San Diego – A Great City

I arrived late in San Diego on the previous evening, so I didn’t get an opportunity to see the city before it got dark. I hadn’t planned on staying here, but I had ridden many more miles than I had expected in the previous two days, so I now had a spare day and I decided to spend it in this city, seeing what it had to offer. I am really glad that I did.

The view of San Diego across the water....

Named after Saint Didacus, San Diego has a population of 1.4 million and is in the top 10 of largest cities in the US. Unlike its near neighbour Los Angeles, the city feels very safe and was judged to be the 5th best place to live in the US by Money magazine.

At the heart of the city is the Gaslamp area, a small area dating back to 1867 that now houses restaurants, bars, night life and small shops, mainly centred and Fifth Avenue.

This Dublin Square Irish pub in the Gaslamp....

A fire escape on an old building. I love the shapes and shadows here....

A mural showing John Lennon in the centre, what I think is Jim Morrison on the right, but I am not sure who the woman is on the left. Janis Joplin perhaps? If it is, then maybe this is a mural depicting singers that died young, but I am not sure....

Next to the Gaslamp area is Petco Park, home of the San Diego Padres baseball team....

Across the San Diego Bay is an island called Coronado which is connected to the main part of the city by an impressive bridge. I went to see the Hotel Del Coronado, a famous resort hotel built in 1888....

My cousin Dean is a golf course expert, so I had to get a picture of the Coronado Municipal Golf Course. Looks good, eh Dean?.....

Along the waterfront in San Diego is the Maritime Museum. This is HMS Surprise, a replica of the 18th century Royal Navy frigate Rose....

This is Anne, who works for the museum. She was originally from the UK. she would quickly slit your gizzard if you didn’t enter the museum....

I decided to visit USS Midway, an aircraft carrier moored at the waterfront. Next to the ship is a small park which contains a couple of interesting things, the first of which is a monument to the famous American comedian and entertainer, Bob Hope. The statue was in the shade, so I took a picture with a silhouette in mind. His profile is very recognisable....

One of Bob Hopes great attributes was he often went overseas during wars and entertained the US troops. The monument reflects exactly that – he is entertaining a group of soldiers.....

Nearby is a huge statue of a Navy man kissing a woman....

The USS Midway is named after what is probably the most famous American sea fight, the Battle of Midway....

Looking down at the flight deck....

The bridge.....

The display of aircraft on the flight deck is very impressive and ex-servicemen are there to explain everything you ever wanted to know, and more, about the planes, take-offs and landings, plus a lot about life on board such a huge ship....

The flags on the ships superstructure were very colourful and apparently spell “Gobble Gobble”, the significance of which escaped me....

The sun was beginning to set as I left the USS Midway. I caught the last rays hitting these trees....

I walked back through the Gaslamp area and tried to take a few night shots. I changed the ISO setting on my camera to “very high”, a decision I came to regret the next day!

I was happy with a few of the pictures I took....

Overall, I thought San Diego was a fantastic city. I could easily live there!