Less than a month after we landed in the United States of America, we were off to a trip down southern California with siblings and their families on the week following the 4th of July weekend. Our destination was sunny San Diego and neighboring areas. The itinerary was to spend two (2) days at Legoland California Resort in Carlsbad then spend a day enjoying the city of San Diego and Coronado Island.
Road Trip
From our place in Stockton, we were to take on a 9-hour road trip across 464 miles from Northern California to San Diego near the U.S. border with Mexico in Southern California. Going south, we mainly used the Interstate 5 for most of the trip then traversing the Interstate 805 as we entered San Diego.
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Seaport Village
Our first stop when we got to San Diego was the Seaport Village where we had late lunch. We ordered nachos with salsa at Margarita's Kitchen and Cantina, fish and chips at Marion Fish Market, and pita bread, Athenian chicken and souvlaki at Greek Islands Cafe.
1895 Carousel
Not far from where we ate was the Charles I.D. Looff Carousel which was interestingly built in 1895. Following is the colorful history of the carousel:
- Originally placed at Fairpark, Texas in 1895.
- Moved to Pacific Ocean Park in Santa Monica, California in the 1950's
- Operated at Spanaway, Washington in the 1970's
- Purchased by the Perrons at an auction in September 1979 and moved to Portland, Oregon.
- Used at the city downtown dedication of Portland, Oregon in 1982
- Acquired by the National Registration of Historic Places in 1987.
- Moved to Carousel Courtyard at Portland Oregon in 1988.
- Completely restored in 1991 for the 1992 International Fair.
- Became the only featured ride at Ameriflora '92 in Columbus, Ohio in 1992.
- Transferred to the Media Center in Burbank, California in 1997.
- Arrived in San Diego, California in 2004.
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Worldmark by Wyndham at Balboa Park
My sister owns a timeshare from Wyndham Hotels and Resorts so we were to be billeted at the Worldmark by Wyndham at Balboa Park, designated as a historical landmark. The hotel would be our home for the four (4) nights that we will be staying at San Diego.
Read: Worldmark Resort by Wyndham at Balboa Park in San Diego, California, USA.
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Read: Worldmark Resort by Wyndham at Balboa Park in San Diego, California, USA.
Legoland California Resort
We spent two (2) full days at the Legoland California Resort in Carlsbad, California, USA. All the kids that were with us had so much fun at the theme park. The first day was dedicated to rides outside the waterpark while we spent the second day exploring the Sealife Aquarium and at the waterpark inside the resort.
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USS Midway Museum
We spent a good amount of time at the USS Midway Museum at the Port of San Diego on our third full day at Southern California. We explored the hangar, flight deck, and island of the legendary aircraft carrier for practically half of the time we were out and about.
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| USS Midway Museum in San Diego, California, USA |
Coronado Ferry Landing
The other half of our third day was spent at Coronado Island. The first stop on Coronado was at the Coronado Ferry Landing where we enjoyed watching the skyline of San Diego, broke some sweat with a rented surrey, ate some cupcakes, and watched the kids play in the sand at the beach.
Coronado Cupcakery
Just out of curiosity, I bought a cupcake at Coronado Cupcakery, one of the many shops at the Coronado Ferry Landing.
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| A sweet treat at Coronado Cupcakery in Coronado, California, USA |
Bikes and Beyond
My brother rented a surrey at Bikes and Beyond and we pedaled around the Coronado Ferry Landing. It was a good way to break some sweat after we pigged out for the past few days.
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| My brother and his family riding the surrey in Coronado, California, USA |
Coronado Public Beach
The last stop of our trip was spent at the Coronado Beach, consistently voted to be one of America's top beaches. There wasn't a lot of people at the beach that day and we marveled at the huge expanse of sandy shoreline. At the background of the Coronado Public Beach was the Hotel del Coronado, the largest wooden structure ever built in the United States of America.
Return Road Trip
On the return trip home, we exited San Diego via the Interstate 805, then headed north through the Interstate 5 before making two (2) stops to have lunch at the Original Barrio Fiesta of Manila at Glendale and to buy some treats at Porto's in Downey. After lunch, we continued through Interstate 5 and turned right at Bakersfield to continue through California State Route 99 until we got home to Stockton.
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