Monday, October 3, 2011

2 Weeks in San Diego - Sept 10-24, 2011

For our Summer vacation this year, we decided that we would return to San Diego for two weeks just hanging out as beach bums. This was our third trip to San Diego. We contacted the owner of condo we stayed at in Pacific Beach in 2008 and found that the two weeks we wanted were available.

The weather was pretty good most of the time; however, there were days that the fog and cloud cover hung over the beach for the day. We did manage to get some beach days in.

A few things we noticed during this visit:



  • There are a lot more homeless people there now than we we last went.


  • San Diego guys love to own the smallest dogs possible.



  • Even though many of the characters we came to see in our last visit were not around, there were plenty more to take their places!

We visited the towns of Temecula, Coronado, La Jolla, Carlsbad, and Julian. We had a great time visiting all the farmers' markets. There was some incredible produce that you just cannot get here.



We took a trolley tour of San Diego and ended up going over the Coronado Bridge where we visited the famous Del Coronado Hotel. We got to see an "airshow" over Coronado Beach.


Crystal Pier outside our condo


Morning stroll out on Crystal Pier





Our condo from Crystal Pier







On Sundays you can surf early in the morning and still attend church services!




A view of Pacific Beach





Pacific Beach






A great day down at Pacific Beach





Chris loves vegging at the beach






Chris trying out some local olive oil







Give Chris an oyster, and he is a happy man!




Farmer's market in La Jolla




Deb finally decided on a bunch of flowers at the Market






They looked nice on the dining room table







San Diego even has a Little Italy area







Little Italy Farmers' Market







More flowers at the Market









So many pretty flowers to choose from








Radishes at the Market



Baby Beach Walkway in La Jolla








This guy was taking a little snooze at Baby Beach La Jolla





Baby Beach La Jolla




The seals have taken over Baby Beach La Jolla













Sunset at Pacific Beach









Amazing how fast the sun disappears




On our way to the Del Coronado Hotel in Coronado






Del Coronado Hotel





Grounds on Del Coronado




Del Coronado





We decided to have lunch at the Del Coronado to take advantage of their Restaurant Week specials.




We decided on the Soft Shell Crab BLT. It was huge, but pretty good!






This guy was waiting for people to leave scraps of their lunch on the tables!




Chris was so happy that there was an "air show" at Coronado Beach!










This guy was setting up for a seminar on Coronado Beach...what a great idea!







Deb enjoyed the Del!




High fivin' Dr. Seuss at the Del








We enjoyed watching the surfers each morning on Crystal Pier.




They make it look so easy!



Two Buck Chuck is really only 2 bucks in San Diego!

Sunday, August 14, 2011

4th of July in Tennessee

We made plans to go to Tennessee over the 4th of July this year. We wanted to visit to Chris' mom and Chris' sister. They live in Bulls Gap, TN. We flew into Nashville early Saturday morning, picked up our rental car, and made the 4-hour road trip to Gatlinburg to stay in the family rental investment property for the weekend. We visited Pidgeon Forge, Gatlinburg, and Bulls Gap, TN.
Car parked in the driveway of the rental home in Gatlinburg, situated on a mountain top in the Smokey Mountains.

Living room and dining room.

Jacuzzi on the third floor. It had fantastic views of the mountains.

Outdoor deck with grill. We used the grill for some great tasting steaks.

After all that traveling on Saturday, Deb enjoyed the hot tub out on the screened-in porch!

We cooked our dinners and ate at the house.

We stopped at this great family run restaurant/diner on our way to visit Chris' mom.
The newest family member at Chris' sister, Maria's, horse farm!
He was adorable and did not stray far from Mom! Of course we found the Great Smokey Flea Market and spent a little time exploring!
Traffic in Pidgeon Forge was unbelievable! But that is where Dollywood is. "If you build it, they will come!"
We took the back roads out of the Smokey Mountain State Park to head back to Nashville to fly home. Deb loves hiking!
We had to make a stop at Buddy's BBQ on the way to the airport.
So much food for $11, and it all tasted great!
And...we had to get a "Wishbone" for Baby Jace! Unfortunately, about two weeks after we left Tennessee, the house was struck by lightening and burnt to the ground. It is such a shame, as it was a beautiful property.