Thursday, March 26, 2015

First Week San Diego

 

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It’s been a good first week in San Diego. Eight different breweries/brewpubs, a multitude of fine tasting beer, and the company of friends. It’s been enough to make us like our little piece of concrete here at Mission Bay RV Resort.

Not our favorite kind of place to stay, but it’s all about location. And at least there are some trees, a little grass, nice showers and laundry.

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The site behind us that was empty is now occupied by a huge family. Thankfully they are well behaved children but this is why we don’t like staying in RV parks.

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But being able to walk along the bay from the park, or hopping on our bikes to a brewery, has been an added bonus. Two bike and brew trips so far and no BUI! We do know our limits, but some of the really fine craft brews that we seem to like are very high in alcohol content. Unlike the 4% watered down beer we found in Utah, we have had some here that were over 12%. That’s a lot for a beer, but boy do they taste smooth and rich.

Bike trail along the bay.

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And they go down great with gourmet pizza. This is from Pizza Port, one of the best veggie pizzas we’ve eaten anywhere. It might have been the multigrain beer crust, but pizza really can be good with no cheese. Accompanied by a Penthouse Double IPA and a Suavecito Imperial Milk Stout, as smooth as the name implies. Doesn’t get much better.

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Be sure to sit outside on the patio with the dogs. The inside was filled with families, which translates to loads of noisy children.

Frances, Russ and Todd.

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Nina and Paul, who look good even after the 5 mile bike ride to get there.

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It’s not been all play, though. We finished up the cosmetic issues in the bedroom following our floor install. I found some $1 contact paper and a vinyl door strip, and a little caulk to cover things up. It isn’t a perfect solution but looks so much better and your eye is not drawn to it. We’re happy.

Before.

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After. So far the wall hasn’t fallen down from removing the metal support strip that was along the floor.

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We also got a little history lesson and a hike at Cabrillo National Monument on the Point Loma Peninsula, where explorer Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo landed on September 28, 1542. After checking out the displays in the visitor center, we walked the trails taking in the views. Unfortunately it was quite a hazy morning.

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Nina was disappointed that we didn’t take the lighthouse tour, but Jim wasn’t about to wait in this long line of people.

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We also walked along the coast to the tide pool area but it wasn’t low tide. Still nice to see the Pacific again.

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Yesterday Jim had an appointment with a cornea specialist at the University of CA to see if he’s had any progression of his Fuch’s dystrophy. This is the real reason we decided to come to San Diego, and we were just going to stay for a few days, but since we weren’t sure if Jim would need something done which may require follow-up, we decided to just spend the month here and get us through spring break and Easter. Luckily the doctor didn’t think he was ready for a corneal transplant yet, but the change in vision he’s noticed in his left eye was due to a cloudy posterior capsule, which is common after cataract surgery. They were able to perform a laser procedure while we were there, and after the dilation wore off he could tell his vision was much better. He has one more appointment in a couple weeks.

Since the eye center was in La Jolla, we thought it would be a good opportunity to check out La Jolla Brewing Co on the way home. After getting stuck in traffic that took 15 minutes to travel 2/10 of a mile, we decided to just head towards home and stop at Pacific Beach. We walked along the boardwalk and had some tasters at Amplified. Pretty good stuff and a great outdoor deck with ocean views.

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Since our time here is limited and we’ve only sampled a fraction of the 100 local breweries, we made one more stop at Modern Times. They have a really cool tasting room with a bar made of books. The limited release Devil’s Teeth Baltic Porter was our favorite. You know they must have fun coming up with these beer names.

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 We have no plans for our second week here but I’m sure we’ll come up with something!

16 comments:

  1. I Am thoroughly impressed. I see At least 3 extra breweries on there since we saw you. I feel confident you will achieve beervana before you leave. Drink on!
    Nina

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  2. Looking forward to it! The floor fix looks really good.

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  3. Now if they had comfy chairs and books to read, I would be all over Modern Times.I agree with you RV parks are not my thing either, they do serve a purpace. I enjoy all that a city offers for a short time than I am ready for wide open spaces and elbow room. Glad that Jim's eye sight again matches his sharp wit. You won't be able to slip anything buy him now!

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  4. Wait...a week only has 7 days...how did you do 8 breweries/brewpub? lol

    Love that last bar. What a clever idea. Looks like nothing but fun, fun, fun.

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  5. Yes that concrete slot you have called a campsite is a far cry from what I usually see on your blogs but you are definitely making the best of it. Super pictures of the water and at the National Monument. I wondered if you would see Nina and Paul since I read that they just left. Wow your wall fix looks terrific. Not being a beer drinker I can only appreciate your enthusiasm. David would love to be with you and will cheer you on to as Nina puts it Beervana.

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  6. Good to hear you are enjoying yourselves in Mission Bay. Glad you were there in time to meet up with Paul and Nina:) It is such a nice 12 mile bike ride around the bay and makes all the food and beer easier to enjoy:) Too bad about that huge family behind you. At least the children are well behaved:) That was one of the reasons we went with a bay view and just bit the bullet with the extra cost. Turned out to be a good decision to not have anyone behind and have the bay view and sunset every night. We had never been there before so we were just guessing this was the place to be. I bet you are enjoying the FHUs though! Shower whenever you want!! Looking forward to hear about the rest of your visit!

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  7. Forgot! The bedroom looks great! Super matching job with the floor!!

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  8. Beer and the ocean...that'll cure any asphalt RV park woes!

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  9. Hopefully the park will thin out after the weekend.....although I think Spring Break is spread out over six weeks this year. It hits our schools the week after Easter. San Diego is keeping up with Bend with all the breweries there now :-)

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  10. I think the word "cornucopia" applies here.

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  11. Well it's only a month parked on asphalt which seems worth it for all the nearby options.

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  12. We're coming to Mission Bay next week. I hope we an opportunity to meet.

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  13. Now another good reason to visit San Diego---or is that 8 good reasons? We had enjoyed stays at Santa Fe, using the bus. Also Las Vegas, also using the bus.

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  14. Craig was supposed to find an eye doc during this sty in San Diego. When he got his last pair of glasses the optometrist said he should get the cataracts checked in the near future. Didn't happen. I will look into getting an appointment FOR HIM next November when we are back for a month. I wish we could have connected with you both, but our time has just been gobbled up with Grand kid stuff!

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