San Diego – our home for 3 nights in California. Or rather our friends´ home, but Tiago made us so comfortable there that it felt like home. It´s a pity that his wife Manuela and their children were not there as it could have been a full house and Noah would certainly have enjoyed playing with other kids.

Nonetheless they were 4 pleasant days and we are looking forward to returning there in few weeks at the very end of our journey through the western US.

On the night of our arrival we almost got stuck in the middle of the desert (we have written a separate post about it) so we arrived in San Diego very late. As a result, the next morning we obviously woke up late, causing Tiago to joke that “you come to San Diego to sleep”. That´s what I mean about feeling at home 🙂

Exploring San Diego

On the first day we went on a very easy-going tour and visited the famous Coronado Beach. It’s an upscale part of San Diego with very nice roads and a beautiful beach which is golden in places due to the reflection of the sun. Hotel del Coronado is also right by the sea. There was even time for Ruth to get lost, as she thought we were waiting for her in the hotel whereas we were in fact waiting by the beach. Just some normal Brazilian-Spanish miscommunication!

After that there was another stop for a skyline view at a point just behind the military area where the USS Midway is anchored and from where all the downtown buildings are aligned.

Our last stop was at the fantastic Sunset Cliffs Natural Park. In this part of San Diego there is a cliff-top coast where many people come to see amazing sunsets. We did not stay for the sunset, but the views are really impressive.

To end the day in the best possible way (as a good Brazilian surrounded by Brazilian friends), we had a delicious barbeque.

The next day was all for Noah, which meant BEACH!!! He loves playing in the sand and bathing in the water even if it’s cold. Our day was spent at La Jolla beach.

Our third day was probably the best as we got to have a full tour with Tiago on 4^th of July.

First we left to see where the USS Midway is anchored.

We did not get to see inside, but we believe it is worth the visit.

The US retired the USS Midway and it now welcomes tourists who want to see inside. This is one of the most important aircraft carriers in naval history. It served for 47 years in Vietnam and Persian Gulf, among other mission.

Just next to the aircraft carrier there is a sculpture depicting a US marine kissing a nurse – an iconic image – The Unconditional Surrender.

One place that gave us a full 360° view of the city was Mount Soledad National Veterans Memorial. When the sky is clear it is even possible to see Mexico on the horizon, and from there we were able to ascertain that San Diego is huge.

The last part of the tour was on the beach, where many people were already trying to get a nice spot to see the fireworks (and probably had been since the morning).

We went to the top of  mountain to see the fireworks, but unfortunately it was a little bit too far away for taking good pictures. We didn’t have a tripod or a longer lens for the camera, but it was still nice to see and, considering we were on top of a mountain, it wasn’t too cold.

We spent the next day preparing for our journey through the old western National Parks and along the Pacific Coast.

Next stop, Tombstone! Wyatt Earp is already waiting for us…