One of the real joys of our itinerant lifestyle is the pleasure of welcoming friends and family into our various homes and then being able to explore our new city while also reconnecting our longstanding relationships. Joel is the son of Jim’s brother David and is one of a host of nieces and nephews that we just love interacting with. Joel and his wife Lacey have hosted us at their home in Maryland at the end of our roadtrip in the spring of 2017. They have since moved to Denver and we have spent some great times with them there. They have had an open invitation to meet up with us somewhere on our travels and we are finally privileged to welcome them to San Diego for six days over Christmas. But first a few walks we took together before they arrived.
Petco Park home of the San Diego Padres seats 42,000 people and is spectacular in every way, combining the best sight lines in baseball with breathtaking views of San Diego. It also boasts one of the best dining experiences as all of the food venues are catered by local restaurants rather than by a large corporation like Delaware North in Boston. We live close by and will be attending a Rodeo there later in January and would also like to do a tour some time.Santa Fe Depot is the main train station of San Diego for both Amtrak and local trains.We love to take long walks that enable us to explore local neighborhoods. Today we walked to Little Italy which is a chic pedestrian neighborhood packed with trendy cocktail bars and restaurants. It was once home to San Diego’s flourishing tuna fishing industry and generations of Italian imigrant families who made their living on the sea.The central point in Little Italy is a European style plaza known as Piazza della Famiglia which is dedicated to the past, present and future families of the neighborhood,The Aurora tree is a Venetian faux stained glass tree that stands 25 feet tall and symbolizes the strong heritage of the tuna fishermen who built the neighborhood in the 1920’s.At the end of our walk to Little Italy we continued on to the Mission Hill Neighborhood to see Harper’s Topiary Garden which is a labor of love from a couple that lives in the house above the garden. Decades ago they decided to manicure the lawn like this and Edna the wife maintains the plants. It is located at 3549 Union St, San Diego and has 50 plant sculptures ranging from animals to surfers.Our location is a short distance from the waterfront. Here is Sandy on her morning run. Jim follows behind doing a brisk walk.There are so many wonderful Memorial statues around the waterfront. This one is a National Salute to comedian Bob Hope and the military depicting the USO tour that he did to entertain our troops overseas. It has an audio with his voice delivering a comic monologue. The imposing backdrop of these bronze statues is the US Navy aircraft carrier USS Midway.And finally the arrival of Joel and Lacey. We were so excited to host Jim’s Nephew Joel Steen and his sweet wife Lacey who escaped their Colorado winter to spend Christmas with us.
We rented a car and drove to La Jolla where we enjoyed seeing seals, sea lions, and pelicans as well as other unusual birdlife along the beach boardwalk. Brandt’s cormorants.AgaveWe had a great lunch at George’s at The Cove in La Jolla on their rooftop restaurant overlooking the ocean.After exploring La Jolla we drove to UCSD Campus to see the Geisel Library named in honor of donors Audrey and Theodor Geisel. Theodore is better known as Dr Seuss.Entrance doors are in primary colors which cross over each other visually mixing into new colors. Above the doors are the inspiring words READ, WRITE, THINK, DREAM.The distinctive building design was intended to look like hands holding up a stack of books.The Library houses the Dr Seuss Collection which contains original drawings, sketches, photos and memorabilia ranging Dr Seuss’s creative achievements from his High School years to his death. UCSD Jacobs Engineering School with a New England style cottage roof garden sticking over the edge of the seventh floor reflecting how the artist Suh felt displaced and disoriented upon arriving in the Us from his native Korea. LA based artist Alexis Smith took the biblical story about the serpent in the Garden of Eden and transported it to the UCSD campus. The 560 foot long, 10 foot wide tile snake with its alert head and flickering tongue point to the library.In 2004, the 100th anniversary of the birth of Dr Seuss, this bronze Memorial made it’s debut in front of the Library.
One of the highlights of our visit was watching a mother and baby raccoon frolicking around the campus grounds. We watched them through the large library windows.Joel and Lacey are experienced hikers and have done rim to rim of the Grand Canyon going one way the first day and back again the other way the next day. They are both avid Colorado hikers/runners/walkers/tandem bicycle riders that enjoy challenges in the mountains and share their experiences on a web site called Strava to record/compare their activities and connect with millions of other people. This sounds like a great motivational app to encourage people of all ages and abilities to stay active.Sandy joined them on a 10 mile walk from our place in The Gaslamp district to Cabrillo National Park.Joel planned the route which took us through some wonderful neighborhoods with great Holiday decorations.The hills were a good cardio workout.And rewarded us with spectacular views. A lady who lives in the house pictured here on the left was outside in her garden and told us they had to put this fence around their property to prevent people from stopping to rest in their garden.Lucky lady to wake up to this view each day.We found this small park which was open to the public to take a quick break before ascending the remainder of the hills.As we approached our final destination to Cabrillo National Monument and Park we passed Fort Rosecrans National Cemetery which is located on Ft Rosecrans Military Reservation. It is the final resting place for more than 120,000 Americans who died as long back as 1846 and includes seven Medal of Honor winners. As you can see the location on Port Loma peninsula offers picturesque vistas to the city, bay and Pacific Oceans.This National Park is named after the explorer Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo who, when he climbed out of his boat in 1542 was the first European to step foot on what is now the West Coast of the United States.Jim was unable to accompany us on this walk as he was experiencing a brief episode of inflammatory arthritis of his ankle, but lucky for the hikers he was able to drive to Cabrillo to pick them up.Point Cabrillo Lighthouse was put into service in 1855. Its architectural style was of Cape Cod design. It was taken out of service after 36 years as heavy fog often obscured the light due to its location high up on the point.Thank you Joel for finding this really cool spot. We will come back here to hike.On Christmas Day Joel and Lacey opted to visit the zoo while we went to visit “The Stalkers” aka our friends Dick and Andrew who have moved from Europe and are now living in Palm Springs. We saw this funny sight while driving there, it appears to be a jogger on the highway but is actually a manikin attached to the back of the blue and white car.Dick and Andrew’s Palm Springs home.On December 26 we returned to San Diego and went by ferry with Joel and Lacey to Coronado Island and the Hotel del Coronado to eat.Sunset on Coronado Beach.Such a magical place, especially at Christmas.Evening ferry crossing view.
Upon returning back to our place we found the Gaslamp district and the street we live on to be bustling from a post college bowl game that took place at nearby Petco Park. Well that explains why there is a container of ear plugs in our apartment.😡 Good thing we are used to urban living noise, but Beacon Street was never like this.🫤 Here is a short video right outside our window which is in the building above the Sketchers store shown here.
For Joel and Lacey’s last day here before going home we took a whale watch cruise. It lasted almost 4 hours and the company said they had a 95% success rate of seeing whales or you get another free trip. The only thing we saw was a few seals😩 We got vouchers for a free trip which unfortunately Joel and Lacey cannot use. In the video the captain tries to be funny by announcing as we depart that it is a 7.5 hour trip to Catalina Island.Not what we paid to see!Upon our return to shore we drowned our sorrows of no whale sightings at The Barley Mash sports bar with beer and yup, fried pickles, before driving them to the airport for their flight back to Denver.Thank you Joel and Lacey for your visit with us. We are so grateful to have such cool relatives to hang out with who keep us feeling young.We look forward to having you visit us again in Amsterdam this spring.
That house high up on the edge of the seventh floor reminds me of Dorothy’s house from ‘The Wizard of Oz’? Like there could be a crushed witch with ruby red slippers lying beneath it. I wonder if the artist Suh ever saw that movie? I am older and the movie was a yearly ritual.
[…] and sometimes tandem bikers. Joel was a serious bicycle racer in a past life. They visited us in San Diego over this past Christmas but this is their first excursion out of the US with us. We absolutely […]
San Diego holds a special place in my heart, and Joel and Lacey, your blog beautifully captures the essence of this stunning city. From the vibrant energy of the Gaslamp Quarter to the serene beaches stretching along the coastline, San Diego is a treasure trove of natural beauty and cultural richness. The majestic sunsets painting the sky over the Pacific Ocean, the lush greenery of Balboa Park, and the charming neighborhoods brimming with character – each corner of San Diego exudes its own unique charm. It’s no wonder that San Diego is often referred to as “America’s Finest City.” Thank you for sharing your adventures and reminding us of the unparalleled beauty that San Diego has to offer. Can’t wait to explore more of this breathtaking city with you!
Happy New Year! I loved seeing your wonderful San Diego photos. Be sure to go to La Estancia Hotel in La Jolla for a drink. We stayed there two years ago and really enjoyed it. We want to live next door in the Blackhorse community. As residents, you get to use the hotel facilities and pool!
Looks like a good time was had by all. Beautiful city.
Sandy, you and Jim could probably get a consulting business going providing ‘The best of San Diego” etc. to the various Chamber of Commences.
😉 Bill
Great story and pictures. Brought back memories of many years ago when Roxy, Megan and I did a tour of the west coast, including the San Diego Zoo, an aircraft carrier, the bridge high above the harbor with war ships and the Coronado hotel. Thanks
WOW! So cool to see Jim and Joel side by side!!!! And Lacey has way shortened her hair! Dan and I adore those two as much as we do you guys! Must be a “Steen thing” :). SO fortunate to have such lovely times together ! xoxoxoxoxo Chanda
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