2.My Daily Bucket List Travelogue-October 5, 2009

First of all, today is my Dad's 87th birthday! So, Happy Birthday Dad! I was born in San Diego. What better place to start a journey than at home, here in San Diego. San Diego is the second largest city in the State of California and where I was born. It is on the west coast of the United States and lies along the Pacific Ocean. Oregon borders it on the north, Nevada and Arizona border it on the east and Mexico borders it to the south.

The first European explorer to visit this area was Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo. In 1542, Cabrillo claimed the bay and named it San Miguel. In 1602, Sebastian Viscaino was sent to map the California coast in his ship “the San Diego” and named the area for the Catholic Saint Didacus. Father Junipero Serra built Mission San Diego de Alcala around 1769 and it is still standing today and marked a National Historic Landmark.

For the most part, San Diego has a hilly geography with many canyons and mesas. The Coronado and Point Loma peninsulas separate San Diego Bay from the ocean. As with any other large metropolitan city, San Diego has many connecting urban communities -going out as far east as the community of Alpine and beyond to the Cuyamaca and Laguna Mountains – as far north as Temecula and as far south as the border of Mexico.

The climate is San Diego is characterized by warm (hot), dry summers and mild winters Downtown San Diego has been undergoing a wonderful redevelopment and has been transformed into The Gaslamp Quarter with sidewalk cafés and boutique shops. We have Petco Park, the new home of the Padres and a completely renovated East Village around the stadium as well.

While San Diego has some fantastic offerings for amusement parks with Balboa Park and the fabulous museums (like the Air and Space Museum, the Museum of Man, the Museum of Natural History and the Model Railroad Museum); there is also the world famous San Diego Zoo and Wild Animal Park, Sea World and Legoland, I think my favorite place is out on Point Loma near the Old Point Loma Lighthouse. Once you leave the city proper and take the two-lane road out to Point Loma, you immediately find yourself driving amongst a lovely housing community with large estate homes interspersed with tract houses here and there. Many of the homes are located on the side of the hill overlooking the San Diego Bay and Coronado’s North Island Navy Station.

As I drive further down the winding road I eventually come to the rows upon rows of white grave markers at the National Cemetery at Rosecrans. On any of the federal holidays, each of the markers has a proud American flag planted in front of it waving in the wind. It is really an impressive sight. Rosecrans National Cemetery is second in size to Arlington National Cemetery.

There is a National Park Service Forest Ranger station at the entrance to the Cabrillo National Monument and The Old Point Loma Lighthouse. For seniors, if you have the Golden Age Pass for the National Parks, there is no charge to enter. You can drive from the top of Point Loma down to the tide pools at the oceans’ edge below if you like; and if you are lucky, between December and March you may catch a glimpse of a humpback whale passing on its way down to Mexico for the winter. There are hiking paths down there and benches to sit on and just watch the Pacific Ocean.

Up on top of the hill, there is a monument to Juan Cabrillo along with a very nice visitors’ center full of lots of information, pictures and maps all about San Diego. Once you walk out into the patio area outside the building, you have the most incredible view on a clear day. It is breathtaking to me every time I go there. When I look to the west out towards Hawaii, I can see San Clemente Island. To the south I can see over to Coronado and the red tile roof of the Hotel Del Coronado. If I look further south, I can see the border of Mexico and into Tijuana. As I look to the west, I see the magnificent skyline of downtown San Diego, and then beyond that I can see out to the Laguna Mountains. It is one of the most beautiful places for me to go. I can see the many sailboats and yachts coming in and out of San Diego Bay. There is usually a Navy presence at some point, either with jets flying into North Island, or a Navy battleship or cruiser somewhere offshore doing exercises. Airplanes are taking off and landing at the nearby San Diego Airport. There is lots of activity all around. It is a spectacular view and one that always makes me smile.

Of course, you cannot go out to Point Loma and Cabrillo National Monument without stopping by the Old Point Loma Lighthouse. It is a charming white adobe building that has been preserved and maintained. I think this is where my fascination with lighthouses began when I learned that the husband of my grandmother’s sister was the last lighthouse keeper here. So, I feel a bit of family history and a sort of bonding when I go there. There is a separate building next to the lighthouse with great displays; and the lighthouse itself has been refurbished with keepsakes and original items from the late 1890’s. It was a very different life back then, but going through the lighthouse, somehow you can still smell the coffee on the wood stove and hear the laughter of the children as then ran around the yard outside and played while their father tended to his duties and maintained the light.

San Diego is a city with much to offer. If you ever get the chance, please take the time and visit the Old Point Loma Lighthouse.