The morning after Jenny and Doug's wedding, Jeff and I woke up at 4:30 am to get to the Norfolk airport to catch our flight to sunny San Diego for a week away to celebrate our one year anniversary. We slept much of the flights over so that once we arrived we would be ready to go. We got to San Diego around 10:45, picked up our rental car-a Chevy HHR-and drove to Lisa and Andy's house. We were so excited to see them and couldn't wait to just hang out. To our pleasant surprise, they had planned to take us to The Prado at Balboa Park for lunch. Our meal was sooo good and thank you very much to Lisa and Andy!!! We were having so much fun out on the patio at the restaurant that we didn't realize how late it was getting. Lisa and Andy had planned a Mexican fiesta for us to celebrate our anniversary ad guests were supposed to come at 3. We had to hurry home and made it there just as the first guests were arriving. Lots of their friends came over for some Memorial Day fun of cornhole and Coronas. For dinner, Andy grilled up some delicious meat for fresh fajitas. Yumm!!
Later in the evening, much to our excitement, Lisa told us she had decided she wasn't going to go to work the next day so we knew we had a fun day of exploring San Diego in store. On Tuesday morning, we woke up and went to San Diego Coffee Tea & Spice for some delicious breakfast burritos and bagels before we set out for a day of sightseeing. First we went to Pacific Beach so Jeff could hit the surf shops for some new sandals and so I could experience that area of SD. Then we went to the Point Loma Lighthous and cliffs for some pretty incredible views of the city.
On Tuesday night, Lisa, Andy, Jeff and I went to dinner at C Level on Harbor Island. The food was delicious and the restaurant had some more incredible views of the city.
On Wednesday morning, Jeff and I hopped on the interstate and headed north to the San Pedro port to catch the ferry to Two Harbors, Catalina.
Catalina is a gorgeous, peaceful island and was the perfect, romantic place for us to celebrate our anniversary. When the ferry arrived, the van of the bed and breakfast where we were staying was waiting to take us up to our room. We changed into our bathing suits and fixed ourselves some lunch and ate on our crows nest and admired the beautiful view of the two harbors after which the town is named.
Then it was beach time where we truly relaxed for a several hours. A Fleming vacation is not complete without a happy hour or two so after the beach we returned to our crows nest for a beer and some wine before showering for our annivesary dinner. There is only one restaurant in Two Harbors which made our choice for dinner very easy. We went to the Harbor Reef restaurant for some meat and seafood and then returned to our crows nest for some snuggling and after dinner cocktails. The night was crisp but incredibly clear and we could see the lights of Los Angeles clear as day.
Thursday brought another gorgeous day with less wind than the day before so we rented a little skiff so we could explore the waters around the island. For two hours, we puttered along and discovered so much more of the island than we thought was there. There was little cove after cove with sail boats, camping spots, and children's camps. The kelp was abundant but it glittered in the sun. The skiff rental really allowed us to get out and relax early in the morning. When we returned to the beach we became comatose in the sand once again and had another picnic lunch right on the beach before catching the ferry back to San Pedro. The ferry made a stop in the other town on Catalina called Avalon on the way back so we got to see the difference between Avalon and Two Harbors. We couldn't believe how much more developed Avalon is with countless hotels and restaurants. If you are looking for more action then Avalon is definitely the place to go.
Once back in San Pedro, we got back on the road to lots of traffic to try to make our way back to San Diego. I have always wanted to go to Huntington Beach so to get out of traffic and explore a new place, we decided to stop. After stuffing ourselves with fish tacos, exploring some of the best surf shops I have ever been in, hitting the Huntington Beach pier, and checking out the surfing legend stones on the walkway, we were back on the road to San Diego. One more stop was necessary off the side of the road to capture the amazing sunset over the ocean at Camp Pendleton.
We arrived at Erin and Mathew's house in Rancho Bernardo after eight for a lowkey evening. On Friday morning, Erin had to go to work but Matt was off and was ready for a relaxing day. Unfortunately for him, it didn't turn out that way. While walking Lane and Rosey in the morning, he discovered a lost puppy with a collar but no tags. He brought the dog home to take photos of it so he could make flyers and post them in the neighborhood. He also called the pound to come pick up the dog. While waiting for them to arrive, the dog harassed Lane and Rosey, peed on the floor, pooped on the floor, and peed on the curtain. Of course after that it was banished to the garage until the pound arrived. Much later in the afternoon after the pound still hadn't come, Mat drove the dog there himself. At 9pm that night, 12 hours after the first call the pound finally showed up. Useless.
In the meantime, Jeff and I had set out for a day of beach hopping in North County San Diego. We went to Solana Beach, Cardiff by the Sea, Swame Beach, Encinitas and La Jolla. We soaked up the sun, watched the surfers, saw the seals, and shopped. We met Erin for lunch at a great Mexican dive restaurant called Las Olas. It was delish. That evening, Erin received a phone call from her aunt and uncle from Italy saying they were going to stop by for dinner because they were in town on business. We had a great dinner with them of grilled chicken, a tasty avocado salad made by Erin and some yummy steak. Her aunt and uncle also introduced us to their AMAZING new business venture.
On Saturday morning, we returned to my new fave place in San Diego-Cardiff by the Sea. We had a YUMMY breakfast at Pipes, hit up a reef sample sale, and spent more time in the sun on the beach. Jeff and I also ventured to the nudey beach called Black's beach and giggled like little school girls at the nakey people walking by.
After a necessary slurpee pit stop, we went back to Erin's, warmed up in the hot tub and then changed to make an appearance at an Olympic themed party that Lisa and Andy's friends were having. The party was such a good idea and the outfits were hilarious. We worked up a pretty good appetite for burgers from Rocky's in Pacific Beach. The six of us housed some burgers, fries and beers and then went to Tower 23 for some after dinner drinks. Lisa and Andy had a bizarre mishap and didn't make it but Erin got to enjoy some neon green sushi (she doesn't like hamburgers). We went home shortly after because once again, Jeff and I had to get up super early for our flight back to Virginia. Tear.
We had such an amazing time out in Cali and thanks to our friends for making our trip so special.
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