Out and About: Staycation Pics

My husband and I never go on vacations together, mostly because we can't afford it. (I have realized in recent years that traveling simply isn't a priority of mine and that's ok but I probably would travel more if I had the money.) Recently, we decided to take a week off of work at the same time so we could have some fun before the busy season starts at my job. We didn't go anywhere, but we did take a few day trips around San Diego County.

First, we drove out to Julian in the mountains. We'd been there once before, to visit the California Wolf Center, loved the area, and wanted to go back. Julian is a fairly small town. There's not a ton to do there. After a little research, I decided on a hike. I chose the Upper Santa Ysabel Creek Trail. It was cold, very windy, and a bit rainy. I absolutely loved it!

Clouds low enough to kiss the mountains.

Santa Ysabel Creek (presumably).

Loved the colors inside this felled tree.

I read that the cows are friendly & usually greet hikers
but they didn't move when we saw them.

After the hike, we went into the town of Julian, walked around, and shopped. I insisted on visiting the old cemetery, much to my husband's dismay. I love cemeteries.

I'm guessing J.M. died in childbirth.

I liked this headstone, which seems to have been carved
by a non-professional.

A couple of days later, we drove down to La Jolla, a well-to-do community on the ocean within the city of San Diego. It's famous for the sea lions that like to chill in the cove there. After we saw these local celebrities, we stopped by a coffee shop a friend had recommended for its scones (which were excellent). I wanted to go to a local museum but directed us to the wrong part of town. Next time!

Lastly, over the weekend, we drove out to Pala to visit Gems of Pala, where we panned for gemstones. Afterward, we stopped by the casino to hit up their buffet, confirming my dislike of buffets because 1. I can never eat enough to justify the price and 2. The food never impresses me. Still, I enjoyed the visit to this part of the county, where I'd never been before.

View from Gems of Pala.

My relatively small haul of tourmaline: green, pink, and black.

It was nice to take some time off work. I'm feeling refreshed & ready to get back into the swing of things!

Out and About: Bernardo Bay Trail (Lake Hodges)

A couple of weekends ago, my husband & I were thinking about taking a day trip but instead ended up choosing to do this hike in Escondido. The route we took was very easy (no elevation) and relatively short (perhaps 1 hour). It was a chilly morning, absolutely perfect for a hike. We enjoyed it immensely.

Beginning of the trail.

Hills in the distance.

Cactus "garden."

Lake Hodges perhaps doesn't look impressive to those of you who live in non-desert climates, but a friend told me recently that every time he's done this hike, there wasn't any water at all:

I loved how green the hills were. Come Fall, nothing will be green anymore. We've probably had just about as much rain as we're going to get this year:

Final shots:

Rocky hill.

A greener view of the lake.

Pretty trail shot.

Afterward, we drove over to Encinitas to ruin all the karma we built up during the hike with a visit to Betty's Pie Whole. If you're ever in SD county, I highly recommend it.

Out and About: San Clemente

A couple of years ago, I spent a magical few days with a friend in San Clemente, a cute little beach town not all that far from where I live. My husband had never visited. I wanted us to spend some time there together, so I planned a day trip. 

Honestly, it's not the most "happening" town around. I did some googling for ideas on what to do and that's how I ended up discovering Casa Romantica. It's the former home of Ole Hanson, the founder of San Clemente, now a museum/art gallery/cultural center/wedding venue. It's easy to find, right on the edge of downtown San Clemente, and it only costs $5/person to visit!

Entryway.

There was a lot to admire at Casa Romantica. I particularly enjoyed the tile work, all done in concrete. Our very informative guide told us how it was made but I've already forgotten:

I also loved the ceilings & fountains:

But let's not forget the views and the gardens:

This is what Ole Hanson saw when he looked out his office
window. It's a wonder he ever got any work done.

San Clemente pier

Sculpture

After finishing our exploration of Casa Romantica, we headed into downtown San Clemente for some food. We ended up at Nick's, which I now see is a very localized chain. Nick's is beautiful, a great deal fancier than most of places we frequent. The drinks were strong & the food was excellent.

I had a Moscow Mule; Dan had a mimosa.

These deep fried, bacon-topped deviled eggs were one of
the most delicious things I've ever had the pleasure to eat.

My chicken pot pie.

After lunch we strolled around downtown, where I picked up some chocolates at Schmid's:

Then we parked in a neighborhood close to the beach & walked the boardwalk down to the San Clemente pier:

Path to the boardwalk.

The boardwalk parallels the train tracks. Both Amtrak
& the local Metrolink run here.

On the pier, a pigeon checks us out hopefully.

Exquisite water color.

After we walked back to the car, we took a quick trip to the local outlet mall. I didn't take any pictures there because we didn't stay long & because I don't think mall pictures are very interesting. We headed home once we left the mall. It was a beautiful day. I'm still in love with San Clemente!

Neighborhood Walks: To Curbside Cafe & Vista Public Library

It's been a while since I've done one of these! Our first place in San Diego County wasn't within walking distance of anything interesting. Recently, my husband landed a new job, for which he requires our only car several days a week, leaving me stranded at home due to my own work schedule (my work is only a mile from home). Luckily, my seasonal job will soon be over, and so I can take some train trips on the days he takes the car.

Anyway, when I grew tired of being stuck at home last week, I decided to walk to downtown Vista to get some breakfast and then stop at the library on the way home to pick up a book that was on hold. Many of these pics are from my own neighborhood!

These folks down the street had this sign post up for months, empty. I thought they were either selling their home or had just purchased it & the realtor was lazy. But then this lovely hand-painted sign showed up:

I like this house's garage more than I like the house itself. It's so cute!:

A nicely xeriscaped yard:

I went slightly out of my way to take a picture of this realty sign. I can't get over the fact that this realtor uses a caricature as her professional photo. I just find it really bizarre. I'm half-convinced it's the reason why this house has been sitting on the market for months. (Note: I removed the identifying information from the sign; half the sign isn't randomly missing.)

Interesting flowers that I don't recognize:

For the first time, I noticed that this very blue house has a very blue fountain out front. They also have a very blue mailbox. I'm sensing a theme.

Someone is ready for Halloween:

The Vista Masonic Center makes me so sad every time I see it. I honestly can't tell whether or not it's derelict. It looks like a place in a horror movie that teenagers break into on a lark & end up getting murdered. (Note: I looked it up & not only is it still in use, the Vista Masons appear quite active. And they have a lovely website. I'm shocked. I've never seen a single car parked there or people going in & out.)

Yellow roses never look as beautiful in pictures as they do in person:

Fun cactus:

I spied this traffic cone on the roof of a local school. I wondered if it was tossed up there by naughty children or if there was something construction/janitorial related going on.

I took this picture to show how steep the hills in Vista can be. Also, you can tell by the utterly parched grass that it hadn't rained since June (it sprinkled the following day).

A favorite yard of mine:

Mural on the side of the Curbside Cafe:

Outside Lush Lounge (local coffee shop), they're ready for Day of the Dead:

I love a good Spanish tile:

Vista has had a bit of a rough reputation in recent years. It's a town in transition, and the city planners are working hard to turn it into an artists' colony. I liked this painted sign calling attention to the free doggie poop bags (note: it was completely empty of bags). Funny that the nearest beach that allows dogs is over 20 miles away from Vista. We've never taken our dog to a beach.

I may have liked the detail on the back of the sign more than the painting on the front:

My second destination:

I LOVED these amazing pieces of post-it note artwork in the library's side windows. There was also a Pac-Man & a Superman symbol. Unfortunately, access to the courtyard was locked, so I couldn't get in there for a good angle. Also, someone sitting inside was staring at me, which made me self-conscious. These windows look into the children's area, so I didn't want her to think I was being a creep.

This roundtrip walk totaled 3 miles. I enjoyed the exercise & the time out of the house!