I took this picture. Isn't it gorgeous?

Or at least re-touched. 

Star of India, the world’s oldest active sailing ship, spent three weeks in dry dock this summer for its decennial maintenance and came back looking better than ever in time to celebrate her 146^th birthday this Saturday, November 14.  The Maritime Museum of San Diego will give her a proper birthday party that day, complete with cake — and everyone is invited!

Built in 1863, Star of India sailed around the world 21 times before retiring when steam ships began to rule the seas.  After three decades of dilapidation, she was restored to her former glory through the efforts of San Diegans who donated their nickles and dimes as well as shipbuilding skills and man-hours.  Such a history of goodwill makes this landmark all the richer.

This ship is another reason why I love this town.  San Diego has such an impressive pantheon of cultural symbols for a west coast city, as well as a history of saving them from returning to dust.

And now we’re throwing them birthday parties!  Along with birthday cake to celebrate the Star’s 146^th. . .

• It’s Family Days at the Maritime Museum on both Saturday the 14^th and Sunday the 15^th.  Kids 12 and under will be admitted free.
  

  Insider Tip: Cover your ears!

• Making the Star’s birthday celebration even wilder, the Maritime Museum will stage more of its famous cannon battles on Saturday and Sunday.  You’ll get your chance to climb aboard our official state ship the Californian, or the Privateer Lynx and witness realistic cannon fights up close.  (Don’t worry, they forget to load the cannon balls every time!)

• If you prefer to have a bit more involvement in your ship battles, how about getting into one of the museum’s two decommissioned naval submarines for a life-size game of Battleship?  Would I make that up?  Sink or be sunk as you call your shots using radio communication.  And may the best sub commander win!

Star of India lives out her retirement alongside other historic beauties of the sea such as the steam yacht Medea and the steam ferryboat Berkeley, which houses most of the museum’s exhibits and displays, and you can go aboard and explore every one of them.  For an extra $3 you’ll be able to take a historic harbor tour aboard the 95-year-old Pilot.  What a party!

Be sure to hit up the International Visitor Information Center across the street (corner of Broadway & Harbor) for your discounted museum tickets.  For prices and details on the special programs and charters (which happen all year round) contact the Maritime Museum at (619) 234-9153 or visit www.sdmaritime.org.

Tags: downtown, fun, kids, maritime museum, museum, outdoors, san diego bay, things to do, what to do

(4 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)

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Smash Shack logo

So when you think of relaxing in San Diego, you probably think about soaking up the sun on one of our beaches, getting some spa treatments or enjoying a nice cocktail on a rooftop bar.  All absolutely valid ways to let the stress just melt away.  But last week I experienced an alternative (and more cathartic) way to de-stress in San Diego.  I smashed stuff!

Sarah’s Smash Shack opened in the northern part of Downtown about a year ago and has already received much acclaim from, believe it or not, psychologists!  Written up in the Jan/Feb issue of Psychology Today, the shop is praised for the therapeuticness (is that word?) of smashing stuff!  SSS has also been featured on CNN Money, and in a number of magazines including: Inc, Redbook and Every Day with Rachel Ray. 

The Smash Shack is exactly what it sounds like – a place to smash stuff.  Purchase any number of glass and ceramic items from the Shack’s collection and go to town.  They’ve got 2 rooms with reinforced steel walls where you can smash to your heart’s delight!  For a small fee, they’ll even let you bring your own stuff from home to smash!  It is amazing how much lighter you feel after tossing a couple of plates against a wall!  There’s even an environmental side to this story.  The items in their shop have been purchased from thrift stores that have been unable to resell the items, and the shards of your broken frustrations are sometimes made into jewelery, pottery, or other recycled items.

Suited up for the Smash Shack

“I can smash stuff at home and it won’t cost me any money”, you say.  “Why should I pay to do it someplace else?”  Well for one, you won’t have your family or neighbors calling the cops on you!  But in all seriousness, Sarah’s has really made this a total package.  To make the experience more personalized, they’ll play whatever type of music you want in the smash room (I chose a particularly loud Linkin’ Park song) - or you can even bring your iPod in to play a particular song.  You can also tape a picture of your ex, your boss, or whoever is stressing you out, on the wall so you know where to aim.  Plus, write your frustrations on the items you are smashing and they magically go away when the item is smashed! (* Disclaimer:  The last comment was totally made up!)

They’ll even let you bring your own stuff (with limitations) to smash!  Bad break up?  Smash the things that remind you of your ex.  Finally get a new dish set to replace the old one? Why not bring the old set in for a smash?!  There are SO many possibilities here.

I just went with a basic smashing of shot glasses to get the feel of it this time.  But you can be sure that I’ll be back to smash some more!  Now that “the smash” is in my blood, I will return!

Tags: downtown, fun, in the news, things to do

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I’m back!  In case you were wondering, my fish & chips lunch was delicious.  And my people-watching session proved to be more fruitful than I expected!  Through the magic of common begging — and with the help of a generous Comic-Con attendee — my boys and I were able to enter the Con and take a quick lap around the exhibit hall to see what we could see.  (By the way, you haven’t truly experienced gridlock until you’ve attempted to push a stroller through Comic-Con on Saturday.  My apologies to all the ankles I smashed yesterday.)

"Nobody move! I dropped a contact lens."

So you all know what Bat-, Spider- and Supermen look like.  Here are a couple of my favorite creative efforts from this year.

HimTube: Live @ Comic-Con 2009

The dark side: the side with style!

Imagine how excited I was to see this! After all these years, I finally found Waldo!

You ask me, this is the real Mardi Gras in San Diego.  (I mean Samedi Gras.)

During my quick visit to the exhibit hall, I was reminded of another of Comic-Con’s attractions — the art!  There are rows upon rows of artists displaying their work and even creating new, original sketches for fans before their very eyes.  This is, after all, what it’s all about.  These are the guys and gals who inspire the madness we see every year downtown in the first place.  I was happy to find at least one artist I recognized, in action (pictured below).  Maybe next year, I’ll go to the Con dressed as him.

G-Man and Mini Marvels creator Chris Giarrusso sketches the cutest superheroes ever.

Hurry! There are precious few hours left in which to get your superpeople-watching on!

‘Nuff said.

Tags: comic-con, downtown, fun, San Diego Events

(4 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)

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Don't even think about sneaking into the sold out Con this year!

If you dislike large, fantastically dressed crowds, or are a supervillain wishing to avoid any run-ins with the superhero community, you would be wise to stay away from downtown San Diego this weekend!  Comic-Con 2009 has long been sold out — not to keep rubbing it in — but, aside from Kate’s great suggestions for the ticketless masses, the Gaslamp Quarter is still the place to be this weekend, if only to get in some of the best people watching of the year.  Sitting out on the patio of any restaurant in the Gaslamp Quarter gives you ringside seats to a true San Diego spectacle as our most colorful conventioneers fill the streets.

Comic-Con is a sight worth seeing both in and out of the Convention Center.  So what is this bigger-than-life happening that fills our hotels, takes up our parking spaces, and crowds our buses and trolleys?  Is it bird?  Is it plane?  What started out as 300 comic book geeks in a conference room in 1970 has grown into San Diego’s biggest annual convention, bringing over 125,000 attendees from far and wide to take part in this four-and-a-half day blizzard of popular arts and niche marketing for comic book media companies, artists, animators and Hollywood studios.

Seen at the Con: Babyman & D.A.D. (with super pacifier ring)

In fact, it’s the Hollywood presence that has pushed attendance over the top in recent years.  Fans crowd into auditoriums to catch glimpses of next year’s science fiction/superhero/fantasy movies, TV shows and video games.  They line up to meet big-name actors, directors and other genre superstars.  Even one-hit-wonders from eras past come to the Con to get a piece of that fanboy adulation.  (Remember Lou Ferrigno, TV’s Incredible Hulk?  That guy shows up every year to sign autographs and pose for pictures; and even he occupies but a tiny booth in a sea of fantastic spectacle, one that spills out into the streets.)

To me, that’s Comic-Con.  Everywhere you look in and around the Convention Center, there is somebody’s childhood fantasy waiting to be reinvigorated; and that, evidently, is money in the bank.  Sure, you can find plenty of vendors on the exhibit hall floor who will sell you back all the funny books your mom threw out when you went off to college — cruel reminders all that those Shazam! comics you held so dear could today have fetched you an early retirement — but it’s as much a playground as it is a marketplace, an enormous game of “Let’s pretend” where people gather to bring their kidlike passions out into the light to be accepted, even praised.  After all, we all have our little eccentricities — some more conspicuous than others — and we’re lucky if we find a place to let our freak flags fly free.  (Say that five times fast.)  For the comic book enthusiast/fanboy, it’s downtown San Diego in July.  Just take a walk down in the Gaslamp Quarter and pull up a chair at your favorite eatery for a good view of the madness.  (Zombie Walk, anyone?)

Me?  I don’t have passes either, but I’ll be front and center at The Tin Fish for some fish & chips and a little people/superhero/monster-watching.  If I get some good shots of the spectacle, I’ll share them with you here.  Until then, true believer, Excelsior!

If you can make any sense of this picture, then welcome home, fanboy.

Still bummed that you missed out on Con passes?  Couldn’t make it to San Diego this year?  You’re down but not out.  You can still keep up with the latest from Comic-Con 2009 through live blogging courtesy of the gaming site UGO.

‘Nuff said.

Tags: comic-con, downtown, fun, San Diego Events

(3 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)

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Let’s talk live music.  Plenty of big name acts play the big venues in San Diego, but I believe certain forms of music were meant to be played and heard up close.  I’m talkin’ about jazz and blues.  Now I don’t consider myself an authority on the local jazz and blues scene, but I’ve been seen ’round midnight up in the supper club now and then.  Does that sound like where you’d like to be, too?  Good.  Keep reading.  I did some legwork for you.

Ahmad Jamal at Anthology

I have to start with Anthology.  You could always find jazz and blues in San Diego, but when Anthology opened, the spirit of the music seemed to find a home here.  Anthology is a three-level music venue with fine dining, two bars, private boxes, and not one bad seat in the house.  The first time I set foot in this venue, it was clear that the intention was to create an exceptional supper club experience with emphasis on the music, which does happen there every night of the week.  In its opening weeks, Anthology hosted masters such as Arturo Sandoval and Chuchito Valdez, and the hits just kept comin’.  If those names mean anything to you, then the value of an Anthology in our midst is clear.  It provides us with an elegant and intimate landing pad for touring greats of jazz, blues, Latin and R&B; not to mention that Anthology has a house band that has gained a prestige of its own.

I’m a believer in letting the music speak for itself, so I’ll try not to go on too long.  Let me just point you in the right direction.  Here are some other swingin’ venues I’ve tried.

• The Gaslamp Quarter’s famous Croce’s whose jazz bar jumps five nights a week — Wednesday through Sunday — is about as intimate as they come.  Sit at the end of the bar and you could end up as part of the band.  Entry is complimentary to diners (21 and up).  And how does a Sunday Jazz Brunch sound?  Delicious?  Drop in from 11:30 A.M. to 2:00 P.M.

• Speaking of Sunday Jazz Brunch, Chateau Orleans in Pacific Beach serves one of those, too.  The menu here is of the Cajun persuasion, and the cornbread alone is worth the #30 bus ride to PB.  Thursdays through Saturdays, expect to hear some live blues.

• Stay on the #30 a while longer, and you can hit Clay’s La Jolla for a very nice night out at the supper club.  Thursday through Sunday, you’ll hear live jazz; but if you’re looking for music of the Big Band variety, try Sunday night.  Clay’s sits atop Hotel La Jolla, and the menu is primarily seafood — of the fine dining variety.  I do suggest you make reservations here.

• Dizzy’s showcases traveling acts as well as homegrown artists.  The music is sometimes jazz, sometimes blues, and sometimes a surprise, but always worth the trip downtown.  (For you locals, Dizzy’s is no longer at its East Village location on 7th Avenue.  Visit the new digs at the San Diego Wine & Culinary Center on 2nd & J St.  Don’t worry, kids — all ages are still welcome.)

Finally, I can’t let you go without giving up one of my favorite local secrets:

• Jazz Live is a monthly concert which broadcasts live from San Diego City College’s Saville Theatre on yours truly’s jazz station of choice, Jazz88. So far, they have had no trouble delivering heavy hitters to the stage, month after month.  I’ve been up close and personal with the likes of Bobby Hutcherson, Red Holloway and Joey DeFrancesco.  Again, if those names swing any bells for you, you know what’s up.  San Diego might be a little hipper than you thought, huh?
  

  Benny Golson at Jazz Live

Jazz Live does tend to fill up quickly since Jazz88 members get to reserve free tickets — and the Saville Theatre ain’t exactly the Hollywood Bowl — but as long as I’m giving up my secrets, here’s one more: if you get there before 7:30 the night of the show, you could score some unclaimed member tickets.  (And there are always a few unclaimed member tickets.)

What did I miss?  Any music venues near and dear to you that I should know about?

IMPORTANT UPDATE: The Temecula Valley International Jazz Festival will take place this weekend, July 10 to 12, 2009!  The festival will feature 22 performances over three days in Temecula’s wine country.  Eight local wineries, two breweries, and three jazz stations will be represented and the festivities will include extracurricular activities such as musician workshops, percussion clinics, and an art fair.  Check the website for ticket information and schedule.

Tags: dining, downtown, fun, la jolla, live music, pacific beach, things to do, what to do

(2 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)

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Downtown’s Gaslamp Quarter is well known as a nightlife destination as well as home to many of San Diego’s signature restaurants and boutiques, but those 16 square blocks south of Broadway also hold the key to the city’s fascinating history.

Like any Wild West town, the story of San Diego is rich with sensational stories of heroism and infamy – from its origins as “New Town” to its era as the red light district, through its time of decay into its renaissance – and you can relive it all through these unique and entertaining sightseeing tours.

• The Gaslamp Quarter Historical Foundation’s historical walking tour leaves every Saturday at 11:00 A.M. from the William Heath Davis House on 4th & Island Ave.  The house itself is the oldest surviving structure in downtown San Diego – each of its rooms showcasing a unique period in San Diego’s history – and it only gets more interesting from there.  On this tour, you’ll get to see the Gaslamp Quarter with new eyes as you retrace the steps of many colorful residents (including former San Diego “capitalist” Wyatt Earp), visit historic Victorian-style buildings, and walk the streets of the former red light district.
  The tour costs $10.00 for adults, and $8.00 for seniors, students and military.  Kids’ tours and private group tours are also available.

• Back Alley Tours focuses on the Gaslamp Quarter’s risqué history as our original red light district.  Here you will travel back in time to the more lawless days and nights of the ”Stingaree,” as it was known then.  Owner and tour guide Melanie Young prepared this unique and unusual tour by spending a year digging through the archives at the Museum of San Diego History reading periodicals and journals, studying historic photographs and absorbing every bit of historical information she could get her hands on.  The result is a unique and thoroughly entertaining look at old San Diego.
  Back Alley Tours take place in the evenings Wednesdays through Saturdays.  Tickets cost $20 each, or $35 for a pair. Seniors, students and military tickets are $18.
• Haunted San Diego Ghost Tours and Ghostly Tours In History provide a different kind of thrill after dark.  Hear macabre tales of San Diego’s history, explore its mysteries, and walk in the footsteps of some historical figures who met untimely or unjust demises in the streets of “New Town.”  Yup, they’re still hanging around, waiting for some resolution or perhaps just enjoying the San Diego weather.  Both tours also visit other historic districts of San Diego such as Old Town and Coronado. The tours are billed as “PG-13″ but don’t worry – it’s an Edgar Allen Poe spooky, not a Rosemary’s Baby spooky.
  Tour pricing varies by type of tour.  Check out their websites for details.

Will you ever look at downtown San Diego the same way again?  I quote the raven: “Nevermore!”

Tags: downtown, fun, Gaslamp Quarter, ghosts, history, museum, outdoors, things to do, tour, what to do

(2 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)

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San Diego Zoo’s Elephant Odyssey is officially open and it is epic!  Seven elephants – six Asian and one African – now call the 2.4 acre habitat home.  The huge, new exhibition puts you right in their world, along with the variety of neighbors that surround them, including horses, rattlesnakes and some surprisingly interesting dung beetles.

"And over here is where we're putting in the jacuzzi."

On your way in, you’ll visit a simulated tar pit to get you in the mood, and explore the evolutionary past of elephants and other species through fossil dig sites as well as life-size models of their ancestors – mammoths, saber-toothed cats and other beasts now extinct.

"Take me with you!"

Elephant Odyssey is another great reason to visit the San Diego Zoo, as if you needed one.

Tags: animals, balboa park, fun, zoo

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You know you’re a big deal when museums choose to exhibit unrealized and discarded ideas from your doodle pads.  Much, much more than a “doodler,” Leonardo Da Vinci left behind some real feats of engineering, science and art, much of which are still being discovered and explored.  I got a chance to experience Da Vinci at the San Diego Air & Space Museum this week.  The Da Vinci Experience is a unique exhibition in that it showcases not his original works, but replicas of his inventions and mechanical designs as well as of some of the ideas he never got around to implimenting.

What do you think this thing is? Fascinating, that's what.

The exhibition houses quite a few hands-on pieces as well, such as Leonardo’s water screw, differential gear, and bicycle chain.  There is also a challenge to reproduce a small scale version of Leonardo’s military use, portable foot bridge - comprised only of slotted, wooden rods.  “Slotted, wooden rods,” you say, “How does this compete with Shamu?”  All I can tell you is that my son and I tried on our engineering hats with this one, and it was surprisingly engaging and fun.  It was a challenge, but when we did successfully reproduce the bridge, and he got to walk over it, we both felt quite accomplished.

Along with the replicas of some of Leonardo’s brainchildren, there also are videos playing which give background on Leonardo and his times, facsimile sketches on anatomy, and a gallery displaying reproductions of 11 of his paintings which highlight the outside-the-box viewpoint he expressed in his art.

San Diego Air & Space Museum will be home to The Da Vinci Experience until January, 2010.  Find details here.

Tags: balboa park, fun, museum

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Dolphin Encounter gives you the personal quality time you've always wanted.

Watching the animals at Sea World perform is always fun, but there is nothing like getting close enough to shake hands with some of these creatures and getting a personal introduction to them by their handlers.  We met and fed walruses and porpoises, had a nice sit down with a Macaroni penguin, and – my favorite - played with dolphins during a quick version of the Dolphin Encounter program. 

Normally, those dolphins don’t give us the time of day unless we stand ready with fish in hand, but their trainers made sure we got the VIP treatment.  After getting acquainted with our dolphins and learning some basic hand signals, we were able to make them jump, “walk,” whistle and sing.  It was like conducting an orchestra of sea mammals.  They were so eager to play, I swear the dolphins were having more fun than we were.  I would strongly recommend this man and beast encounter to any son of mine. 

Some programs even allow you to jump in and interact with some of these creatures in their environment, though you don’t get fed for doing tricks like they do.  You have to buy your own raw fish.

Sea World’s variety of behind-the-scenes programs each have a cost above and beyond the price of admission, but talk about making memories for the family!  Set your significant other or your kids up on one of these Sea World extras and become an instant hero! 

A menu of Sea World’s animal interaction programs can be found here.

Tags: behind-the-scenes, fun, outdoors, seaworld, what to do

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 As a budding kidologist, I find the New Children’s Museum downtown to be fertile ground for study.  For me, the children themselves are the exhibits here.  There are interactive stations of all kinds in every corner of the three-story building, but it isn’t until the children come along and lay their hands on them that we know what we’re looking at.  For example, we see the older children transforming a pile of angular cushions into a scale model of the city block on which the museum rests, while the younger tots may use the cushions as mere stacking blocks and landing pads. 

 There are plenty of opportunities for youngsters to spend their ample energy, like the room made entirely of cushions and mattresses where kids can literally bounce off the walls – a sort of cage match for the kiddies.  If your little friend isn’t ready for a nap after ten minutes in there, have him climb the rock wall a few times, or throw a dance party inside the giant, walk-in iPod, or ride the leg-powered, wooden “Segway” scooters. 

But not all of the interactive stations require kids to get physical.  They are also encouraged to perform thought experiments and write creatively.  Kids can answer questions about their feelings and observations about art and leave their answers in a public file for others to read.

Even outside the museum, passersby can see kids slapping new layers of paint on the Volkswagon Beetle outside, or creating clay sculptures – like the piece pictured below – that sit outside on a ledge to dry.

"Snail Hamlet" by Noa's Dad, 2008

The museum also offers special programs, day camps, and school tours for all the different age groups – toddler through high school. 

Don’t miss the playground right across the street, on Island Avenue.

The New Children’s Museum is open every day except Wednesday.  Admission prices are $10 for adults and kids over 1 year, and $5 for seniors (65+) and active military (with ID).  Family memberships begin at $85.  Admission is free to all on the second Sunday of each month.

Tags: downtown, fun, kids, museum

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