Long Weekend In San Diego
“San Diego was Fantastic. I think there’s something about San Diego that is quite different than Los Angeles. “ _ Donal Logue
Did you know San Diego is the second most populous city in California? I was quite surprised. I would have thought San Francisco, Los Angeles and then San Diego but as it turns out it’s Los Angeles, San Diego, San Jose, San Francisco and Fresno in that order.
In 1542 Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo landed in San Diego Bay and claimed the area for Spain, forming the basis for a settlement of Alta California 200 years later. The Presidio and Mission San Diego de Alcala, founded in 1769 formed the first European settlement of what is now California. In 1821 San Diego became part of the Mexican Republic and in 1848 it became a part of the United States of America following the Mexican American war finally becoming a state in the union in 1850.
Known as the “birthplace of California”, San Diego is famous for it’s historical landmarks such as Mission San Diego de Alcala, Balboa Park, UC San Diego, Naval Base and the Maritime Museum. Approximately 130 miles from my home in Los Angeles, San Diego has been a popular weekend destination for me and my family over the years. With the labor day weekend being a long weekend and not having visited for almost two years I decided to catch up with my cousin and her family who live there as well as do a spot of weekend wandering in San Diego for a change of pace.
With that in mind I put together a smorgasbord of a few personal favorite places as well as a few new ones to my weekend wander list. The verdict is that I will go back again because one can’t cram everything in one weekend. The new words I am learning to embrace with all my weekend wandering not just the most recent one are flexibility, adaptability and laughter. Stay tuned for more San Diego as well as full post on the California Missions.
San Clemente Train Station, Beach and Pier. Saturday afternoon should have been a relatively uneventful drive from my home in Studio City to San Diego unfortunately it turned out to be anything but. It seemed like everyone making that drive south had the same idea in mind and traffic just crawled on the interstate 5.
I reached San Clemente too late to make it to the Casa Romantica before it closed. Instead I made my way to the pier, was lucky enough to find parking right in front with minutes still in the meter. I was able to enjoy a quick walk, watch the Amtrak Coastal Express thunder past me, grab a cup of coffee and use of the necessary before heading out to my next destination.
My next stop was the Mission San Luis Rey in Oceanside where I was in time to enjoy the beautiful elegant church before it closed for the day. I strolled through the cemetery, saw the ruins of the barracks, the kiln and the lavanderia before wandering towards the beautiful gardens dreaming in the sun.
It must have been the weekend for celebrating quinceaneras which is the coming of age ceremony for Mexican girls since there were several groups taking professional photographs in and around the Mission and it’s beautiful grounds.
The mission itself is slightly inland but I decided to backtrack to the ocean to check out the Oceanside Pier which at 1954 feet is the longest wooden pier in the western United States. This beach was full of families setting up barbeques and unpacking picnics as they relaxed and dug in ready to enjoy their evening on the beach and the spectacular sunset to follow.
Since I was looking forward to family time and a wonderful dinner cooked by cousin I headed off towards Escondido and their home.
Sunday morning with my cousin as a guide and companion, we started our weekend wandering at the Mission Basilica de Alcala, the first Franciscan mission established in what was then New Spain in 1769. Fortunately we arrived in between the English and Spanish Sunday services and were able to visit the church, gardens and surrounding chapels.
In the front to the left of the church, an ongoing archaeological excavation begun in 1966 has yielded clothing, pottery, weapons and tools that are more than 175 years old. Many of the artifacts are displayed in the mission's museum, along with photos of Kumeyaay (local Indian tribe) elders and examples of the tribe's craftsmanship.
This chapel located on the grounds is not a part of the mission’s history having been donated to the mission in 1970 along with the altar table and throne. The beautiful choir stalls date back to the 1400s and are decorated with whimsical animals, stylized plants and heraldic symbols.
Amongst the visitors we saw nuns dressed in the traditional black robes that we are familiar with from our school years of schooling under similarly clad nuns. Both my cousin and I remarked that we were under the impression that the nuns now wore more secular clothing. The sight sent us back to our school years reminiscing about our school years spent under the eagle eyes and strict hand of the catholic nuns who ran our school.
At the mission we read that the mission had first been housed in the Presidio so while the Presidio was not on our original plan we decided to make a quick stop on our way to Cabrillo Point which was our next destination.
The Presidio Reál de San Diego, is the first permanent European structure in the state of California built by soldiers and priests arriving from New Spain.
The site was constructed just above the settlement of Cosoy, where native people (today called the Kumeyaay) lived, probably seasonally for thousands of years due to the proximity to both bays and the San Diego River. The site was built as one of many fortifications along the California coast in an effort to establish settlement rights and keep Russian and British ships from setting up trade.
Today instead of the San Diego river and local native settlements you can see a river of freeways and urban development as far as the eye can see. From the front you can see incredible views of the San Diego bay and the city of San Diego. The museum at this site was closed probably due to the federal holiday.
However there was an intrepid group of exercise fanatics who were taking advantage of the beautiful breeze and wonderful location performing their routine to the sound of music. Perhaps in it’s heyday locals saw soldiers drilling right here in preparation for staying fit and ready for action.
Cabrillo Point and the Point Loma lighthouse was not on the cards for us with the holiday crowds with a half hour drive time to make the five minutes to the parking lot. We opted to defer this spot for another day and turned around and drove out to the sunset cliffs overlook instead.
Some thing about the word “No” seems to challenge young men of a certain age to defy it. Despite clear warning signs a trio of young men dared each other to jump off the cliffs into the water. We watched on as each one of them took the dare and made the jump one of them fully clothed.
After a quick stop in Little Italy for a delightful brunch we made our way to Old Town San Diego. By now the day was fleeting so a quick browse here and off we were homeward bound.
A quick stop at the city of Lemon Grove for a photo stop of this giant lemon and it’s sign claiming the best climate on our way home.
The Lemon Grove History Mural is located on the south wall of the town’s historic Sonka Brothers General Store. The mural depicts the five eras of Lemon Grove history from the Kumeyaay World to the modern city of Lemon Grove.
Constructed in 1912, the Sonka Store is a Mission Revival building. Over the years it has housed a store, a post office, and a bakery. It has been a gathering place since the early days of Lemon Grove. For years it was the heart of the town.
The sixty-five foot long mural was created in sections between 2005 and 2013. In 2014 the Lemon Grove Historical Society received a Governor’s Historic Preservation Award for the project.
Another weekend put to bed. It’s scary how fast the word is turning and before we know it the year will be done. Not ready to think about that yet, I am content to wander my weekends adding to my store of adventures and tales.