2018 San Diego Adventure Part 1 of 2 - The Indigo Hotel, Liberty Public Market, and Balboa Park

For a couple of people that have lived together in the midwest for 40 years in the county's largest city of about 400, going to a large city like San Diego, California is quite an adventure!  This is my third trip to San Diego and my husband's second.  This is where our son and daughter-in-law live and work in as many years.  We had eight full days which covered several returns to favorite places and a few new experiences.  This year we flew out of the Springfield, Missouri airport instead of the Kansas City airport which shortened our driving time significantly and was worth the extra expense!

Sunday was our travel day which put us in San Diego early that evening to get settled in the beautiful Indigo Hotel after our son picked us up at the airport and showed us his new condo which he and our daughter-in-law had just moved into the day before.  Soon after we were all settled in for the night to be rested for the next day which was Labor Day.  Woke up to made some coffee and sit looking out the huge window in our room amazed at all the LABOR it took to make this view!

Hotel Indigo morning view looking west from our 11th floor room with a full wall window

New home for our son and daughter-in-law located cater-cornered from The Indigo Hotel.

Zoomed-in view from our hotel of the San Diego Bay a few blocks away.

On Labor Day we all slept in late and then got together for an afternoon at Liberty Public Market which has all the best that San Diego has to offer.  It was a good time to walk around especially after we all found our favorite foods and sweets!

Beti, Jake, & Keith standing in front of amazing succulent wall

Beti with favorite jacaranda tree which casts a "purple haze" all around especially when the blossoms fall 

Cora & Keith in the courtyard

Tuesday was the first of two days Keith and I had to ourselves as both Jake & Cora went to back to work.  We would meet again for late suppers.  We can always find things to do at Balboa Park.  Last year we easily mastered the trolley system which was just a couple blocks from where we stayed.  This year we were challenged somewhat as Keith used a knee-bike and walking cane due to foot issues.  It was back to taxi-time which was easy but cost more.  I had an easy time with taxis my first year when I traveled alone.  We also don't need a smart-phone as one would need apps for Uber and it's not that much cheaper anyway.  We were smart enough on our own!  

First order of business at Balboa Park was eating before we spent the rest of the day walking!

The Prado Restaurant  had the best meal of the whole trip!

Prado Paella
fresh fish, mussels, shrimp, calamari, chicken, chorizo, lobster saffron broth 

Beti in Casa Del Prado Courtyard Patio

Keith in The Casa Del Prado Courtyard Patio

The Casa Del Prado Courtyard Patio

The Casa Del Prado Courtyard Patio

The Casa Del Prado Courtyard Patio

Our favorite place in the whole park is The San Diego Museum of Art and we spent hours here including a tour where we learned a lot more than we would on our own.  Below are several of my favorites! 

Lovely walks through varandas make for a great choice in any weather!  Access to most venues can be done through continuous pathways.  Sometimes this is where musicians set up and play.

Always enjoy sitting at the Plaza de Panama which is in the center of everything and has awesome plants to enjoy!

Plaza de Panama Fountain 

Plaza de Panama view 

Plaza de Panama view of California Tower at the Museum of Man

After a long day at Balboa Park on our first day on our own, we got back to The Hotel Indigo and enjoyed more time by ourselves as Jake worked very late and Cora had to stay overnight on ship.  Lucky for us the hotel has an outdoor lounge on the 9th floor terrace wrapping around 9th Street and Island Avenue with a great view of Petco Park Stadium and all the lights around the East Village and Gaslamp District.  We ended everyday of our trip here enjoying the nightlife from above when we weren't below walking around.

Beti on the 9th floor Hotel Indigo outdoor lounge with Petco Park Stadium on the right (Home of the San Diego Padres Baseball Team).  The lighted dome on the left is the library.

Late night snacks included hummus & pita with veggies & olives and a small pizza.  A couple nights we had the best chocolate lava cake with salted caramel ice cream!

The next day started with a good breakfast at The Indigo Hotel.  Most mornings we sat at the corner table at 9th and Island so we could see Jake's building as sometimes he joined us after walking the dogs.  We had a variety of breakfast items during our stay which included Eggs Benedict, French Toast made with brioche, bacon & eggs with sourdough toast; all with fresh fruit and coffee.  The best crispy rosemary potatoes seemed to be a signature side dish in the area as we knew from previous stays.  Definitely included here as well!

So our second day at Balboa Park began with a morning walk around the Rose Garden.   I took so many wonderful photos so I put them in this music video which also includes other plants around Balboa Park and The Botanical Gardens.  Best viewed at full screen!

Lunch at The Prado was yummy Fish Tacos this day.  Then we walked a long ways afterwards to the Automotive Museum.  This was a new place for us both.  We had the best time looking at all the old motorcycles, cars, and strange vehicles!

1916 Harley

1926 Harley

1942 Harley

1969 Easy Rider "Captain America" Harley (good to see it didn't really crash & burn with Peter Fonda!)

Brings back memories of my chopper rides in the early 1970's (a minor crash and a little road burn!)

1977 Pontiac Firebird - all original interior

1977 Pontiac Firebird - all original exterior including paint

Evil Knieval's Stratocycle

1947 Indian

By now Keith's foot was getting pretty sore from the long walk which included hitting a pothole so he settled in around the Plaza de Panama while I climbed the California Tower which I had never done before.  Here's a few photos and a video I took from the top.

Beti at the top of the California Tower

The beautiful dome as viewed from the top of the California Tower

I called Keith from the top of the tower while he was below on the Plaza and we waved at each other!

After another full day at Balboa Park, we taxied back to The Indigo Hotel and took a nap.  After awhile we awoke and went down a couple floors to the outdoor lounge on the 9th floor and ended the evening with a lava cake and sea salt caramel ice cream enjoying the city lights.  The next day we were spending with our son who had the rest of the week off work.  Cora would have Friday off also and we could all be together.  Those days were pretty full so I will add another blog post which includes these Family Time days.

City at night as viewed from our picture window room on the 11th floor of The Indigo Hotel

Florida Seashore Adventure (Revised)

 Florida's Seashore Adventure begins with a sunset...

I like to plan my adventures.  This trip was planned at a minimum to allow for spontaneity.  The initial choice for Florida in January was sparked by several things.  

First was an invitation from my cousin's daughter to stay with her and her young family who recently moved to Orlando from Slovakia; my parent's homeland.  It was between January 10-31 that her parents were coming for a visit from Slovakia and it would be a great time to meet them in person for the first time.  I have wrote about that wonderful 4-5 day visit in the previous blog.

Second was that I have never been to Florida.  I had extensive family history with the state as that is where my paternal grandmother bought property in the early 1920's and where my father spent the first several years after arriving in America from Vienna in the 1930's.  I am currently halfway through writing a novel about that unique history which I began last year.  Watch for it!

Third was the above average cold weather in Missouri this season.  It typically snows and gets below freezing for 3-4 days at a time but warms up into the 50-60's during the days in between to make winter quite tolerable.  This year has been brutal!  Long stretches of below zero at night staying below freezing during the days.  The idea of being in Florida's warmer climate didn't take a second thought combined with the other reasons to go now.  Retirement allows spontaneity!

In preparation for the trip, which was planned in less than three weeks, I began reading about what Florida was like when it was first settled.  I had done much research for my novel about what it was like when my grandmother first bought residential land in what is now the center of commercial Miami.  I wanted to know what it was like before.  A Land Remembered by Patrick D. Smith, a multiple award-winning author, was just the right book!   It is historical fiction set in pioneer Florida.  The story covers over a century of Florida history from 1858 to 1968.  It focuses on the the fictional story of the Maclveys who migrated from Georgia into Florida in the mid-19th century and battled the hardships of the frontier to rise from dirt-poor Cracker life to the wealth and standing of real estate tycoons.  It's about the struggle to survive in the harsh environment for three generations by learning to round up wild cattle and drive them to the Gulf Cost to sell to Cuba.  They amass more holdings and money and moved from their connections with nature.  The vivid descriptions of the land complete with swamps, marshes, hammocks, and prairie ecosystems completes the setting of what what could be changed by man and what could not.  A Land Remembered was winner of the Florida Historical Society's Tebeau prize as the Most Outstanding Florida Historical Novel.  It was fun to explore the natural areas of Canaveral National Seashore and Blue Springs State Park which included the St. Johns River on my adventure especially with a background of the land in its historical, untamed nature.  The book features a memorable cast of crusty, indomitable Crackers battling wild animals, rustlers, Confederate deserters, mosquitoes, starvation, hurricanes, and freezes.  The most formidable adversary turned out to be greed.  Love and tenderness were included with the hopes and passions of each generation, friendships with the persecuted blacks and Indians, and respect for the land and its wildlife.  As a Missouri Master Naturalist, I am fascinated by natural environments and human impact and awareness.

My whole adventure was 12 days and 11 nights and about 2700 miles total; 2400 miles was the roundtrip from Missouri.  The Seashore Adventure portion began before noon on a Wednesday after spending four nights and five days with my cousin's daughter and her family in Orlando.  A vrbo rental beach townhouse was chosen because it was northeast of Orlando and close to Canaveral National Seashore which was the most important part of the seashore experience for me.  The rental beach townhouse was located at New Smyrna Beach.  

The beach townhouse was very large and had all the amenities for a complete beach experience including bicycles, beach chairs, electric (golf cart-type) beach buggy, surf boards, garage with private parking in back and fully furnished.  The beach access was directly across the street which had a crosswalk.  The location was walking distance to the best restaurants and shopping.   I highly recommend two restaurants:  The Sea Shack (click on the link to see a really cool video!) and          Boston's Fish House.   

The rental beach townhouse felt safe but caution was taken by coming and going through the back garage entrance in a private parking lot for all the tenants.  The only problem was that the dishwasher didn't work and the owner wanted to send someone over to repair it.  It is in the rental contract that no one would enter the rental while the renter was gone and we couldn't get together on a time that wouldn't disrupt activities.  So the owner generously comp this by giving an extra night at no cost.  That sounded great! It still fit in the basic schedule as I was going to take three days going home paying for two motels.  Now this extended the beach time for another good weather day and saved the cost of the third motel of the trip!

My only regular routine included a short walk to the beach about a half hour before sunrise and at sunset.  It was a perfect packed sand surface for riding a bicycle and I did everyday!  The forecast showed Saturday to be the best beach day as it was still cool enough for a jacket upon arrival earlier in the week.  The first two days were spent away from the beach townhouse at Canaveral National Seashore (Thursday) and the next day at Blue Springs State Park (Friday).  Saturday's all beach day was cut short a few hours to travel to Daytona Beach for an indoor flea market.  I bought citrus there.

There were several Interpretive Programs available in January at Canaveral National Seashore; some requiring a small fee, all about two hours each.  I could have easily spend another day or two here but decided to do a self-tour of the six-mile seashore including the Castle Windy Trail; a Timucuan midden or a mound of native Indian discarded shells and other objects dating back to around A.D. 1000.  

I've included the programs of interest to me:  

~ Canoe Mosquito Lagoon - in organized groups or in your own kayak or canoe.

~Plants of the Park - walks to learn how plants in the park were used by Native Americans and early settlers and see their unique botanical characteristics and areas of adaptation.  This would include the Eldora House, Plants of the Dunes, Turtle Mound Plants, and the loop trail.

~Birders Pontoon Boat Tour - a leisurely cruise to see many birds with a park guide. ($20)

~Pontoon Boat Cruise: the Backwaters of Mosquito Lagoon - leisurely cruise to places that lend character to this vital estuary. ($20)

On my self-touring hike along the Castle Windy Trail and beyond, I came upon many interesting sites and got some much needed exercise for several hours!  Loaded with information brochures, I had my resources at hand.  There were 14 marked Stops along the shore of Mosquito Lagoon.  Some of the plants I saw were:

~ Live Oaks and Scrub Live Oaks - coastal hammock forming most of the overhead canopy. 

~Redbay - used to flavor food.

~Nakedwood - a tropical species. 

~Saw Palmetto - a hardy thicket that dominates the habitat and has berries that are marketable for medicinal use.

~Sable or Cabbage Palm is Florida's state tree.  The central growing stem is edible.  It typically has an airplant, the golden serpent fern, towards the top.

~Eastern Red Cedar - One of the few conifers to do well on a barrier island; aromatic wood that repels insects.

~Air Plants - An unusual group of plants unlike parasites that sap energy, air plants use their hosts only for support.

~Yaupon - Related to American holly used by native Indians to brew a ceremonial tea called "Black Drink" with medicinal and religious significance.

~Wild Coffee - Closely related to cultivated varieties with small red berries.

~Citrus - Very recognizable!  Native to SE Asia introduced into Florida by the Spanish.  Although the fruit is very sour (I picked and ate one!), the hardy root stock is used for grafting our many varieties of citrus.

~Wild Pines - Bromeliads are another air plant; this one is related to the pineapple.  They can retain water in its urn shaped base and is an oasis for tiny tree frogs, insects, and other aquatic life.  All species except Spanish moss are protected throughout Florida.

~Exotics - Plants that didn't originally occur in the area that often gain a foothold and disturb the natural ecosystem.  Some are noxious weeds crowding out native species.  The most aggressive is the Brazilian pepper and it has done much damage.  Several less aggressive exotic plants include agave and kalanchoe, familiar house plants.

Canaveral National Seashore serves as an important nesting area for sea turtles.  Three species are known to nest in the park:  the loggerhead, leatherback, and green sea turtle during the months of May through August.

Over 310 species of birds have been observed at Canaveral National Seashore.  The most commonly seen are: 

Wading Birds - Great Blue Heron, Great Egret, Tricolored Heron, Snowy Egret, White Ibis.

Shore Birds - Willet, Sanderling, Ruddy Turnstone, Royal Tern,, Laughing Gull, Ring-Billed Gull, Brown Pelican (endangered in Louisiana, Mississippi, Texas, California and is cousin to the White Pelican), Cormorant.

Soaring Birds - Osprey and turkey Vulture.

Duck-like Birds - Common Moorhen, American Coot, Pied-Billed Grebe.

A couple of historic sites on my hike included Turtle Mound and Eldora.  Living in the vicinity of Turtle Mound were the Timucuan people who occupied the area for 2,000 years.  An estimated 40,000 were there at the coming of the Spanish and Ponce de Leon in 1513.  Only a few survivors remained when Spain withdrew from Florida in 1763. Turtle Mound is the group of burial grounds and shell middens remaining from these natives and is protected.  From 800 to 1400 A.D. generation after generation left evidence behind to tell of their lifestyle.  There has never been a complete archaeological excavation of Turtle Mound.  Other mounds have been leveled to provide roadfill material. Some mounds were so disturbed that their archaeological record was destroyed and artifacts lost forever.  Turtle Mound is the last remaining vestige of the Timucuan people.

Relaxing on the porch at Eldora

Saw Palmetto is a hardy low-growing plant that has highly marketable berries for medicinal purposes.

The trails run parallel to the seashore so it was fun to go back and forth!

Eldora is another place in time.  It is a place to relax as I rocked on the porch letting my imagination take me back to what is must have been like from this view years ago.   There were many interesting displays about the settlement.  The settlement dates back to 1876 and was home to Native Americans and a few woodsmen who lived off the land.  It grew as an agricultural community and a steamboat stop before the arrival of the railroads.  At the turn of the century, is was known for leisure pursuits including "gentleman farming" sport hunting and fishing.  It went into decline as Florida's tourism interests changed between 1938-1975.  In 1975 it was rehabilitated and preserved with the formation of the Canaveral National Seashore.  Much of this land was purchased by the Federal government for the Space Center and the excess land preserved for the people.  It would have been interesting to see more of the Space Center since it was so close; maybe on another trip.

I tentatively made reservations to come back on Sunday for the Pontoon Boat Cruise on the Backwaters of Mosquito Lagoon guided tour.  I decided to spend the extra day on the beach close to the beach townhouse instead as the weather forecasted possible rain by the end of the day.  But I know if I come back again, I will definitely keep Canaveral National Seashore on the top of my list of things to do and give it at least a couple full days to take full advantage of all the programs that interest me!

Friday was an erratic day to start.  A quick change of plans turned some negative planning into a very positive experience!  Blue Spring State Park was only 30 minutes away and had everything one could want to know the real Florida in a more off-coastal location than the Canaveral National Seashore.  This Florida State Park is a National Gold Medal Winner and America's First Three-Time Winner.  It is Florida's premiere manatee refuge.  It is the winter home to more than 200 West Indian manatees says the brochure but posted in the gift shop was a sign that showed the day's count at over 350!  The salesclerk said that it numbered well over 400 the week before!

Manatee Family - Big Papa, Baby, and Momma Manatee!

There are 15 natural communities tucked within 2,643 acres including a lagoon, a north-flowing river, and a first-magnitude spring; all literally overflowing with diversity.  The 72 degree spring discharges 104 million gallons of water daily into the St. Johns River.  It is the habitat for at least 15 threatened or endangered plants and animals.  It is the home to the Florida scrub jay, gopher tortoise, black bear, and one of only two known locations for the Okeechobee gourd.  There are many herons and wading birds.  The clear spring shows gar, sunfish, variety of turtles, frogs, alligators and elusive migratory birds.

There's a colorful history here of a 3-story house built atop a large Indian midden in 1872 by an orange grower.  Blue Spring landing was a hotbed of steamboat activity shipping tourists and goods to Jacksonville and beyond.  In 1971, Jacques Cousteau filmed "The Forgotten Mermaids" episode here.  The documentary brought attention to the manatee and the importance of Blue Springs as a winter refuge greatly influencing the state's decision to purchase the land.  I enjoyed walking along the one third mile boardwalk that follows the flowing Blue Spring run through a shady hammock.  I wanted more and then signed up for the 2-hour St. Johns River Cruise.  There was kayak/canoe rentals but it was closed due to high winds on that day.  I didn't want to kayak anyway in unfamiliar areas unless it was part of a tour.  There are alligators everywhere!

The two hour tour included the same pristine beauty enjoyed by Florida's earliest residents.  The average cruising speed was 6 mph with frequent stops for photographs and intimate encounters in this most fragile ecosystem.  The cruise captain provided interactive narration of local and river history along with illustrated accounts of the numerous bird species, alligators and other wild critters that call this place home.  This is Natural Florida!  

Please click below for an updated 7-minute slideshow I hope you will enjoy!

It was a great adventure for me and I have many wonderful memories in photos from my Florida trip.  My initial reasons and expectations for going were met and I will cherish these memories while brushing off any negativity.  That negativity gave me a good life lesson to take away from this adventure...that some friends may carry more baggage than I can accommodate especially on a road trip!  On this trip, I was 10 years older and about 40 years more mature than my companion.  Her energy and exuberance was different than mine and I now realize that our friendship may have survived if we had spent only about three days together instead of eight.  We are both naturalists so how could I have known?  I gained much more than I lost in the overall experience!  Live and learn.  The last day at the beach and townhouse was very relaxing as my companion chose to abruptly abandon me for her own adventure; bags packed and ready for a pick-up at 9 AM Sunday morning not telling me where she was going or with whom!  My Sunday was a very pleasant and restful day full of uninterrupted beach time!  The two days traveling back to Missouri alone was also very pleasant with great music and driving the route I had wanted through states I had not seen before.

It was a Great Florida Seashore Adventure!  It's all about going with the flow...

Bobi Kitty checking out all the citrus I brought home

Nature gifted me with a Super Blue Blood Moon Rising off my back deck early first morning home...my photo didn't come out like I saw it...so I improvised! 😃