Sea, Me, San Diego
My mom finished grad school and moved us to San Diego when I was in the second grade. We only lived there a couple of years, but I gained a step-dad and a lifelong love of this beautiful city by the sea. There is a special kind of magic in the perpetually perfect weather in the most laid back SoCal gem. I would love to live there again some day, but I’ll settle for visits as frequently as possible.
I was not at all unhappy when my said step-dad asked me to reroute my return to San Diego so I could pick up the family pup on my way home from Alaska. It was a last minute whirlwind trip handing off Koby as we all split up for separate adventures. I didn’t do much more than work, eat, strategize and shop for a new rental condo, and make a quick Almost Famous Pilgrimage this trip; but I’ve visited 4 times in the past year for various functions and projects. I pulled a few highlights to share of my favorite hometown, and just a few classic suggestions should you decide to visit.
San Diego has some really beautiful architecture and more than it’s fair share of stunning homes and gardens, but Balboa Park is a MUST see. The Spanish Architecture, replica of Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre, botanical garden, street musicians, and fruit carts are so charming. I never get tired of it and try to visit regularly.
I have a thing for fancy old hotels, bonus points if they are creepy, haunted, or victorian. The Hotel Del Coronado checks all of those boxes. I try to swing by every single time I’m in town. Those whimsical red rooftops and that big beautiful beach make me smile. Every winter they install an ice rink on the beach and the hotel is decorated beautifully. Some Like It Hot, My Blue Heaven, and K-9 were filmed here, so it should look familiar. Lisa Rinna takes a flying leap off the Coronado Bridge in one of my favorite tv shows, Veronica Mars.
Visiting iconic film locations is a favorite hobby of mine in LA, but San Diego has quite a few gems too. Veronica Mars gave me several fun stops to hunt down with my sister last year on her birthday trip. We found Neptune (Oceanside) High, Mars Investigations, Veronica’s apartment, UCSD which stood in for “Hearst College,” and even the car wash where Lily did most of her un-dead scenes. My all time favorite movie, Almost Famous, was also filmed in San Diego. Based on Cameron Crowe’s young adult experience as a rock journalist, it is a music lover must see movie. I was working on a home renovation making my dozenth trip to Home Depot when I looked up from the parking lot to see the Pechanga Arena. This iconic venue is where William first meets the Band Aids and Stillwater. You can’t access the famous loading dock behind locked gates, but it’s fun to peak through the fence and remember the mystique of life backstage for these freshly minted rockstars and their adoring fans.
La Jolla is the dreamiest part of San Diego, you should absolutely go visit the sea lions on the cove and visit the adorable shops and restaurants, and enjoy the best sunsets on the West Coast. I’m not Mormon, but the temple is a lovely landmark, and sticks out into the clouds over La Jolla Village. The sunsets are spectacular, and it really doesnt matter where you go to see them, they shock me every single time.
Nostalgia always brings me back to Belmont Park to ride the rickety wooden roller coaster and to the Fish Market for clam chowder in front of the Kissing Statue at the harbor. My mom and I always used to pick up soup and picnic whenever she picked me up from the airport after a long trip to my dad’s. Both chowders and incredible sourdough bread are worth a San Diego stop on their own. Old Town, the Gaslamp Quarter, zoo and wild animal park are stellar stops too. The number 1 thing you have to do before you leave San Diego is eat a Surf and Turf burrito. Fins, my childhood favorite shop, finally closed their last location, but I’m very happy about the Surf and Turf and epic sauce bar at The Taco Stand.
Honestly, it doesn’t matter what you see or do in San Diego. It’s virtually impossible to leave without some sun, smiles, and a serious case of withdrawal you can only solve with more San Diego.
