Days 10-13

Day 10 – January 15

Amazing Travel Lodge in San Diego

Today was Sunday so we went to church with Jyles and some of his YWAMers.  It was a cool Vineyard church, pretty small but with some great fellowship.  Following church we said goodbye to Jyles and took off for San Diego.  We chose to travel along the coast and it was a beautiful drive along the ocean. At one point we stopped to watch the waves crashing to shore  and the surfers who were trying to ride them in.  We had booked a hotel online ahead of time, and we were a little uncertain of it’s quality but we were pleasantly surprised at the marble hallways and huge room.  It was a Travelodge for just under $50.00 so online booking is clearly the way to go!  Once we were checked in, we headed down to the pier and saw a lot of large ships and a couple of museums about ships. We decided to come back the next day after the zoo to see the museums in the light of day.  San Diego is a very clean city and it had a slower paced feel to it and so I like it a lot!  For supper we decided on Pizza Hut because it was close, but upon arriving we saw there was a Chinese buffet across the parking lot, so we audibled and went there instead.  It was an experience alright, and we left very full, but I’d finally gotten the ice-cream I’d been wanting for a week. 

San Diego Zoo

Day 11 – January 16

We started the day off with a good breakfast and then were off the zoo.  It is located in the center of the downtown, but you’d never know it once you arrived.  There were so many beautiful plants everywhere and it really felt like we were in a jungle.  We started off with a guided bus tour that showed us half the zoo (including the elephant, cougar, lion, bobcat, bears, and more), and then we took the skyfarii (a cable car) to the back half of the zoo and checked out the half that the bus didn’t show us (polarbears, monkeys, tigers, hippo, and lots more!).  4 hours later we still had not seen all of it, so in efforts to have time to go to the ship museum we left.  I’d love to come back some day and spend a day or two at the zoo. 

One of the many planes on the Midway flight deck

We drove back to the pier and started exploring the Midway, a retired aircraft carrier which was immense in size!  The top deck was 4 acres, the hanger holds 60 planes, and it houses a crew of 1000! It was unbelievably large and complex.  It’s crazy to think that it was designed, built and operated so many years ago with old and limited technology.  The quality of the restoration was also incredible and there were lots of animatronics, video screens, artifacts, and even an interactive headset audio tour that told you about each different part as you went.  We could have spent days there too, but eventually our heads were just too full of information. 

Animatronic people on the ship

We dragged ourselves away from San Diego, tired from walking all day and  knowing there was more to do, but just not having the time. 

We stayed in Bakersfield for the night at another Travel Lodge for just under $50 again, it was not nearly as nice as the previous one, but it was still ok.  We had gone to Jack-in-the-box for lunch earlier (they have curly fries!), so we settled on a light supper at Subway and then we relaxed at the hotel.  It had been a very long, tiring, but enjoyable day.

Day 12  - January 17

Sea Lions Galor!

This morning we were on the road to San Francisco by 8:00!  We made our way to Pier 39 and watched the really loud and funny sea lions bathing in the sun.  The pier was very commercial, but still quite quaint.  We stopped by a bakery for lunch and then went to the steepest and the curviest streets.  The curvy one was contrived, so that was disappointing, but all the streets seemed insanely steep.  It was fun driving around there, but also confusing. Eventually we made it out of the residential mess and crossed the famed, Golden Gate Bridge. 

Golden Gate Bridge

We stayed the night in Ukiah, and our first look at the hotel we booked online stirred fear in our hearts, but it ended up being quite nice.  It was a Quality Inn for $61.05.  It seems as the towns get smaller the prices go up.  We went to a 50’s styled diner for supper and had a great server and a great meal listening to golden oldies.  All in all, a very good evening.

Day 13 – January 18

We barely fit through

It was a day of driving today (to be followed by 3 more it seems) and we weaved our way through the lush green forests of Northern California on route to Crescent City and the towering Redwood forests.  It was pretty, but the constant rain put a damper on our activities and we simply drove through the park, rather than hiking in the rain.  We stayed the night in Eugene Oregon at a Executive Inn, another online booking that looked scary until we saw the room.  It seems like all the older hotels are redoing their rooms, so it’s a nice place to stay, you can just tell that the outside can’t be totally redone to look new.  For $53.00 it’s hard to complain. 

We have clearly gotten to be really good tourists because for the second night in a row we found a cool restaurants to eat at.  Today it was Hole in the wall BBQ, a tiny little place that specialized in catered and dine-in BBQ meals.  It was pretty good food, and a really cool atmosphere and décor.  We’ve beem watching the weather reports and keeping an eye on the road conditions; with all this rain it’s only a matter of time before it turns into snow and ice, and we’re hoping that it won’t happen wherever we are.