Out and About

USS Midway



One of the first things we did after arriving in San Diego, was to head down to the harbor where this retired aircraft carrier (once the largest warship in the world) serves as a floating museum. The city has always enjoyed a close relationship with the military and is home to a number of naval bases and airfields. We were often seeing destroyers in the harbor and military helicopters and jets in the sky. With all of this happening around us, it was neat to be able to explore a real aircraft carrier.



The headphones were part of a self guided tour. As we came to an exhibit, we just typed in the exhibit number and an audio recording would explain it or share a story about what life was like aboard this floating city. We saw sleeping quarters, the machine shop, jail, convenience store, cafeteria, and even the ship's post office.



Deacon playing on one of the anchor chains.



Up on the flight deck they had a bunch of airplanes and helicopters on display, as well as retired veterans telling stories and giving presentations.



Without a wide angle lens, this picture is the closest I could come to showing just how huge this ship is.

Beaches



We set aside two days for the beach, during which we enjoyed the sand and surf in Mission Bay, Point Loma, La Jolla, and Coronado Island. Despite visiting so many different beaches, we spent very little time travelling and a lot of time relaxing.







The kids never got bored of digging in the sand or wading in the water. Our weather was perfect and at times, it seemed like we had the whole place to ourselves.



This is a place in La Jolla called "The Children's Pool", which has been taken over by harbour seals. After Sea World it was neat to see these animals in their natural environment.



I thought I was quite fortunate to catch a photo of this extra large wave hitting the concrete breakwater.



The kids didn't feel the same way.



Here you can see the famous Hotel del Coronado in the background. The kids really enjoyed this beach and I thought it was cool because there was an airbase at the end of the beach and every 10 minutes or so you would have jets coming in for landings. It was deafening at times but it was neat to see war planes at work rather than on display or flying in an air show.

The Church



While we couldn't attend the Temple without a babysitter, it was nice just to be able to visit the grounds. The San Diego Temple is absolutely beautiful and photos just don't do it justice. The other side of the Temple overlooks the freeway and each day we looked forward to seeing it as we traveled to and from Lego Land.



We met a member of the church at the Shamu show on one of our days and she told us about the Mormon Battalion Visitor's Centre in the Old Town district of San Diego. We were sure glad she shared this tip with us and it turned out to be a wonderful experience.



The tour was put on by missionaries and was comprised of different rooms decorated to depict different locations along the battalion's journey.



The main characters told their stories from talking picture frames and movies. I was really impressed to learn that the centre gets over 400 visitors each day, including local school field trips. The Elder giving the tour told me that residents recognize the Church's importance in the history of California and that the wagon road built by the battalion - which later became the major route for settlers and even the rail line - is often credited as being a major reason why California achieved statehood in only two years.



After the tour the kids got to pan for gold, draw water with a hand pump, and do laundry on a wash board.



I was most impressed to hear that when the battalion arrived in San Diego, despite the fact that they represented the conquering force of the United States Military, instead of doing those things that conquerers are often guilty of, they set to work alongside the Mexican people. They built up parts of the city and introduced fired bricks, replacing the adobe bricks that had been used up until that point. The battalion members became such close friends with the early San Diegans that when it came time for them to leave and join the Saints in Utah, the town's people circulated a petition to try and keep the Mormons from leaving.



These days we spent outside of the theme parks made up the 'holiday' portion of our vacation. And as an added bonus... they didn't really cost anything.



- C