“It’s a fact. Its the greatest city in the history of mankind. Discovered by the Germans in 1904, they named it San Diego. Which of course, in German, means a whale’s vagina….” – Ron Burgundy (Anchorman, 2004.)
And just like Ron Burgundy, I really was just trying to impress YOU! 😛
My boyfriend, Vince, definitely impressed me once again with a surprise weekend getaway to sunny San Diego to celebrate our 2 year anniversary! =) We both have never been to San Diego and it is a fairly quick trip via Southwest from where we currently live in the San Francisco Bay Area.
San Diego is a nice change from the overcast of the Bay. If you’re looking for some warm sunshine and clear skies, along with plenty of delicious food and unique tourist spots, then San Diego is a great place for your next adventure.
Where to Stay
If you can afford it, stay in the Gaslamp neighborhood; it’s downtown and centrally located to most tourist sites and attractions are within 5-10 minutes of everything. For Vince and I, the minimum $150-$200 USD per night for satisfactory accommodations or $300+ for a nice hotel were a tad outside of our budget. Even a hostel type of accommodation was going for about $90. Coincidentally we were staying the weekend of Pride Festival so maybe that was another reason why prices were so high. Our best bet as usual was an AirBnb which suited both our desired location and budget . We stayed in a private room where the home was in a prime location within a 5 minute walk or 2 minute drive to downtown. The cost was also only $75 per night! Booyah. More money for food 😉 The cost of our 3 night stay for the whole weekend equaled to one night in an average hotel in downtown.
Getting around.
We used the Turo app again to rent a car; it is seriously one of the best new apps out there and it’s like AirBnb but for renting other people’s cars. It is usually also cheaper than your traditional commercial car rental companies. If your interested in trying Turo out for yourself, here’s a gift of $25 for you to save money on your first ride! That’s like one whole day of driving for free 🙂 https://turo.com/c/lmpcwe
Prepping the Turo. Vince there taking pictures, crossing “T’s” and dotting “I’s” for any scratches and dents of the car prior to our use.
FRIDAY:
After settling into our Airbnb , dropping off the luggages, and freshening up., our first stop was The Punch Bowl Social for lunch. We came here Friday early afternoon just as lunch was starting so it wasn’t busy at all. Seriously, this place one of the coolest spots I have ever been to! It’s a modern, Mexican fusion restaurant with fancy, fruity and inventive drinks. They have a few bars and a LOT of activities i.e. arcade games, bowling lanes, darts, and bocce ball! Even as just a spot to hang out for some drinks, I would definitely love to come back in the evening time with a large group of friends.
After lunch, we wanted to walk around and explore so our next stop took us to Balboa Park. This place is HUGE! The one attraction within the park I did NOT want to miss was the Spanish Village Art Center. You won’t miss the colorful tiles of the courtyard and all the different and small art studios featuring local artists, painters, sculptors, photographers, jewelers, glass artists and more.
You could literally spend the whole weekend at Balboa Park because there are several different museums. There are actually a total of 17 museums and 3 gardens within the park. , some of which offer free admission and many offer discounts to students, locals, or military visitors for their entrance fees. I fully enjoyed just walking around the park, soaking up the warm sun, and smelling the pretty flowers.
While walking around Balboa Park, a little girl handed me this flower and said “This is for you!” and just happily skipped away to her Mom and Dad and siblings. I was really surprised and initially apprehensive to accept this flower from this little girl. But, this particular gesture made me feel extra special and warm inside. The flower had a message that read “You can keep this flower or give it away.” I decided to spread the love and share it with another passerby. I hope it made their day also.
Since this was our anniversary weekend celebration, Vince and I wanted to do something a little special. I heard about this speakeasy called The Noble Experiment. Typically reservations should be made a week in advance but luckily I was able to make a reservation just 24 hours ahead of time and we were able to nab a late reservation for around 11:30pm the next day. There are no instructions as to how to find this bar, and we were worried about missing our reservation because we might not find the place in time. The secrecy adds to the adventure of not knowing where you’re going; it made the start of our evening exciting and “shexy”. I won’t spoil the fun for you so you’ll have to figure it out for yourselves should you decide to make a visit on your own. I recommend trying the Dealer’s Choice , which is ultimately determined by your own craving, imagination, curiosity, as well as an openness to try something new and unexpected. I asked for something chocolately and raspberry-esque, and boy did the that bartender deliver! It was delicious!
Saturday:
More coffee and more studying which has become a weekend tradition for Vince and I even when we aren’t traveling. When we don’t have any plans scheduled ahead of time, it has become our default weekend activity to discover a new and local breakfast or coffee shop with a decent study space so we can be both productive and have something tasty to start off the day. This time we went to COPPA VIDA: a great place with both legit coffee for those hardcore coffee connoisseurs and a decent breakfast/ brunch. I ordered an avocado toast with ricotta, slices of speck (which is a cured meat similar to prosciutto), and a light sprinkle of vinigarette. Creamy, sweet, salty, and crunchy. It was THE BEST and the portion was huge! I also went coffee crazy and got two cups to prepare for the long day of exploring: one macchiato and one cappuccino. My boo always gets a plain black pour over.
LITTLE ITALY
This is a must visit neighborhood in downtown San Diego. Historically, it started off as an Italian fishing neighborhood but has now since been gentrified with high rise condominiums and apartments, upscale cocktail bars and pubs, restaurants, and retail shops. I enjoyed this particular part of town for the diversity of food options available on every street corner. A new addition to this foodie paradise is the Little Italy Food Hall which actually just opened up this June 2018. We were lucky enough to see this place within it’s first week of it’s grand opening.
Also within the Little Italy Neighborhood Every Saturday in the Little Italy neighborhood is the Mercato Farmer’s Market where the streets are lined with vendors selling local goods, food stalls, plants and fresh produce. FYI, If you pass by the yogurt booth, don’t forget to try the fig flavor !
Another one of my favorite things about this trip was getting around on the BIRD scooters. These scooters are usually found parked on most street corners or sidewalks. BIRD scooters are another new type of ride sharing service you can access with an app. It was pretty easy to set up, just download the app on the spot and from there you just enter your credit card info and scan the scooter. It’s only $1 to get started and charged 0.15 cents per minute while you ride. We rode along the Embarcadero from Little Italy to the Waterfront Park and all the way down to Sea Port Village. For over an hour back and forth for nearly a 4 mile trip and it was about $11.00. It was super easy, convenient, affordable and most of all FUN. We were able to see a lot more in a short amount of time and with the weather being so warm and sunny, these electric scooters saved us some sweat and developing bunions on our feet.
Again, we spent our night walking around the Gaslamp. SOO many different restaurants and bars where you can eat someplace different every night. If you want nightlife, drinks/ pubs, roof top bars, and food this is the place for you. This place is a TON of fun especially on the weekends at night. You’ll see couples going out for date night walking hand-in-hand, a bunch of “bros” heading to the club, and even the occasional flock of scantily clad, screaming women celebrating their bachelorette parties.
SUNDAY:
A little bit of coffee. A little bit of health smoothies. A little acai bowl. A lot more studying ..again. Unico Juice Shop and the Coffee and Tea Collective are located under the same roof to give you the best of both worlds. It is a nice quiet place to get some reading done while sipping on a cup o’ joe. You can even bring your dogs in as well to join you for coffee and a light breakfast after your morning stroll. If you have dogs, you are in luck! Your canine companions are welcome to join you inside the shop as you grab a bite to eat.
Lunch at Tacos El Gordo
This place was recommended by one of our Lyft drivers after our night of drinking from leaving the Noble Experiment. I want to thank that man, whoever he is. These are seriously THE BEST tacos you will every try in your life. This place was super packed and busy. The tables were packed, with people floating around with trays in hand, waiting and hoping for a seat to open up. On top of that, even as you sat and munched on your food, the next group of newcomers looking for a spot are seen out of the corner of your eye, silently floating around your table.. watching and probably silently calculating how long it would take you to finish your remaining tacos lol. The chaos was not reserved for inside the restaurant either; outside, there’s even a parking lot attendant to assist with traffic coming in and out of this place. It was crazy. Then again, these tacos were crazy good.
Worth it.
Dessert at SNOICE
With the blazing hot weather and after finishing some spicy tacos, we wanted a nice treat to cool down. SNOICE is located in Paradise Valley, east of San Diego. SNOICE is a Filipino fusion dessert, sweets, and drinks spot. They not only serve your traditional boba but they serve your traditional Filipino Halo-halo. Pronounced as “HALLO- HALLO” which translates to mix -mix. Halo-halo is typically made of crushed ice, poured over with creamy, condensed milk with various sweetened jellies, yams, beans, and topped with any flavor ice cream you want. I, personally, like ube/taro and mango ice-cream for mine =)
*poke* – Traditional thai iced tea with boba, and classic halo-halo
Early Dinner Convoy Street.
If you are fancying for some Asian food then Convoy Street is the place for you. Among all the different ethnic foods available on this street, we decided to go for Japanese food. We wanted something just a tad healthier and lighter to balance out all the sweets from earlier. Our friends, who are SD locals, took us out for sushi bowls at Poki One and Half. It’s like a Chipotle/Subway for sushi bowls! You select your base which is either rice or salad greens, followed by picking the type of fish you like and then add whatever additional sides and sauces to your liking.
MONDAY:
We started our morning with a small breakfast pastry and some quality coffee from James Coffee in Little Italy. We bought ourselves a bag of their Ethiopian beans as a souvenir to use back home. I like the open warehouse feel, very spacious and cool. It was another great place to study and/or meet up with friends.
SEAPORT VILLAGE
This was a very touristy spot with lots of little trinket and San Diego souvenir shops. It’s a great place to just sit down and people watch as you rest your legs.
Our last lunch was at BESHOCK RAMEN AND SAKE BAR. This place was really delicious! The food was spicy and generously portioned. They have an excellent lunch special which is pretty much two meals for the price of one. I ordered a tonkostu spicy ramen and a chashu rice bowl.
THE QARTYARD
We came here Monday afternoon and killed some time after lunch to squeeze in a more studying before we head back home to the airport. Conveniently located, it is immediately across the street from Beshock Ramen. Not only is the QARTYARD a food and drinks spot, it is also a place where people and their doggies can socialize. There is a dog park to the far left where you bring your furry friends to play while you can enjoy beers and drinks with friends.
Well, I think that about covers most of the key highlights from my trip to San Diego! Thank you for reading and for following my adventures. These are just a few recommendations I have for you all, I hope you find my San Diego itinerary useful in planning your next trip.
Here’s a list of other places we wanted to visit but unfortunately did not get the chance to.:
- Spruce Street Suspension Bridge- Bankers Hill Neighbor
- La Jolla beach- Sea Lions
- Legends Gallery Dr. Seuss in La Jolla
- Pacific Beach Boardwalk
- Hiking:
- Ho Chi Minh Trail.
- Potato Chip Rock on Mount Woodson
- Food & Drinks:
- Liberty Station Public Market
- Extraordinary Desserts at Banker’s Hill.
- The Nolan- Rooftop bar 14th floor of Courtyard by Marriott in the Gaslamp.
- Frauds and Swindlers
“You stay classy, San Diego.” -Ron Burgundy
TheOA -Stay Curious.
Written by A Z Flor Huerta & Edited by Vince R. Jison
