La Jolla

Weird little seahorses

View of La Jolla from Birch aquarium

Yeah it's corny

Drove up the coast a few miles to La Jolla (la hoya) and the Birch Aquarium at Scripps Institute.  A nice little aquarium with a great assortment of weird seahorses I never knew existed. Dwarf seahorses are the size of your little fingernail! The observation deck has tidal pools and a fantastic view overlooking the beach.

After visiting the aquarium we took the scenic route through La Jolla and the beaches were packed with surfers and picnic-ers. I've decided when I win the lottery/ jackpot I am moving to La Jolla.  I think it makes Palm Springs look shabby.What a beautiful town,perfect weather, and the beaches are incredible.... One of the real estate mags I picked up the other day had a house in La Jolla renting for $45,000 a month...yes 45 THOUSAND.

Came back over the Coronado Bridge and the Silver Strand State Park just down the road from us, which is basically a parking lot on the beach, is also packed with RV's.I googled this park and the nightly rate is $50 without any hookups (water,power,sewer) at all!

We'll be leaving here in 15 days and heading North to Simi Valley for a couple days.

Shopping Coronado

Condos surrounding the Yacht Club

Yacht Club

This morning while Jack was recovering from food poisoning/flu, I hopped on the bus for the 10 minute trip to Coronado for a shopping trip. The pictures were taken at the Marina which is across the street from the Hotel Del Coronado. Lots of crowds today walking, biking, and shopping. I found a bookstore and browsed a bit then grabbed a latte at a corner stand before walking through the hotel and the shops. Coronado is incredibly beautiful.

Back to Barona

This picture shows the view from our room at the Barona Hotel/Casino. We were here the other day for a buffet and decided to take advantage of a special deal they offered for one night stay,two free buffets and free slot play. The rooms are beautiful...large with little balconies,gorgeous shower,King beds....our only complaint was the bed was too soft and the sheets were scratchy.  Love the casino too.

Balboa Park

Balboa Park began as 1400 acres of land set aside in 1868 by San Diego civic leaders. Known then as “City Park”, the scrub-filled mesa that overlooked present day Downtown San Diego sat without formal landscaping or development for more than 20 years.  Today it is beautifully landscaped with several garden areas,ponds,museums and probably the most famous attraction ,the San Diego Zoo.  Jack and I took the trolley downtown,then boarded the bus to the park. Jack is getting quite good at figuring out the transit system here. Inside the park is a free trolley that takes you around the center of the park, along with a narrative from the driver on the highlights. It was raining a bit so we appreciated the trolley ride. We opted out of the zoo since it was $43 per person....

Back to Imperial Beach and lunch at a little hole in the wall Mexican place with fantastic food. We couldnt finish it so we'll have leftovers for dinner.

Embarcadero

We spent the day on the waterfront in the Embarcadero District of San Diego and then  lunch at the Ferry Landing on Coronado Island. A $5 bus pass got us all over town and on the trolley as well.

Imperial Beach CA

Imperial Beach is the most southwesterly city in the continental U.S. Tijuana is about 5 miles south. There are always people fishing off the pier here, and surfers waiting for the big one. We went to a Farmers Market today at the pier and although it was not too big there was a vendor selling Samosas,which I got hooked on years ago in Fiji. Samosas are an East Indian pastry filled with potatoes and veggies. Here is a link to a recipe for anyone wishing to make some for me:  http://www.food-india.com/recipe/R026_050/R032.htm

Tomorrow we are riding the bus to the Embarcadero District to check out the Maritime Festival.

No Booze/Loose slots

Barona Hotel Casino

Jack and I found coupons today for free slot play at  the Barona Casino near here so we set the GPS and headed out. Upon arrival we found out that the coupons expired in December 2010 but the guest representative gave us two free buffets instead. The buffet at this place had the best assortment of  food I have ever seen in a casino as well as being HUGE. Among the selections were Chinese,American Barbque,Rotisserie,Sushi,Salad,Deserts,Mexican,Mongolian Grill, and Seafood. Prior to hitting the buffet we played some of the "loosest slots in San Diego" and Jack  won $300 on a Siren/Mermaid type machine then I went on to win $220 on Kitty Glitter! Loose slots indeed!

As well as a casino and buffet there is a golf course and 400 room hotel on beautiful grounds:

http://www.barona.com/hotel/

The casino does not serve any alcohol at all but considering we drove 40 miles on 12 freeways to get there that is probably a good thing.

Suppose to be a storm tonight. Currently the weather is sunny,breezy and around 75.

San Diego/Bernardo Shores

Putting Green at RV Park

San Diego Wildlife Refuge out our back door

Made it to San Diego after waking up to chilly fog and breezes in Silent Valley. The sun was shining by the time we set up camp  at Bernardo Shores,however it is really windy. Temps low 70's.

We have a great spot right on the Bay,unobstructed  views toward Coronado and downtown San Diego.

We back up to the San Diego Wildlife Refuge which is crisscrossed by the San Diego Bay Bike Trail. I've been watching people cycling,walking and jogging on this 24 mile trail. I'll check part of it out tomorrow morning.

Cold in Silent Valley

The Pool at Silent Valley RV Park

Jack doing repairs

Today it finally reached 60 degrees and the wind has calmed down. The last two nights have been really cold here....40's, and it hasn't gone over 50 during the day. We've had the  heat on, plus I was wearing a shirt,sweatshirt and jacket and was still shivering.

We made a trip down the mountain to the Beaumont Home Depot for more supplies so Jack could repair the underside of the 5th wheel that tore loose in the wind Sunday. Too cold for swimming but I rode my bike down to look at the pool.

The sun is out and it looks like we'll be able to barbque tonight.

Rough Start

Just put a sweatshirt on. 60 degrees,overcast and gusty winds. Today I'll take that happily over 104 temps.

 We made it to Silent Valley RV Park 3500' above Banning after a rough beginning this morning. Left home around 8:30AM and the wind had already started to pick up. As soon as we hit I-10 the "check engine light" came on...then Jack noticed something flapping under the 5th wheel so we pulled into a rest stop to check it out. Turns out it was the covering that goes under the frame of the 5th wheel starting to peel away in the wind. Jack got out the duct tape and slid under the trailer to tape it up. The wind was blowing really hard by now and even with jackets on we were cold. Decided to stop a little further down the road at Rubys Diner for breakfast....then turned off I-10 to climb the mountain to the RV park.

We took the same spot we had last year. A gentleman  walking by to dump his garbage stopped to chat while we got things set up and turns out he had 45 years in the automotive industry. He suggested that Jack briefly remove the cable on one side of the battery in the truck to shut off the engine warning light. It worked. Now to get rid of the squirrels.

Bees

Check out this pictures of the bees swarming on our neighbors house. We were loading up the 5th wheel this morning and Jack saw them flying around. It's about 104 today so we're not too likely to sit out on the patio until the sun goes down..hopefully our neighbor can call someone to get rid of them. We still have a few more last minute things to load up before we leave Sunday morning.

Later in the afternoon:  Our neighbor came home from work and Jack showed her the bees on the side of the house. She went into her house and found bees  swarming all over her kitchen The Bee Guy showed up about an hour later and sucked them into a vacuum. Jack asked him what happens to the bees after he removes them and the guy said he sells them to local farmers. Jack compared it to a Government relocation program.

Border Run

Quechan Pool

Jack and I drove down to Winterhaven (CA) yesterday to make a run across the border at Algadones Mexico for some prescriptions. We spent the night at the Quechan Resort Casino where we had a free room courtesy of our Player Rewards card. The  casino is less than a mile from the Mexican border. Lots of people drive over from Yuma Arizona for prescriptions,dental work,glasses,cheap jewelry and yard decorations. They have the best pool! Along with a regular swimming pool they have a "Lazy River" which is a shallow, current driven "river" where you can float on tubes or just lay on your back and get pushed along slowly by the current. Jack had a t-bone steak dinner for $9.99...but he also had a coupon for $10 off dinner,again courtesy of the Players Reward card,so his dinner was free.

It is only about 2 1/2 hours from home  but we left early anticipating extra security at the border in light of the recent demise of Bin Ladin. No problems encountered fortunately.

We leave Sunday morning for Silent Valley RV park in Banning.

One Week

Jack brought the 5th wheel over from the storage lot this morning to wash it, now that the wind has died down. We'll be leaving next Sunday. I packed a few more things inside....things that wouldn't be missed if they were taken.....yes the RV storage facility has a fence and locked gate but that doesn't keep the bad guys out if they really want something.

We may make a quick trip down to Algadones (Mexico) tomorrow to stock up on prescriptions. Jack got a flyer from the casino down there for one free night,discounted meals and $50 in free play. It sounds waaaay more appealing than visiting Tijuana when we are in San Diego.