Family, Friends and Food in San Diego

The best part of traveling to places where you have family is the insiders information they can share. Not only the local places to eat, but the best times to visit local sites and avoid the crowds. It's like having your own Disney Adventure guide which is a wonderful experience. But that's for another blog post.

When our son moved to San Diego it immediately became a frequent vacation favorite. I never tire of visiting there. This time we brought some friends along. One who's photo you'll never see on social media due to her own request. That doesn't mean she didn't have a great time.

First stop is usually Torrey Pine State Preserve. We are avid hikers and enjoy the stretch after a long plane ride. The trails in Torrey Pine https://torreypine.org are easy, less than one-mile hike with views of the ocean, sage scrub and tafoni.   

Tafoni - cave like sculptors in rocks.

This trip we arrived late and were unable to hike Torrey Pine. No problem. Our next favorite thing to do in San Diego is eat. First stop for dinner on our trip was Ironside Fish and Oysters. I sat across from a wall with a view of piranha skulls. It's not as threatening as it looks. The green lipped mussels were the best I had since my last trip to New Zealand.

Every trip to San Diego includes a visit to the Midway. http://www.midway.org If you've got that kid who says, if it's about social studies, I'm not going... take them anyway.  If they don't enjoy the audio scavenger hunt get them to the flight deck and they will change their mind about the entire experience. 

This trip we ventured a little north of San Diego and visited Temecula.  Found a great Groupon - $30 for a 2 hour tour with ten tastings and five pairings at Miramonte Winery. Great tour guides and lots of fun. After 10 tastings everyone is family. Make sure you make a reservation. Our favorite from the  tasting was the White Sangria - sent home 6 bottles.

http://www.miramontewinery.com

Family, old friends and new friends

The list is endless, but here's a couple of local favorites.
 Liberty Station http://libertystation.com was a former Naval Training Center in Point Loma. There are restaurants, shops and galleries there now. It's a nice place to visit for a couple of hours. Buy lunch and sit outside where you get an amazing view of the underbelly of the planes taking off from Lindenbergh Field.

I'm always on the lookout for a new and interesting form of chocolate and found this at one of the shops.

https://bakerandolive.com

If you're near Little Italy between 7am and 11 am, stop by Xtraction Craft Cafe - located in front of the Downtown Works Building at the corner of West B and India Street. They started out serving Cold Brew and have expanded their menu.  I'm not a coffee drinker, but everyone with me said it was the best cold brew they've ever tasted. I did have a Kombucha and it was really good. It's one of those local finds you wish you could take home with you. 

https://www.yelp.com/biz/xtraction-craft-café-san-diego-4

Sunday Market -Little Italy

San Diego is great for family vacations. Even big kids love it.

Flat Stanley at a Padres game

                                                

                                                       Lunch at Old Town.

For more information about Zee visit her website www.zeldabenjamin.com