Discovered by the Germans in 1904, they named it San Diego, which...in German means a whale's vagina
That's right... it's the San Diego vacation edition of LJ!!!
You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll see a few pictures, but most of all, you'll read a lot of words!! Hooray!
So here's the breakdown...
Sat Mar 4
Loooooooooooong flight from Boston to San Diego. Arrive at hotel about 10pm PST. Eat dinner in the 24 hour restaurant affiliated with the hotel.
Sun Mar 5
Old Town San Diego... lots of shops, a nice lunch, and lots of walking. Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures of Old Town because I thought my camera battery was dead. Though I should get some pics from Sandy or Denise if they took some.
That night, we went out to Pacific Beach Bar and Grill for dinner, drinks, and some pool. Considering it was a Sunday, there were quite a few people there, but it was a quieter night out.
Mon Mar 6
San Diego Zoo!! I actually have a lot of pictures of the zoo... too many, actually... I took about 100 pictures there. But I do have some good ones I'd like to share.
A baby panda hanging out in a tree...
The Skyfari, whose sign looks an awful lot like Skyfart...
At night we headed downtown to the Hard Rock Cafe for dinner, followed by a quick drink at Rock Bottom Restaurant, and (at the recommendation of the bartender) dancing at a place called Henry's. It was a lot of fun, and the first time I went out dancing in a club.
Tues Mar 7
Los Angeles!!! Well, more specifically, Hollywood. We took a tour of Hollywood landmarks and celebrity homes. It was pretty cool, I only took a few pictures of LA, but I couldn't let this picture go untaken...
The World Famous Hollywood Sign!
After the tour, we didn't have enough time to go to the La Brea Tar Pits (which was disappointing, but gives me a reason to go back to CA). We ate at Mel's Drive-In, then checked out Graumann's Chinese Theatre and saw the red carpet set up for the world premiere of "The Shaggy Dog" which was happening across the street! We visited a wax museum and as part of a package deal, visited the Guiness World Record museum as well.
On the way back (LA is 2 hours from San Diego), we stopped off to check out the night life at Disneyland (About 30 mins from Hollywood). We went to the House of Blues where there were a few metal bands playing which was pretty cool. We walked around Downtown Disney for a little bit afterward and then made the 1.5 hour journey to the hotel.
Wed Mar 8
We decided to take this day a bit easy. We went to Belmont Park, which was more like a stationary carnival (with a wooden coaster) than an amusement park. I successfully defended my title as Air Hockey champion against Denise, and she successfully defended her title as Tekken champion. Also, I kicked some major ass at Dance Dance Revolution. It was great, I wish I had a picture.
Then we went out to the beach, where we got our first real look at and touch of the Pacific Ocean. We watched the sunset while sitting on the beach wall, which was really nice to watch.
Sunset at Mission Beach...
That night we went to 6 Degrees, a lesbian nightclub, to watch the Drag King show. It was pretty good, I was impressed by the performance. Sandy was chatting up the girls and having a good time, so Denise and I gave her some money for cab fare and left about midnight because we had an early day tomorrow, but didn't want to cut Sandy's fun short.
Thur Mar 9
Tijuana, Mexico!
We got up early and took a bus trip to Tijuana. We spent about 5 hours on Avenida Revolucion, where there about 8 blocks FILLED with shops. Many of the stores are "open door" shops which means that you can haggle over prices of merchandise. However, this means that the shopkeepers are out on the street trying to bug you to get into the shops. It got to be quite annoying after a while, but it was cool. There was a liquor store we went to for some tequila for Denise (because you can't go to Tijuana and not get tequila). At the liquor store, the guy was giving us samples of the various types they sold. It was an interesting experience, trying out the liquor before buying it. We were allowed to bring a liter of alcohol back per person (which they didn't even check at the border), so Denise got a liter of Peach Tequila and a liter of a Kahlua-like alcohol, whose name escapes me right now. If there was an issue at the border, we were going to say that one was mine, but like I said, no one even checked.
The plan was that after the trip, we'd take a nap, get some dinner and head back to Mexico on our own to go to a night club. Well, Denise and I were so exhausted that we didn't get past the nap part. We took a nap about 8 pm and we didn't get out of bed until 8.30 am the next day (Yes, we slept in our clothes). About 10pm, Sandy went out for a little bit and came back around midnight (or so I was told).
Fri Mar 10
Sea World!
We saw Shamu, the dolphin show, and the sea lion show. Between the shows, we explored the rest of the park. We went to the dolphin feeding area where, in addition to feeding the dolphins at certain times, you can play ball with the dolphins and even pet them if they come close enough, which Denise was able to do. We also saw the penguins (which were Denise's favorite), sharks, flamingos, and the manatees. In addition to these, there was also a Budweiser center where they had a couple of Clydesdales. This was where I bought my only souvenir from Sea World... a Budweiser beer glass :)
The last thing we did at Sea World (because we were there until close) was visit the Sea Lion feeding area where Denise got to feed the Sea Lions (and nearly get attacked by an aggressively hungry bird).
The dolphin that seemed to like hanging out near us and that Denise was able to pet...
This Sea Lion answered the call of "Who wants the last fish?" and was promptly given the final treat...
After Sea World, we got dinner at a place called Gordon's Biersch (German for Beer, I believe), which makes their own beers. So we got a free sampler of the beers they make, and after we all tasted them and determined which ones we wanted (only Denise and I got a full beer), Denise and I finished off the samplers, except for one that Sandy had. The full beers were half a liter in size and we were unable to finish them. The beer I had chosen was the strongest beer they had and I was well on my way to drunk halfway through (thanks to the samplers too), so this was the only time I didn't drive, but I was clear-headed enough to navigate. Since our flight was at 7.45, we opted to drop off the rental car at 5am, when the place opened. So rather than get a crappy night's sleep, we decided to stay up all night.
After sobering up, we went to a gay club, Numbers, with one of the employees of the hotel. He was nice enough to drive us to the club in his own car, since he was actually going to his second job as a bouncer there. Denise and I danced for a little bit, but between all the walking we had done, plus the fact that the cooler weather was bothering her knees, we stopped dancing and played pool for the rest of the night (which was luckily free). About 2.30, after the club closed, the hotel employee brought us back to the hotel.
Denise and I took a nap for an hour, and we checked out of the hotel around 4.30 and dropped off the rental car. The flight home only took 4.5 hours, so we were in Boston earlier than expected.
Sat Mar 11
After stopping off for dinner at a Mass Pike rest stop and renting a movie from Blockbuster, we got back to Denise's apartment and watched "Just Friends", which was absolutely hilarious.
Sun Mar 12
Denise had to work at 7am, so I stayed sleeping until about 1pm while she went to work. When I woke up, I watched some TV until she got home about 3.30. We watched "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" which I really really liked. Then, I needed to come to terms with reality and admit that the vacation was finally over and go home.
So all in all, a very very good vacation. The only real disappointment/problem was not seeing the La Brea Tar Pits. I definitely consider that a minor thing compared to what could have happened.
Well, there you have it. A humongous LJ entry describing my San Diego adventures. There are definitely more stories I could tell, but if you'd like to hear those, just drop me a line some time.
You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll see a few pictures, but most of all, you'll read a lot of words!! Hooray!
So here's the breakdown...
Sat Mar 4
Loooooooooooong flight from Boston to San Diego. Arrive at hotel about 10pm PST. Eat dinner in the 24 hour restaurant affiliated with the hotel.
Sun Mar 5
Old Town San Diego... lots of shops, a nice lunch, and lots of walking. Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures of Old Town because I thought my camera battery was dead. Though I should get some pics from Sandy or Denise if they took some.
That night, we went out to Pacific Beach Bar and Grill for dinner, drinks, and some pool. Considering it was a Sunday, there were quite a few people there, but it was a quieter night out.
Mon Mar 6
San Diego Zoo!! I actually have a lot of pictures of the zoo... too many, actually... I took about 100 pictures there. But I do have some good ones I'd like to share.
A baby panda hanging out in a tree...
The Skyfari, whose sign looks an awful lot like Skyfart...
At night we headed downtown to the Hard Rock Cafe for dinner, followed by a quick drink at Rock Bottom Restaurant, and (at the recommendation of the bartender) dancing at a place called Henry's. It was a lot of fun, and the first time I went out dancing in a club.
Tues Mar 7
Los Angeles!!! Well, more specifically, Hollywood. We took a tour of Hollywood landmarks and celebrity homes. It was pretty cool, I only took a few pictures of LA, but I couldn't let this picture go untaken...
The World Famous Hollywood Sign!
After the tour, we didn't have enough time to go to the La Brea Tar Pits (which was disappointing, but gives me a reason to go back to CA). We ate at Mel's Drive-In, then checked out Graumann's Chinese Theatre and saw the red carpet set up for the world premiere of "The Shaggy Dog" which was happening across the street! We visited a wax museum and as part of a package deal, visited the Guiness World Record museum as well.
On the way back (LA is 2 hours from San Diego), we stopped off to check out the night life at Disneyland (About 30 mins from Hollywood). We went to the House of Blues where there were a few metal bands playing which was pretty cool. We walked around Downtown Disney for a little bit afterward and then made the 1.5 hour journey to the hotel.
Wed Mar 8
We decided to take this day a bit easy. We went to Belmont Park, which was more like a stationary carnival (with a wooden coaster) than an amusement park. I successfully defended my title as Air Hockey champion against Denise, and she successfully defended her title as Tekken champion. Also, I kicked some major ass at Dance Dance Revolution. It was great, I wish I had a picture.
Then we went out to the beach, where we got our first real look at and touch of the Pacific Ocean. We watched the sunset while sitting on the beach wall, which was really nice to watch.
Sunset at Mission Beach...
That night we went to 6 Degrees, a lesbian nightclub, to watch the Drag King show. It was pretty good, I was impressed by the performance. Sandy was chatting up the girls and having a good time, so Denise and I gave her some money for cab fare and left about midnight because we had an early day tomorrow, but didn't want to cut Sandy's fun short.
Thur Mar 9
Tijuana, Mexico!
We got up early and took a bus trip to Tijuana. We spent about 5 hours on Avenida Revolucion, where there about 8 blocks FILLED with shops. Many of the stores are "open door" shops which means that you can haggle over prices of merchandise. However, this means that the shopkeepers are out on the street trying to bug you to get into the shops. It got to be quite annoying after a while, but it was cool. There was a liquor store we went to for some tequila for Denise (because you can't go to Tijuana and not get tequila). At the liquor store, the guy was giving us samples of the various types they sold. It was an interesting experience, trying out the liquor before buying it. We were allowed to bring a liter of alcohol back per person (which they didn't even check at the border), so Denise got a liter of Peach Tequila and a liter of a Kahlua-like alcohol, whose name escapes me right now. If there was an issue at the border, we were going to say that one was mine, but like I said, no one even checked.
The plan was that after the trip, we'd take a nap, get some dinner and head back to Mexico on our own to go to a night club. Well, Denise and I were so exhausted that we didn't get past the nap part. We took a nap about 8 pm and we didn't get out of bed until 8.30 am the next day (Yes, we slept in our clothes). About 10pm, Sandy went out for a little bit and came back around midnight (or so I was told).
Fri Mar 10
Sea World!
We saw Shamu, the dolphin show, and the sea lion show. Between the shows, we explored the rest of the park. We went to the dolphin feeding area where, in addition to feeding the dolphins at certain times, you can play ball with the dolphins and even pet them if they come close enough, which Denise was able to do. We also saw the penguins (which were Denise's favorite), sharks, flamingos, and the manatees. In addition to these, there was also a Budweiser center where they had a couple of Clydesdales. This was where I bought my only souvenir from Sea World... a Budweiser beer glass :)
The last thing we did at Sea World (because we were there until close) was visit the Sea Lion feeding area where Denise got to feed the Sea Lions (and nearly get attacked by an aggressively hungry bird).
The dolphin that seemed to like hanging out near us and that Denise was able to pet...
This Sea Lion answered the call of "Who wants the last fish?" and was promptly given the final treat...
After Sea World, we got dinner at a place called Gordon's Biersch (German for Beer, I believe), which makes their own beers. So we got a free sampler of the beers they make, and after we all tasted them and determined which ones we wanted (only Denise and I got a full beer), Denise and I finished off the samplers, except for one that Sandy had. The full beers were half a liter in size and we were unable to finish them. The beer I had chosen was the strongest beer they had and I was well on my way to drunk halfway through (thanks to the samplers too), so this was the only time I didn't drive, but I was clear-headed enough to navigate. Since our flight was at 7.45, we opted to drop off the rental car at 5am, when the place opened. So rather than get a crappy night's sleep, we decided to stay up all night.
After sobering up, we went to a gay club, Numbers, with one of the employees of the hotel. He was nice enough to drive us to the club in his own car, since he was actually going to his second job as a bouncer there. Denise and I danced for a little bit, but between all the walking we had done, plus the fact that the cooler weather was bothering her knees, we stopped dancing and played pool for the rest of the night (which was luckily free). About 2.30, after the club closed, the hotel employee brought us back to the hotel.
Denise and I took a nap for an hour, and we checked out of the hotel around 4.30 and dropped off the rental car. The flight home only took 4.5 hours, so we were in Boston earlier than expected.
Sat Mar 11
After stopping off for dinner at a Mass Pike rest stop and renting a movie from Blockbuster, we got back to Denise's apartment and watched "Just Friends", which was absolutely hilarious.
Sun Mar 12
Denise had to work at 7am, so I stayed sleeping until about 1pm while she went to work. When I woke up, I watched some TV until she got home about 3.30. We watched "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" which I really really liked. Then, I needed to come to terms with reality and admit that the vacation was finally over and go home.
So all in all, a very very good vacation. The only real disappointment/problem was not seeing the La Brea Tar Pits. I definitely consider that a minor thing compared to what could have happened.
Well, there you have it. A humongous LJ entry describing my San Diego adventures. There are definitely more stories I could tell, but if you'd like to hear those, just drop me a line some time.