Veterans Day falls on November 11, the anniversary of the Armistice of World War I — not a great battle but an achievement of peace.  Each year, San Diego honors United States veterans with the San Diego County Veterans Day Parade taking place downtown on Pacific Highway beginning at 11:00 A.M.  Everyone is invited to come and see one of San Diego’s most spectacular parades.

After the parade, you can visit the U.S.S. Midway Museum and watch as its newest addition — a restored World War II Corsair fighter plane — is lifted onto the fight deck.  Veterans will receive free admission to the museum and $1 from every ticket sold that day will be donated to the Veterans Village of San Diego.

While you’re there, check out the collection of military memorials along the bay, between the U.S.S. Midway and Seaport Village.

Building on the spirit of the occasion, LEGOLAND California has recreated the Vietnam Veterans’ Memorial in miniature.  The mini-memorial is situated in the park’s  Miniland, between the mini Lincoln Memorial and the mini Washington Memorial, just like the real thing in Washington, D.C.

Also in honor of Veterans Day, Old Town Trolley Tours of San Diego will treat all veterans — active duty, retired, and honorably discharged — to an entertaining and enlightening city sightseeing tour on Wednesday, November 11.  Just bring your valid ID card showing active duty or retirement, or a DD214 (proof of release from the military), to any Old Town Trolley booth for your complimentary boarding pass.

And just so you know, the world-famous San Diego Zoo offers free admission all year round to active duty military personnel (U.S. and foreign) with valid military ID. Spouses and dependents receive 10% discount on the Best Value Admission, which includes bus tour and Skyfari aerial tram.

Here’s to making a happy Veterans Day happen in San Diego!

Tags: free, holiday, legoland, military, sightseeing, tour, zoo

(4 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)

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He's eagerly awaiting your visit to the Zoo

Today is October 1, which means for the next 30 days kids and families can enjoy:

Free admission into the San Diego Zoo and the San Diego Zoo’s Wild Animal Park during Kid Free Days. All children ages 3 – 11 will receive complimentary admission into both parks for the entire month.

Free admission on any one- or two-hour Harbor Cruise of San Diego Bay with Hornblower Cruises & Events. Complimentary tickets will be provided for up to two children, ages 12 and under, per each paying adult for the entire month.

Half-priced admission into four museums in Balboa Park: the Mingei International Museum, the Museum of Man, the Museum of San Diego History and the Museum of Photographic Arts (MoPA) will offer half-priced admission every Saturday and Sunday morning from 10 a.m. – 12 p.m.  Note: this offer is actually valid through May 31, 2010 with some blackout days effective after October 31; please check museums to verify for half-priced admission days.

Tags: balboa park, cruise, deals, free, harbor, museum, san diego bay, wild animal park, zoo

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Vizit Tours

For those of you that want to get out and see San Diego without having to worry about navigating the city streets, Vizit Tours offers four new sightseeing opportunities aboard a vintage Double Decker open top bus. 

Every tour is narrated by a local tour guide that will tell you the history, facts and insider tips about each location throughout the tour. You can even hop-on or -off at any stop and get back on at a later time to complete the tour.  Busses run every hour from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day. Or, you can catch the one-hour nighttime tour at 6 p.m. 

Tour highlights and stops include:

• The Balboa Park Loop: Seaport Village, Horton Plaza mall, Gaslamp Quarter, Balboa Park, San Diego Zoo.
• The Old Town and Harbor Loop: Horton Plaza mall, Little Italy, Old Town, Maritime Museum/USS Midway Museum.
• The La Jolla and Beaches Loop: Old Town, SeaWorld, Ocean Beach, Pacific Beach, Belmont Park, La Jolla. **This is the ONLY regularly scheduled sightseeing tour in San Diego that will take you to these beaches.**
• The Night Loop: Seaport Village, San Diego Bay, Little Italy, Gaslamp Quarter. This one-hour tour is perfect for a date or a fun outing with friends and family; adult beverages welcome so B.Y.O.D. (bring your own drinks).

A couple of weeks ago, I tried out and La Jolla Loop and had a great time! The views of La Jolla are truly breathtaking and I highly recommend an afternoon tour so you can see the ocean glisten in the sun. (I know that sounds corny but it is sooo pretty!)

Prices: Tickets are good for two days and cost $15 per person, per loop or $35 per person for all four loops.

Note: For those of you that want gorgeous views and prime photo opps., I recommend sitting on the top level.  (The views are unbeatable.) But, for those that are interested in learning about the history, facts and insider tips, I recommend sitting inside on the bottom level. (Due to the open top up there, it’s difficult to hear the tour guide on over the wind.)

Tags: balboa park, Gaslamp Quarter, la jolla, little italy, mission beach, ocean beach, old town, pacific beach, san diego bay, seaport village, seaworld, zoo

(1 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)

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Awww. Cuteness.

Okay, I simply can’t resist.  This just in from the San Diego Zoo:

“In just one week, the San Diego Zoo’s giant panda cub gained a little over one pound. The 3.9-pound male cub is getting plenty of milk to drink, as evidenced by the milk moustache he sported during his veterinary exam on Thursday.

“He vocalized a little today,” said Geoff Pye, B.V.Sc., San Diego Zoo senior veterinarian. “It was nothing dramatic. He was just letting us know he was aware of what we were doing.”

The cub’s eyes and ears have not yet opened, but he can smell and feel the touch of his caretakers. The cub is not yet strong enough to crawl or walk and is completely dependent on his mother, Bai Yun.

In 1999, Bai Yun gave birth at the San Diego Zoo to the first surviving giant panda born in the United States. She has since given birth to one cub in 2003, 2005, 2007, and most recently on Aug. 5. This is Bai Yun’s second male cub. Following Chinese tradition, he will remain unnamed until he is at least 100 days old.

Giant pandas are on loan to the San Diego Zoo from the People’s Republic of China to study this endangered species. The exam gives the panda team the opportunity to learn more about cub development as well as mother-and-cub relationships, information that is important to better understand giant panda biology.

Bai Yun and the cub will remain in the den for four to five months. During the denning period, the only way to see them is through the San Diego Zoo’s live Panda Cam.”

Tags: animals, panda, zoo

(1 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)

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New Children's Museum pillow fight room! Yet another reason why I never want to grow up

Labor Day weekend is upon us, which unofficially marks the end of summer and the beginning of fall.  And while the transition of the seasons might go unnoticed in San Diego because our beach days and sunshine will last well into November (I’m not bragging, I’m just saying…), this weekend does mean “LAST CALL!” on some of San Diego’s summertime specialties:

1. This weekend, catch this year’s final celebration of  Summer Nights at SeaWorld with fireworks, live music, special animal shows like Shamu Rocks and Sea Lions Tonite and the award-winning dance show Riptide. The park will be open 9 a.m. – 11 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday, and 9 a.m. – 9 p.m. on Monday. Note: It’s also the VERY LAST weekend to catch the Dolphin Discovery show before SeaWorld begins construction on a brand new dolphin show, Blue Horizons, coming in May 2010.
2. Spend your evenings exploring the San Diego Zoo’s Wild Animal Park during Park at Dark where you can see the park’s nocturnal creatures emerge, take a sunset tour on the Journey Into Africa tram and catch special summer shows. The park will be open from 9 a.m. – 8p.m. on Saturday, Sunday and Monday.
3. Check out the Caras Silvestres celebration during Nighttime Zoo at the San Diego Zoo. Honoring the cultures of California and Central and South America, the Zoo will present live music, colorful dance performances and amazing shows with stilt walkers and exotic animals. The Zoo will be open from 9 a.m. – 9 p.m. on Saturday, Sunday and Monday.
4. Hurry over and place your bets at the Del Mar Racetrack for the last weekend of horse races. Races will be in full swing Saturday through Monday but I suggest you try your luck on Sunday when the country’s top horses compete in the $1 Million Pacific Classic, Del Mar’s richest and most prestigious race (and if you win big, you owe me). Later that day, following the last race, stop by the Reggae Festival with featured performances from Ziggy Marley and Nikka Costa; entrance to the concert is free with racetrack general admission tickets.
5. This Saturday, Sunday and Monday, The New Children’s Museum in downtown San Diego is celebrating the FINAL weekend of its first exhibition, childsplay, before they close in preperation for their new exhibition Animal Art, opening in October. So come on by for your last chance to jump in the pillow room, navigate through a two story maze and dance around in the Rain House. Note: Ziggy Marley will also make a special appearance at the museum on Saturday while he debuts his new children’s album, “Family Time.”

Tags: 5 to try, animals, del mar, downtown, labor day weekend, mission bay, seaworld, summer, things to do, what to do, wild animal park, zoo

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Ben Stiller is hilarious but, I’m not sure I’d be up for spending a night at the museum when he’s on duty.  For families looking to make amazing memories without risking ancient Egyptian curses, San Diego has cool sleepovers in unusual places like:

• Ahoy, matey!  The San Diego Maritime Museum on San Diego Bay has family sleepovers aboard the world’s oldest active tall ship, the Star of India.  Sailors for the day can help set sail, haul cargo and stand watch at night.
• Grrrr…get wild with family sleepovers at The San Diego Zoo in Balboa Park and “Roar & Snore” camping at the Zoo’s Wild Animal Park in Escondido.  Both include behind the scenes access and animal encounters.
• Breakfast with the dolphins?  Over on Mission Bay at SeaWorld, the family sleepovers are just the beginning.  You can spend the whole following day exploring park’s rides, shows and exhibits - admission is included.   
  

  Good morning Mr. Dolphin!

Tags: balboa park, escondido, family, maritime museum, mission bay, san diego bay, seaworld, sleepover, wild animal park, zoo

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A relatively short drive out of downtown San Diego finds you at one of my very favorite spots to bring family and friends.  Affectionally called the WAP by locals, the San Diego Zoo’s Wild Animal Park is located in North County San Diego (Escondido) and encompasses nearly 1700 acres!

Taking a nap at the Lion Camp exhibit

Being further inland than the Zoo, the climate makes it perfect for African and Asian animals.  And with so much land available, the WAP is able to create a more natural area for the animals to live in.

The Journey into Africa tour included in their Best Value ticket gives you a great overall perspective of lower enclosures of the Park in just 30 minutes.  Animals of different species mix freely in large “exhibit” areas – much in the way I would imagine them to do in nature.

Can you spare some wrinkle cream?

Part of the really cool element of the Wild Animal Park is their “premium features”.  Take a Photo Caravan tour through either the African or Asian enclosures, and you will truly be up close and personal with these animals.  You’ll even get a chance to feed giraffes or rhinos!  If you don’t plan on going on a true African Safari in the next say 30 or 40 years, this is absolutely a once-in-a-lifetime experience!  The WAP’s new Flightline experience looks totally cool as well.  I haven’t had the chance to experience it myself yet, but am looking forward to it.  And in a truly imaginative way of mixing technology and nature, the Park’s Rolling Safari tour has you touring around the outside of enclosures on a Segway!  Too bad our caveman ancestors didn’t have these babies…hunting would have been much easier!

On the Rolling Safari Segway Tour at the Wild Animal Park

Another experience at the WAP that I have been wanting to do for YEARS is their Roar & Snore sleepover program.  They’ve got nice, canvas tents set up on a hill overlooking the African enclosure where you get to camp overnight!  Campers are treated to the growls of lions and the calls of various animals all night.  (You thought your husband snored loudly!)  The experience includes behind-the-scenes tours of the Park, your meals, and special animal presentations – this ain’t your typical camping experience!  They’ve got Family nights, Adults Only nights and even nights just for Girl Scout troops.  These experiences are so popular that they book up fast, so I’d recommend booking plenty in advance if you’re interested.

Tags: animals, camping, photography, segway, wild animal park, zoo

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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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I’ll admit it: I’ve never regarded the Japanese Friendship Garden as a “main event” at Balboa Park.  I have visited it once or twice in the 15 years I’ve been acquainted with Balboa Park, but since it has no historic flying machines, no eye-popping scientific experiments, no state-of-the-art dome theater, I have viewed the garden as a quaint landmark more than an actual attraction - kind of like the carousel at Disneyland.  But like Disney’s carousel, it has a profound charm and appeal which can be lost among the sensations that surround it.

The same can be said for ourselves, which is why the Japanese Friendship Garden is such a treasure.  It provides a place of peace and contemplation, a kind of oasis in our familiar environment.  Why would we need such an “oasis?”  As Tiki, a guide at the Freindship Garden, tried to explain, our thoughts are constantly being pulled and stretched this way and that by the manmade sensations and obligations of the world.  It isn’t too difficult to be pulled away from our centers and forget ourselves.

With its traditional Japanese art and koi pond, “strolling gardens” like this one serve as a venue for those who seek their own centers.  The path in the garden is meant to subtly guide visitors through while their conscious thought is allowed to turn inward.

A turtle-shaped island sits in the Friendship Garden's koi pond. The turtle symbolizes long life.

There is a tremendous amount of thought behind creating and maintaining a venue of such simplicity.  It is a deceptively secluded area of Balboa Park, with very little outside noise allowed in.  In fact, it wasn’t until I left the garden that I was reminded of outside noises such as children and passing cars.  There was a real feeling of back-to-the-real-world.

After your stroll through the garden, you can enjoy some traditional Japanese tea, sushi, noodles and rice bowls, as well as more great views of the park, at the Tea Pavillion, just outside the garden.

The Japanese Friendship Garden is open daily.  Admission is $4 for adults and $2.50 for seniors (65+), students, and active military (with ID).  Children under 6 are free.

Docent-led tours are available, and I highly recommend one.  Sometimes, you need a little guidance to reach your center.

Tags: balboa park, garden, Japanese, what to do, zoo

(4 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)

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If you could time travel, would you go backwards?  How far? 

With the opening of Elephant Odyssey on May 23, the San Diego Zoo is taking us back.  Way back…in a big way. 

Moving On Up to Elephant Odyssey at the San Diego Zoo

The new 7.5 acre, $45 million exhibit will feature living relatives, like elephants, lions and jaguars, of the species that roamed Southern California more than 12,000 years ago.  

The animals are moving into naturalistic habitats alongside life-size replicas of their prehistoric kin.  So, you can check out the Columbian mammoth while you watch the Zoo’s 8-member elephant herd meander around the enclosure’s gentle hills.

Tags: animals, summer, zoo

(1 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)

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