Sam Diego panoramas

I thought I would mix up posts about my coast-to-coast travels a bit. After spending a wonderful two weeks in Portland, ME, with the Adorable Granddaughter and her Fabulous Parents, I had a wonderful few days in San Diego, CA. (More about the reason for this cross-country trek later.)

What a beautiful city this is! In a location that's not only gorgeous but topographically very interesting. Here is a shot from near the tip of Point Loma, the little peninsula that shelters the entrance to San Diego Bay. 

The spit of land sticking out on the left is part of the Point Loma Navy base, and the large lobe coming straight at you is the bulbous tip of the Coronado Peninsula, where there is also a substantial Naval installation. 

(Yes, you can't miss the fact that the Navy is very big around here. We saw this big guy [cruiser?destroyer? despite all my WWI and WWII reading I still get all these types of ships mixed up] steam into the harbor while we were on Point Loma, and I have the feeling that it's not an unusual sight...)

The main attraction at the end of Point Loma is the Cabrillo National Monument. I'll have a lot more to show you from this fascinating piece of real estate in future posts. (Some of my long-time readers might find the Cabrillo name familiar; there is a Point Cabrillo 'way up the coast in northern California and I visited it 3 years ago. An admittedly quick and sketchy search couldn't confirm this, but I suspect the Cabrillo that both of these areas were named for is this guy, a very interesting early intrepid explorer of the California coast.)

Here is a panoramic shot that shows not only the city across the bay, but also the Cabrillo Memorial that's sort of the centerpiece of the Monument; it's the white statue in the mid-ground:

We spent a delightful day exploring this extremely varied gem of the National Park Service (your tax dollars at work): it offers not only great views, but also an interesting little historical museum; not one, but two lighthouses (as long-time readers know, one of my favorite types of scenic structures); an amazing tide pool area; and even some WWII bunkers. I'll show and tell more about these other attractions in future posts.

But for now, here are a couple more panoramic shots of the city of San Diego from Point Loma...

...as well as another shot of the city at sunset, taken (as was the photo at the top of the post) from the roof of our rather luxurious hotel...

Another example of its luxuriousness is this wonderful window wall in our room...

all the palm trees around town were a shock to my system
after two weeks in wintry Maine!

But I do need to tell you the reason for this seemingly random flight across the the country (the first time, as far as I can recall, that I ever flew coast to coast).

The timing worked out for me to fly straight to San Diego instead of coming home first, so that I could bid an official farewell to Henry's amazing Aunt Lucy. Her memorial service was just down the street from our hotel, in this city that she loved. 

As you can tell from this glowing obituary in the LA Times, she had accomplishments that could easily have spilled over into several lifetimes. What an honor to be even tangentially related to such a lady!

But what I love best about the obit is the picture of her that I've borrowed here. That's how I always think of her: smiling, if not outright laughing, and finding so much joy in life. 

She was a marvelous host when we visited San Diego several years ago (in pre-blog days), obtaining great tickets for Sally and me to attend two Astros/Padres games in their fabulous downtown ballpark, within walking distance from her apartment. As well as showing us all around the city and the gorgeous nearby Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve.

This current visit to San Diego was impoverished by not having her as a tour guide, but we enjoyed reminiscing with family and friends about her wonderful life.