured I could relax and be a bit more thorough this time without worrying about where to park a car. I started at a sea cave that you had to walk 147 stair steps to get down to (then back up those same stair steps) and watched the waves crash into the little cave.

 

 

 

Up top, I started walking along the trail, headed towards the tide pools at the other end. I watched sea lions, pelicans, seagulls, surfers, people snorkeling and swimming in small beaches. Kayakers and a few small boats. It is just a gorgeous piece of the coast, and I found the waves hypnotic. I didn't want to leave, but it was well past noon, and I knew I had a bit of a bus ride back into San Diego. So I tore myself away from the beaches and went back to Old Town.

This time, the place was jumpin! I had a yummy lunch, complete with tasty coconut margarita, at Cafe Coyote, then did a bit of shopping for cheesy souvenirs at the many tourist shops. Found some luchador masks that I couldn't resist, and can't wait to give one to my parents!

mmmm...churro

Then it was one more bus ride back to my hostel to pack up the suitcase, set my alarm and prepare to go back home. It was an amazing week in the lower left corner of the country! Grateful for the opportunity to travel and to see so many beautiful things.

 


Take care of the planet and our oceans! 💓💗💘💖