16 hours in San Diego
boys and guinness. "Dublin Square," downtown/gaslamp district


Hyatt Regencia on the harbor. formerly amazing views from the top, where i try to take all visitors and first dates. it's now almost completely closed off unless you're a "client" of the bar upstairs. or, unless you walk around pretending like you're looking for your friends and/or a table.


three tracks. fun with heels.


it's dimly lit, but this is the walk heading back towards the gaslamp quarter from the harbor/convention center area. Julia's Dream Home, the "city front terrace" high rise, is right along this path.


and now it's saturday at the California State Parks Foundation's earth day work projects. we picked trash along Torrey Pines State Beach. if you're ever going to pick up trash, i highly recommend a) doing it at a beautiful shoreline, and b) doing it on one of the most beautiful days ever.


after the clean-up, we only had a few hours left before our lovely out-of-towner went home to Mississippi, so off to Balboa Park we went. here you have the Natural History Museum. obviously.


children, playing! fountains, founting! Reuben H. Fleet Science Center, sciencing!


erik, or e-rock, as i've taken to calling him.


many of the buildings in the park were built for the 1916 Panama Exposition, to celebrate the first fleet to go through the canal's first american port. it was quite an ordeal, involving building this entire park, bridges, bringing in WATER for a RIVER beneath the bridges, etc. despite all that, it's very very impressive, and apparently, the exposition was a lovely bash. they built the exposition buildings in homage of old(er) spanish architecture.




did you know that San Diego's sister city is Yokohama? and that the two cities have a theme song? i didn't. erik, however, has known this whole time. freaking information-hog. this book/plaque/thing is located at the Japanese Friendship Garden area of Balboa Park, right by the yummy Tea Pavillion where we shared sushi and nondescript packaged japanese treats.


and finally, the botanical gardens. it's one of those places that, everytime you walk by, it just demands a landscape-oriented photograph. i must have dozens of this same picture. and i always say, "next time, i'll break the mold. i'll do some funky framing."


the end. there'll be another installment of this tomorrow.