March Wrap-up

Not much to blog as we wrap-up March.  We did go to our dentist in Tijuana.  The border crossing was interesting as it took a half an our too enters Mexico, a new record for us!  And no wait at all to return, rather then the couple hours it normally takes.

We suspect there must have been a lot of folks returning home to Mexico, rather than getting wrapped up in deportation, and just us going north.

The massive Chula Vista Convention Center is easily visible from the I-5 freeway.  That gave us a destination for a bike ride, a couple days later.

We unloaded our bikes at Pepper Park, which is currently undergoing renovations.

The link to the renovation project is HERE .

With a Splash Pad!, the kids will have fun on a warm summer day.

The Chula Vista bike path crosses the Sweetwater River from Pepper Park.  The river separates Chula Vista from National City.

Chula Vista is developing its own park on Gunpowder Point, Sweetwater Park. 

Spanning 21 acres it will be much larger than Pepper Park, it may become our new starting point for our bike rides.

There will be a lot of fun play equipment.

The Gaylord Pacific is the first Gaylord on the west coast, and it's huge!  This will be the home for the Chula Vista Convention Center.

We stopped for a picnic at the Chula Vista Bayfront Park.

It too will be receiving some renovations, with the Gaylord just a short walk away.

"Better Than You Imagined Possible"

A few days ago we rode the bikes to Ocean Beach, I wanted to compare the progress on the OB Pier to that of the undertakings in South Bay.

It may be the city is waiting for nature to take the old pier down, as nothing has been done.  South Bay will certainly be completed first.

We had lunch at Hodads, before returning home.

For a change we shared onions rings that I ordered with my mini-cheese burger.

Yes that is the mini-burger

I typically order a mini-burger with either fries or onion rings and Fran orders just a burger, as there is more than enough to share.

My younger brother flies into Tijuana this evening.  We’ll pick him and Juanita up at the Cross Border Express (CBX).

Lake Cahuilla - St Patrick's Day in Balboa Park

Fran has some gal-pals heading to Indian Wells Open to watch a couple days of the early rounds of the tournament.  I was surprised to find that Lake Cahuilla Riverside County Park had sites available and booked us three nights.

To get to the campsites first we had cross over a Speed Bump.

Then within the campground itself there a a couple Speed Humps.

The Bump can definitely break dishes, while the Hump is just a gentle reminder to keep your speed down.

Sites are very generous.  Both the RV and the Jeep are fully contained in our site.

In addition to our water/electric site there is an option to dry camp on the beach.

The park is tucked up to the base of the Santa Rosa Mountains.

The campsites do offer some shade from the old oak trees seen throughout the park.

While we were there the Day Use area was being renovated with new shade covers and the addition of Pickleball Courts.

I wanted the electric site to use the oven.  It was time to bake my Valentines pie ;)

Smells so good, and tastes great.  Yes another Apple Mountain Berry!

I was anxious to go with Fran, not for the tennis, but I hoped I could do a bit of research on Ancient Lake Cahuilla.  The park rangers knew of the ancient lake, but not of a museum featuring it.  At it’s peak the ancient lake covered the the entire Coachella Valley at a depth of over 170’.  Fed only by what is now the San Felipe creek.

We skipped the Saint Patrick's Day Parade in Balboa Park, as the park is now charging $20 p/p!  That festivity was Saturday, instead we opted for the performance at the House of Ireland in the Pan American Plaza on Sunday.  Still we have never seen the park so dang crowded!

We secured a parking spot behind the Organ Pavilion.  And walked past the Recital Hall.

Such elegant dance!

On Sundays a different nation hosts a program at the pan America Plaza, today it was Ireland. 

The house on the the right is the House of Ukraine on the left is the House of the United States

The US house is closed and with an obvious alarm system … Ukraine is welcoming guests!

House of Denmark is serving cookies!

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House of China served pot stickers.

The triangular shape of the Chinese flag was worth a photo.
but not the Costco potsticker 

We settled in front of the dance stage and took a walk to see what else attracted so many folks to the park today.

Behind the Comic-Con Museum there is a large Nowruz celebration.

Nowruz celebrates the Iranian New Year.  And is a big deal, with entertainment and food.  Very well done!

Who knew we had so many Iranian's in town

The space has alternating US and Iranian flags.

Today was also the last day of the Japanese Cherry Blossom Festival.  All these folks are in line to enter the Japanese Gardens.

At least the organ concert will be performing soon for their entertainment

Three gals enjoying the view from the overlook, while waiting to their turn to see the cherry blossoms.

And at 2pm the Irish begin their performance as they parade into the Pan America Plaza.

The guy in the wheelchair is the president of the House of Ireland.  Fran confirms he is wearing a kilt!  I’ll take her word for it, if it was a skirt he’d be wearing underwear!

The pipe band has been practicing since 1846 here. 

I’m not Irish nor Scottish, but I do like the pipes.  I have no idea if they are wearing Kilts or skirts.  In fact I really don't want to know!

The pipes are followed by the dancers.

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Fran was once one of these high-stepping gals, and still has the shoes to prove it!

This fella could be with River Dance!  He was really that good.

These 2 gals were also really good

A finale for the teens

I don’t have a good picture of the kids to share, but trust me they were cute!

The crowds in the park made for a traffic jam to leave.  We made it in time for  ‘Last Call’ at The Artifact for a glass of wine.  No picture though.

Again we stopped for tostadas at El Indio on the way home.

Mine is Carnitas, Fran prefers Pollo Asada.

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Wild Anmal Park

Most of the locals remember the “San Diego Zoo Safari Park” by its original name “The Wild Animal Park”. A Google search will take you to the same home page.

aka Wild Animal Park

February is for seniors in San Diego, and entrance to the Wild Animal Park is FREE to seniors all February! Not the $76 required the rest of the year! Our first choice is to ride the tram around the African Savanna exhibit – the tram is included in the admission and will develop long lines later in the day.

Tram is down there

Fran and I are seated on the right side of the tram. Not good as the tram runs in a counter-clockwise direction. The exhibit is enclosed by trench (if San Diego still had water this would be a moat). Inside the moat is a fencing, although it does keep the the display animals in, barbed wire was added to keep the local predators out. Shortly after it opened the local mountain lions enjoyed the buffet.

The pond provides water for the permanent residents and their guests. The White Pelicans are migratory, but why leave?

There are lots of long legged, fast running folks on the Savanna tour.

And some with shorter legs

Some are close, but most are further away.

The balloon ride is not included with admission. It is tethered and only goes up and down.

The little white blobs in the previous photo are these fellas. Their horns are so symmetrical in profile they look like a unicorn!

On TV shows the Savanna appears to be flat grasslands, however here there are some small rolling hills.

After our tram ride, we took one of the switchback trails back up. This allowed us a bit closer view of some of incarcerated animals. Check out the camouflage

The male ostrich picks out the spot where all his harem will lay their eggs.

The flowers/shrubs/trees are all well maintained, I often enjoy them more than the animals.

Ah but what's this?

Gorongo Cycad ???

I'm not sure if he's ugly or cute. But I'm sure he's unique.

Hornbill

I missed the picture of him standing on his hind legs to enjoy a few leaves.

Impala

One of Fran's favorites, an Okapi. A zebra, gazelle or a critter still in his pajamas having breakfast?

Okapi 

Beautiful slim fast critters

Gazelle 

Here's the only gorilla on display. It looks like he's thinking about something.

And my favorite! Two fruitless trips to the Salton Sea searching for the Borrowing Owl, I coulda just visited the Wild Animal Park!

Borrowing Owl

Not only are seniors FREE at the Wild Animal Park, resident seniors also receive discounts in Balboa Park.  I have a signed copy of Coast to Cactus, the San Diego trail guide that updates the Jerry Shad (RIP) 'bible' of local hiking “Afoot and Afield". And The NAT is having a Coast to Cactus exhibit!  So we're off ...

Alongside the museum is the massive Morton Bay Fig. I think the one in Santa Barbara is larger, but this one is huge! It is now protected by a fence. I'm sure kids Kami and Michael were the last generation allowed access to play/climb here.

Nephew Bobby works for the City doing pool/fountain repairs. Nice job Bobby!

The NAT never disappoints.

Four floors of exhibits

However the Coast to Cactus exhibit was a bit under whelming .

We saw a Golden Eagle while hiking in the Ramona Grasslands.  Fran and I both think the Golden Eagle should be our state bird

Golden Eagle

But alas the California Quail, and I do like the quails, has that distinction.

California Quail

Now how cool is this Halloween mask?

Horned Toad

We stopped for tostadas at El Indio on the way home. And that closes out February. Stay tuned for March ...