Thanksgiving Vacation 2012 - Berlin Day 2

For our second day in Berlin we had until about two in the afternoon to continue exploring the city before leaving for the airport. I slept really well having been awake for almost two days but was ready for breakfast, coffee and more walking. Our first sight to see was the Berlin Victory Column located in the middle of the famous Tiergarten (actually, I'd never heard of the place until now). Our hotel was located on the edge of the park and we cut across the Tiergarten using one of the many bike and pedestrian paths. This huge park, which was about two miles long and a half mile wide, had designated bike and running paths everywhere, and even though it was pretty cold, there were abundant people biking and walking this morning. As we walked towards the Victory Column we stopped to take photos of statues, trees and lakes. The path was covered with wet, fallen leaves but there were still red and orange colored leaves on the trees.

Getting to the intersection where the Victory Column was located was easy, getting to the column itself took some time. There were no cross walks to cross the street and after walking in circles we finally found the underground path. There was a three Euro admission to enter and once inside we found that there was a whole museum containing various artifacts and pictures. Our main goal was to get to the top, or as far up as the steps led. Well, there was a spiral column of 285 steps to the very top and I got winded walking up as I tend to climb too fast. Once at the top you have a full 360 degree view of the garden and surrounding city. But just like the day before, it was cold and cloudy so the visibility was limited. The statue on top of the column was above us and was larger than it looked from the bottom. After taking or fill of photos we walked back down to the warm rooms of the museum and then left for our next sight.

As we had walked through the park we saw a building with old tanks in front, so that was our destination. Once there we found out that the building was a Soviet war memorial. There are memorials all around this part of town, and later we'd visit the Jewish memorial. The Soviet memorial was all outside, and if there was something inside it wasn't open. After taking photos of the tanks and guns we walked back towards the Brandenburg Gate, stopping briefly in front of the Reichstag building, now used by the German parliament. Just past the Brandenburg Gate was the Jewish Memorial. This memorial is very different than any other I've seen. It was about the size of a city block consisting of rows of rectangular blocks ranging in height from four to ten feet. The blocks had no writing on them and  you could wander the maze between the blocks.

Well, it was now past noon, and we had a late check-out from the hotel, so we headed back to the hotel but first we had to figure out how to take the Metro to the Hard Rock Cafe, which was my sister's suggestion for lunch and to kill time so we didn't get to the airport too early. The subways did not have clear directions on how to get to our destination, so back in the hotel my sister got online and spent 20 minutes figuring out what Metro to take and what stop to get off on. So we checked out of the hotel and walked down to the Metro station. The trip took about 10 minutes, defiantly not walking distance. As you may know, each Hard Rock Cafe has a local menu item unique to the city. Their's was a curry sausage burger. I had seen signs all over the town advertising curry sausage and until my dish arrived I didn't know what it was or tasted like. Luckily it was really good! My sister said the other customers were looking at my plate as the waiter brought it too me, but I didn't see anyone else ordering it.

After lunch, we were ready to go to the airport and jumped into a taxi. Our time in Berlin was short, and there was defiantly more to see, but I did get a good feel for the city. It has been over 20 years since the Berlin Wall was torn down the the East and West united. I could see no difference between the old East and West sections of town, and if it weren't for the maps to reference, I would not have known which was which. The city still seems to be under construction. At the top of domes and columns you could see tall cranes where building were being constructed or renovated and there were still vacant lots where new buildings could be built. I'd recommend that if you have a chance, visit Berlin.

Our taxi got us to the airport in plenty of time and the driver was really nice. He took the time to let us determine which terminal our flight left from. There was a large digital sign just outside the airport that listed all the departing flights and what gates they were departing from. Once we checked our bags, we spent some time in the Lufthansa lounge before heading to the gate. Our flight from Berlin to Paris was only one hour, but it seemed to take almost that long once we exited the plane in Paris to get to the luggage carousel. We took the longest moving walkway I have ever seen! Our next adventure was how to get to our hotel. We attempted to find a city bus but our long walk to the other terminal ended when we found out the bus left from the terminal we landed in. The signs were very confusing - or we were really tired. So taxi it was. It was later in the evening so we were hoping for little traffic and a quick trip to the hotel. There was some traffic in a very long tunnel, and then again once we got to our street, the Champs Elysees. Now, I'm still trying to figure out how to pronounce these words. I don't know any French, and if you pronounce the words like they are spelled in English, you'll get laughed right out of the country.

We arrived at our nice, centrally located hotel before our brother and sister-in-law and after checking in and taking a short break, we went for a walk along the Champs Elysees. This is the main "drag" in Paris, and it was very busy with people walking up and down and decorated with bright lights that changed colors. The Arc de Triomphe was a short walk up the street where we stopped to take some photos, but did not go inside. That would wait until our last night there. Once back at the hotel we were surprised that our brother and his wife had already checked in they were about ready to go take the same walk we took. After discussing what time to meet in the morning and what our plans were, they left and we each had a very expensive beer. The hotel charged 10 Euros for a bottle of beer, which is about $13 USD. This wasn't so bad considering we had three rooms for four nights for free using my sister's hotel reward points. What a deal that was. By now it was almost 10 PM and our plan was to meet for breakfast at 8:30 in the morning. Paris is ten hours ahead of Pacific time, so my body had not yet adjusted to the time shift and jet lag was setting in. After uploading some photos to Facebook, I fell asleep with the help of extra strength Tylenol PM.

Thanksgiving Vacation 2012 - Berlin Day One.

This year our annual family Thanksgiving vacation was a trip to Paris, France. Each year we take turns on where to go for this trip. This was my sister's turn and she had chosen the Maldives, a small, tropical island chain that is expected to be under water within a 100 years. Well, somehow that trip got changed to this Paris trip that I wanted to take. My sister, brother and his wife went to Paris before I started going with them on these overseas adventures. So now I'll have to wait four more years to choose our next destination, which as of now will be Santiago, Chile with a side trip to Easter Island.

I had options to travel to Paris. I could have used frequent flyer miles to travel for free, but my sister was able to get me free tickets on all legs of the trip but one and in business or first class! How nice. And as an added bonus I got to travel with her on a side trip to Berlin, Germany. So one day in Berlin and then we would meet up with our brother and his wife in Paris for three days. We had planned another day trip to Luxembourg, since it was a short distance by train from Paris, but it turns out that it is also very expensive, so that trip was scrapped, leaving Luxembourg for another day.

We left San Diego Saturday morning and jetted off to Washington DC for a short layover. Then the overseas flight to Frankfurt. Flying in business class on these trans-Atlantic flights is nice because you get plenty of food and the seats have lots of leg room for sitting and sleeping. However, with the flight being only seven hours, by the time they get done feeding you, there is only about four hours left in the flight, and they wake you for breakfast 90 minutes before landing. So you only have three hours to try to get some sleep, and I was lucky to get about two hours. From Frankfurt we transferred to Berlin and got to our hotel by 11:30 AM on Sunday and were then ready to explore the city by noon on very little sleep.

Our hotel was located in a historic part of Berlin. There were remnants of the Berlin Wall right outside our hotel as well as the Berlin Wall Trail. We had an idea of what to see, and thought about getting tickets for a hop-on-hop-off bus that would take us too many of the important sights, but it turned out we walked to most of these sights. Our first stop was the Checkpoint Charlie museum. We followed the Berlin Wall Trail, stopping along the way to take photos. Most of the original wall is gone, and there are many small sections that are on display and many have been painted by various artists. We did pass by one of the longest remaining sections of the wall, which sat between a busy street and the Museum of Terror.

From there we found the Checkpoint Charlie Museum in an area that was very busy for a Sunday afternoon in November. It was also very touristy and there were people asking for money, which is really annoying. I made sure my wallet was safe from thieves. Once inside the museum I really didn't know what to expect. It was made up of many small rooms on three floors, and each room had a theme. The most crowded room was also the most interesting. It had many artifacts from when people were trying to escape from East to West Berlin, such as a suitcase that was used to carry a women across the border. It had the stories of these escapes written on the walls in four languages. I found it hard to read them because of all the distractions from the people walking around.

So we continued on to other rooms and floors. Not all rooms were dedicated to Checkpoint Charlie. One room was all about Ronald Reagan and his famous "tear down this wall" speech. Other rooms had paintings of the "Arab Spring" from 2011. After more than an hour we left the warm museum and returned to the cold streets. There was lots to see on the streets in the area, and we spent some more time taking photos of decorated Berlin Wall pieces. Then we walked back to the hotel to take a short break.

After our break we headed out the other direction from the hotel. Our first destination was the Brandenburg Gate. This area too was very busy and now there were tour buses everywhere too. Down the street from the  gate was a pedestrian walkway that was lined with trees lit with white lights. They were getting ready for Christmas and more lights were be strung up as the day went on. Since we didn't use the tour buses we ended up doing lots of walking. We were headed to the Berliner Dom, which we could see from a distance (or a landmark near it), but it took a long time to get there, partly because there was some event going on and the police had the road and once side of the sidewalk closed. There were near 100 police and dozens of police cars and vans. We didn't know what was going on, but eventually we made it passed the closed section and to the Dom.

We weren't sure what was in the church, probably just that same stuff that's in all Cathedrals in Europe. Once inside we did see the usual displays of religious art and sculptors, stained glass windows, organ pipes and of course the painted dome at the ceiling. After walking around we found the entrance to the steps leading up to the top of the dome. We weren't sure how far up they went, but we were happy that there were 270 steps that went all the way to the top where you were on the outside of the church dome and could walk entirely around to get a full view of the city. Unfortunately it was cloudy and hazy outside, so views were limited, but it was still worth the climb to see Berlin from above.

We then walked back down the steps and continued the self guided tour to the basement where the crypts were located. This was a much bigger area of crypts that usual. We wandered around for about ten minutes before leaving the Dom and walking back to the hotel. By now the police activity and ended and all the streets were open. We stopped by the building that seemed to be the center of the activity, and inside was a large room with a small statue in the center, which was surrounded by newly laid wreaths. There just had been a ceremony where foreign dignitaries had visited the site and laid the wreaths, apparently a common event. We encountered the same situation later in Paris.

By now it was getting dark Berlin is pretty far north, and the Sun sets near four in the Winter. As it got darker the Christmas lights shined more brightly, making the mode more festive. The Brandenburg Gate was also lit up, making for more photo opportunities.

Our plan was to go back near our hotel and get some Gluhwine form the not-quite-open Christmas market. The market was opening the next day but they were already selling the hot wine which we first discovered in Vienna two years before. The hot drink tasted good in the cold, but since we were so sleep deprived and tired, the alcohol took effect quickly. So we went back to the hotel for dinner. We had access to the private lounge where they had a full dinner buffet available for free. The food all tasted good and after two beers I was about ready for bed. I had thoughts of going back outside, but was glad that I returned to my room. It didn't take long before I crawled into bed and got some much needed sleep.

We didn't leave for Paris until later the next evening, so we still had a half day left in Berlin and  planned to make the most of our time the next day.

Vacation in Vancouver

So I had been wanting to take a vacation in Vancouver, Canada for some time. Well, ever since I saw a show on TV about all the great microbreweries there. So last year when I got invited to join a group of friends who were going to Vancouver to celebrate a friend's honeymoon, yes, as group honeymoon, I said yes! The group consisted of the newlyweds, their friends, family and dog. Many of the people had been to Vancouver before so they were familiar with the city and what to do in the two full days we had there.

I ended up on a flight with three of the other travelers, and by chance I was sitting next to two of them on the flight from San Diego to Seattle! It is always nicer to travel with someone than alone. The photo above was taken from my seat on the plane as we approached Seattle.

Once in Vancouver we met up with a fifth member of our crew and on her advice we hired a limo to take us to the hotel. As we waited a sixth friend showed up. She arrived two hours after us, but it took us 90 minutes to get through customs and it only took her five minutes. So the six of us piled into the stretch limo for the ride to the hotel, and as you can see we were in great spirits and had a fun ride. There's a funny story here about getting dog food through customs, but I'll have that tail (pun intended) for another day.

Our hotel for the trip was the historic Sylvia Hotel in Vancouver. Several of the crew had stayed here before, and besides being a nice, centrally located hotel, they were pet friendly, and the newlyweds had their dog Sonny with them. They had actually left several days before from San Diego, right after their wedding, and drove up in their truck, making several stops along the way. They ended up getting to the hotel just as we were walking to get dinner.

We had already decided that the theme of the trip was serendipity, because so far everything good and fun had happed by luck or accident. The fact we were all on the same flight, I was sitting next to a friend and her son, and the sixth friend showed up in time to join us in the limo.

So we were all there for our first dinner in Vancouver, minus my sister, who was arriving much later that evening. I had my best meal of the trip at the Boathouse, a place recommend by the staff at the hotel. I had ravioli stuffed with crab and lobster, and topped with shrimp! What decadence.


 

We had no specific plans for the trip, other than to have fun, relax, hang out and drink beer or whatever. The Sylvia Hotel is right along the beach of English Bay. This beach provided lots of trails for walking with great views of the harbor, city and sunsets. We had fun just walking along the beach taking Sonny for a walk. As a bonus, we were there on the first day of Summer, when the sun didn't set until 9:40 P.M. And even better, the forcasted rain never came. It was neither too hot or two cold, and there was enough sun to provide good lighting for photo and even a sunburn.

After dinner, drinks and a long walk, we went to bed and planed to meet for breakfast the next morning. As we were waiting my sister came down to take care of some work stuff and ended up joining us for breakfast. More serendipity! We found a place where we could eat outside with the dog. The food was good, I had a salmon omelet, and then we regrouped for the rest of the day.

Our plan was to go to Granville Island, a very touristy place with a huge marketplace and a brewery. To get there we walked about a mile down the coast, then hopped in a water taxi for a short ride across the "river" to the island. With nine of us, we knew we weren't going to all do the same thing, so we agreed to meet at the Granville Brewery at 2 PM. Three of us wandered the island and I took lots of photos. After about an hour or so we were already done and ready to drink beer. So we headed to the brewery early, but were disappointed that the brewery could only serve each customer 12 oz. of beer! So we opted for three 4 oz. samplers, and were sadly disappointed in their beer.

Once the others got there, we hung out a little longer and then once again separated to go eat a late lunch. Eventually we got back to the hotel, and after the previous day of travel, the walking around and drinking one beer, I took a nice, long nap.

We met once again in the hotel lobby and headed out to dinner. We went to a place that I really wanted to try, but this is where we had our worst meal of the trip. It was Mexican night, so instead of selling any of their main dishes, they had Mexican food. I did not travel from San Diego to Canada to eat Mexican food, so I had the pizza. It was not good, and neither were anyone's drinks. They even made a bad tasting rum and cokes. And even worse, the beer I wanted to try, Alexander Keith's Indian Pale Ale, was really bad. Why did I want to try it? It had my name in it, but spelled differently than I've ever seen it. How did it taste? Not good. Worse than Budweiser, but I still drank my pint, as well as my sister's glass as she had one sip and stopped. Hey, beer is beer.

After dinner we went for another walk along English Bay and then turned in for the night. I opted for the smallest and cheapest room in the hotel. The room was just big enough for the bed and some furniture, but all I needed was a place to sleep.  This hotel was old, and all the walls were made of cement, so you could hear anything within the hotel, but every morning around 4:30 AM some very loud bird started chirping outside my window. Luckily I brought ear plugs and that took care of the problem.

The next morning we had breakfast in the hotel restaurant and it was good food, but they were not ready for a group of nine people, so the service was slow but good,  just like the morning before at the small cafe down the road. After breakfast we made our plans for the day. We ended up breaking up into four groups as everyone wanted to do something different. My sister and I opted to ride the hop-on-hop-off bus which had a stop near the hotel. We took the bus two stops down the line to Stanley Park. Stanley Park is actually within walking distance of our hotel, but it is quite expansive and there is much to do there. My sister had been there before, so I just had two stops to see, mostly for taking pictures. The first was Beaver Lake, pictured below, which is covered mostly in lily pads and other vegetation. Then we walked to the coastline with a view of downtown Vancouver.

Along the way we ran into two of our friends who had actually just walked there from the hotel. They were there to see some totem poles and then off to Chinatown. I snapped some photos of downtown, and then my sister and I walked back to the bus stop to get on the next bus. Once on the bus we got off on the ritzy part of town, not to shop, but to head to the top of the tallest tower in Vancouver for a good view of the city. However, turns out it was closed for a private party. So we headed to the food court and had our lunch.

Then we got back on the next bus, and went back to the hotel, skipping the rest of the stops. Our plan was to all meet in Gastown at the steam clock at 5:30. So after a two hour break at the hotel, my sister and I got back on the bus, since our tickets were good for 24 hours, and then we just rode the bus to the last stop, which was in Gastown! There was a tour guide on the bus that pointed out the sites to see and interesting facts, such as the Starbucks we passed was the highest grossing one in the world.

As we got closer to Gastown, the driver found out that it was closed off due to a music festival. So they let everyone off one stop early, but the guide led us to the steam clock as that is where the main office was just by chance. And once again we were all together. For dinner we obviously chose the Steamworks Brewery, a few blocks away.

Now this place had good beer. I tried three of their beer, the Stout being the best one, of course. Everyone enjoyed their food and beer, and even some of us had some of their unique shots. Mine had Jack Daniels in it, of course. I was slightly disappointed in my dinner choice, but everyone else liked their food. After dinner we walked down the main road, which was closed off for the music festival. They had stages set up every half block, so at any given time you could here music from three bands. A little overwhelming, plus it was very crowded. We had had enough and took taxis back to the hotel.

This was our last night in Vancouver. We kind of went our own ways. I took a walk with a friend down past the famous Burrard St. Bridge to take photos of the bridge and the sunset.

Back at the hotel is was bed time once again. We all had different flight times in the morning. My flight left at noon, while other's left later, but we planned to have breakfast once again at the hotel.

Everyone made it for our last meal together which was nice. We had time to talk about how much fun we had. Then after breakfast, we said our goodbyes. Four of us left about the same time, so we took a cab to the airport and got there in plenty of time. When flying from Vancouver to Seattle, you first go through Canadian customs, and then US customs, which took less than 30 minutes.

I had my own flight back home, so another set of good byes and the vacation was officially over. The flight to Seattle on Alaska Airlines is a short 30 minute flight on a commuter plane. Once in Seattle, it was raining, of course. I still have not officially been to Seattle, as airports don't count. The flight to San Diego only takes two hours and thirty minutes. We landed before sunset and I was home by eight.

What was nice was I still had the weekend at home to relax, and relax I did. I guess I really needed that time off because I felt very relaxed and completely forgot about work and the fact I may be unemployed at the end of September.

I'll get back to Vancouver someday, hopefully with a few days in Seattle and the surrounding national parks.

Hiking Bernardo Mountain

I had been wanting to hike to the summit of Bernardo Mountain in Escondido for some time. I had driven by this peak 1000 times but never knew it was a hiking destination until recently. First, my doctor, who is into hiking himself, recommended not only hiking to the summit, but hiking the trails of San Dieguito River Valley,  

which runs from the mountains near Julian all the way to the Pacific Ocean. Second, a friend of mine hiked to the summit and posted some very nice photos of the surrounding mountains, lakes and communities. My third reason for going on this hike was it gave me a reason to walk across the pedestrian bridge that spans Lake Hodges near interstate 15.

So I woke up late Saturday morning feeling tired, weak and fat. Those are the best reasons to go for a hike. So after breakfast I gathered my hiking equipment and headed out. When I left my house it was still kind of overcast and cool, but by the time I got to the dirt parking lot it was very warm and sunny. I started hiking around 11 AM, and took my time. Since I had never done this hike before I wanted to get plenty of photos with my new camera.

The bridge across the lake was really nice. It was wider, sturdier and shorter than I expected. I stopped several times over the lake to take more photos.

Once on the other side, I followed the hiking/biking trail westward. I'd say there were more mountain bikers than hikers, so I stayed to the right of the trail to keep out of their way. The trail then crosses a small stream where the palm trees and other vegetation keep it cooler.  Shortly after this "congested" section, the trail to the summit veers off to the right where the trial gets narrower. However, I still encountered a few more mountain bikers. After another 20 minutes of hiking I saw the last hiker/biker for the next 45 minutes. A woman was hiking down with a small dog.

 So far the trial had been very gentle and not too steep. But as I got higher up the hill the path got steeper and rockier. Once you pass a large, ugly water tank, the trail gets even steeper, which I didn't realize until the hike down where it was difficult to keep from slipping.

Finally, the summit was in sight. Once at the top I was happy that there was a very cool breeze. I was also semi-surprised that there was no one else up there, but since I hadn't seen any other hikers for a while I really wasn't that surprised. Before I rested I took advantage of the people-free summit and took many photos. I did some experimenting with the settings on my new camera to see how they would turn out. I also took a short movie, where I found out that the camera really picks up the sound of the wind. You can barely hear my voice over the wind. The biggest challenge was getting a photo of myself. I put the camera down, set the 10 second timer and hurried to get in place before the shot.

It was clear at the summit, but there was still some haze in the air, so far off mountains like Mt. Woodson and Black Mountain appeared very hazy.

After eating a snack, drinking a sports drink and stretching my leg muscles, I put my pack back on and headed back down. Hiking down went much quicker, of course, and after about 20 minutes of hiking I ran across two mountain bikers. I stopped to talk to them. They asked where this trail led, and I told them to the summit. They thought that it connected to the other side, but I told them it did not. As they debated about turning around or not, I continued on my way. In fact I went so fast I missed a turn off and ended up and a dirt road near some houses. I turned around and was only about five minutes away from my missed turn. As I got closer to the main trail there were more people, but not as many as when I started. I think the heat was keeping them away.

I crossed the cool stream again, then back to the bridge and finally my car. I had two devices recording my trip. My Garmin 500 that I use for biking, which gave me this information, and my phone which basically gave me the same statistics. The hike was almost seven miles and took me 2:45, which included lots of stops for picture taking and 20 minutes at the summit. Would I do the hike again? Yes! And I'd recommend it to any hiker, just remember to bring enough water. I drank two liters of fluid. Next time I'd like to get an earlier start, though.

Bike RIde to Waterfall in Los Peñasquitos Canyon Preserve and Beyond

After searching my blog posts for "waterfall" I found the post from when I did this ride before. Back on Halloween 2009 I rode from my house to the waterfall in the Los Peñasquitos Canyon Preserve. This time I drove to the trail head and rode my bike to the waterfall, and then rode further into the canyon. Also, this time I had company. This was official a Take a Hike meetup.com event, but there was only three of us.   My friend and the organizer. And yes, it wasn't a hike, but it was good exercise. We took the path to the north of the river, which is pretty smooth and wide in most places. Since I only have a hybrid bike and not a true mountain bike I was glad there was no real deep sand or rocks. I was able to stay on my bike up and down most of the trails, only walking it in a few narrow places.

On the way back we crossed over the river and made a loop for a total of nine miles. After the ride we ate Mexican food at a near by restaurant, including this beer you see and a huge lobster burrito. After coming home and taking a shower I'm ready for bed. I hope to sleep well tonight.

Teachers Night at the Padres Game

I attended my third Padres game in five weeks. A record for me I think. I went tonight because it was teachers appreciation night and we got tickets for half price.

Got to Petco Park early enough to eat dinner and sit on in the outdoor dinning area with a view of the Convention Center, the new pedestrian walkway and Conrado Bridge.

There are teachers that got special recognition before the game. Most of the fans showed up after the first inning, so that's why there are so many empty seats. The attendance was over 29,000, which is good for a Padres game.

The Padres got themselves into a hole after Miami got a 5-0 lead after the first inning. But then later the Padres scored six runs to take the lead. Ex-Padre blew a save in the 9th after the Marlins got the lead. The game ended close to midnight in the 12th inning with the Marlins getting the win. The 4 1/2 hour game was long but fun since the Padres had many chances to win, but didn't.

Spring Break 2012

Technically this wasn't my Spring break, since I'm not in school, but it was more then my usual trip to Arizona to watch Spring training baseball. This year we left a half day earlier than usual and watch all three games of the NCAA basketball regional games in Phoenix.Our flight left San Diego on Thursday around noon, and an hour later we were in Phoenix. We had time to check-in at the hotel before heading downtown for the two sweet 16 games. Along the way we were joined by some other people we knew and climbed up to our seats. Even though we were up high we still had a good view of the whole court.

The first game was Louisville at Michigan State. This was a slow, low-scoring game and Louisville won. After a 30 break game two started, Florida at Marquette. This was a much faster, more intensive game. In fact, at half time we decided to move up (or down) to closer seats that we saw had been empty the whole first half. Probably from fans who were there just to watch the first game. So we walked down to the lower level and sat in the nice, padded seats with a much better view of the game.

The game was more exciting when you sit closer to the action, and this game was higher scoring and faster paced than the first. Florida won by one point, meaning the game on Saturday would be Florida against Louisville.

After the game we zipped back to the hotel to meet up with one of the other people that sat with us and followed him to a restaurant in Mesa that we had never been too before. The food was good and the bill with all the food and beer was really cheep.Back at the hotel we went to bed, not staying out nearly as late as we did in you younger days.

Friday morning we were up for our free breakfast at the Embassy Suites hotel where Pam, a longtime cook at the hotel, made us fresh omelets. Our plan was to leave early and pick up our friend and his son at the airport, however, they had missed their flight from Denver due to various reasons. Luckily they were able to catch a flight 90 minutes later. So we all piled in the big, white van, went to the airport and then made a stop at the Talking Stick Casino for a little gambling. This casino is across the freeway from the ballpark we were headed to. I played some 25 cent video poker and once I started getting some good hands I bet more money and ended up winning $20.25! Well, I couldn't stop my winning streak there, so I played the Wheel of Fortune game and quickly lost $20. But I was still up 25 cents, so I stopped gambling.

After a quick drive to the park, we parked our van and just by chance, just like last year, we happened to park next to the guy who we sold three of our tickets to. I think his name was Marcus. We hung out with him and his friends, playing some disc toss game (well, I didn't play). As game time approached we went inside to see the Rockies play the Cubs. Our friend's from Denver were there to see the Rockies, of course. The Rockies won, I think, and we left shortly before the last inning. Then, about 15 minutes of driving in traffic as we headed home, someone realized he forgot his backpack, which contained a camera. So we made a u-turn and drove back to the park where he found the pack as it was being taken to lost and found. All was good.

Once at the hotel we rested up (translated: took a short nap) before going out to dinner. We went back to Arribas, a Mexican place we ate at last year. The food was good, but not great. After dinner we somehow decided to go bowling again, just like last year. There is a bowling alley across from our hotel. We got there just before 10 and waited to bowl until 10 because they were having a special where you could bowl unlimited games. There were eight of us so we broke off into two teams to have a contest for the highest score. I hoped my team wasn't relying on me to score too high. But surprisingly, I bowled my best game ever, around 140, on the first game. Yes, that is good for me. But, not being a bowler, my score declined in games two and three. My bowling arm just gave out, that and the beer. So our team lost :-(

Per tradition, we had planned to hike Camelback Mountain sometime on this trip, and the next morning was the best opportunity. So those of us that wanted to hike decided to wake up by 7AM to get ready to go, which seemed like a bad decision considering it was already 1 AM. Well, there would be time to sleep later.

My alarm went off at 6:45 and when I went to check on the others I was surprised that everyone was awake and ready for breakfast. So we ate quickly and then jumped in the van and drove to the  Echo Canyon trail head, which is the starting point for the shorter but much steeper hike up the mountain. We were there a little later than planned, but the parking lot was full and they had rangers and police there making sure people didn't block traffic. After circling the lot a few times, Steve let us off the van and he drove around some more with no luck getting a parking spot. So he drove to the place a few miles away where they had a shuttle service back to the trail head.

Once we started hiking it was obvious that this trail had gotten very popular. There was a constant stream of hikers the whole way up. I'd say that there were six times as many hikers as last time we hiked this trail. The two really steep section that have a metal hand rail to grab onto to pull yourself up the rocks was as crowded as those pictures you see of people climbing half dome in Yosemite. There was someone right in front of you and right behind you.

We ended up breaking up into groups, with the fast people, medium hikers and slower hikers. I was in the medium group most of the way - by myself, which I guess didn't make it a group. I am normally in good shape, but not after a long day and night of drinking lots of beer and getting little sleep.Once I got to the top the first group was there resting and just like the trial up, it was packed with people. I wished I had taken a photo of all hikers. Once the rest made it up we took this group photo. Don't let the smiles fool you, we were all really tired, except for Mark, the young kid who is in good shape and drank no beer the day before.

We then made the steep decent down the mountain as fast as we could. We needed to get back to the hotel and get ready for the second day of the NCAA basketball game. The game started at 1:30 and it was already 11:00. But we made it back to our hotel, got ready and back downtown and into our seats in time for the tip off. We had the same seats as before, high up in the arena. Since this was a "elite eight" game, the teams were the winners of the two games we saw on Thursday. They both played good and the game was more exciting than the other two. Louisville came from behind and beat Florida, and after the game we went down to the lower seats to see the post-game ceremony, which include the cutting of the net by each player and coach of the winning team. I'm glad we stayed for that because it was quite fun watching the team celebrate.

We left the arena, got our van and back to the hotel we went. I got in a good hour-long nap. After all, it was Saturday, our night to dress up and go out to an expensive restaurant for some steak and seafood. We had reservation at Eddie V's in north Scottsdale. The drive there from the hotel seemed to take forever, as I let everyone in the van know. We got to the place about 15 minutes late, but got seated quickly, except the table only held eight people and there were nine of us. Eventually they got us another two seats after the couple next to us left.  Now I'm not a big steak fan, so I went with the basic, filet mignon, medium. The steak was good, but what I really enjoyed were the sides. Besides each of us ordering our main course, we ordered  about four appetizers and five side dishes to share. I think the side dishes were the best, especially the macaroni and cheese. Our waitress was really nice, and the staff was really good about keeping our table clean, almost too good. They were ready to take away our appetizer plates before we were finished.

After almost two hours we were finished. I think everyone enjoyed there food, and we agreed that we'd go there again, but I prefer to try a new place each time. Back at the hotel we were done for the night. Everyone was tired so we went to bed to get ready for Sunday.

Our game for Sunday was in Peoria to see the Padres play the Diamondbacks. Peoria is one of the furthest parks from our hotel, but we still got there and got good parking with plenty of time to have some beers in the parking lot before heading in. We had really
good seats, once again. Near the end of the game we spotted Kevin Towers sitting in our section. He was wearing a really bright, pink shirt and wasn't hard to miss. When we were hear once many years ago we got a group photo of us with him, so KC took the initiative and walked up to him as asked if he'd take a photo with us, and he did! It came out very well, but I don't have a copy of that photo yet. I believe the Padres lost that game, but it is Spring training, so the games don't count. After the game, before going back to the hotel, we made an out-of-the-way side trip to the stadium in Surprise to buy some gifts at their gift shop since the one in Peoria was running low on merchandise. I didn't buy anything this year. When I do buy a shirt, I end up never wearing it for some reason. I bought an nice black Angels polo shirt last year and forgot I even had it until I packed for this trip. But I didn't bring it since it was black and that is not a good color for sitting in the hot sun.

For dinner this Sunday night we went back to the Four Peaks Brewery where we went to last year. Once again we had a short wait for a table but once seated we had quick, but not necessarily good service. Our waiter was not really friendly. He seem almost annoyed that he had to serve us. Plus, they did that thing where they bring out the appetizers and two minutes later they bring out your main course. The beer and food were good, but we agreed that he would get no more than 15% for a tip, unlike the cute Romanian waitress from Eddie V's who was tipped generously

It was Sunday night, our last night in town, so our motto was that we were "going hard", meaning we'd stay up late and have lots of fun.  Well, we had fun but didn't last too much longer into the night after hitting another bar or two. That's was just fine. It is nice waking up without a headache.

It is always a bummer waking up the last morning and having to pack your bags. Yes, our flight didn't leave until 5:40 PM and we still had another game to watch, but everyone's mood was kind of somber. Our motto for the day was "finishing strong". The last game was the Angels vs. the Rockies at the Angels' stadium in Tempe, very near our hotel. We got there two hours before the game, and we needed that time to finish our beer. We had so much beer we were giving it away to everyone who walked by - who looked to be at least 21, of course. The weather was much better than last year when it was cold and raining. We were told is was raining in San Diego Monday morning, but not in Tempe. Some of the gang went into the park early to get autographs, and the rest of us went in just in time for the first pitch. Those of us that had to fly home at 5:40 left around four. We said our farewells to Mark and his son who were flying home later and Rick and his father who were driving home.

We got to the airport with plenty of time, except for the two who had to return the rental van. They got to the boarding gate just in time, making us who were already there feel stupid as we sat at the wrong gate and missed our boarding group. But no worries, we should have boarded in group A but got in just before group B boarded. The flight home was quick and non-eventful. I got back to my house by eight and in bed by 10, ready to get up for work the next day (not really). However, come Wednesday I got sick and missed a day of work. As I write this I still don't feel 100% well. That's what happens when you have too much fun and not enough rest. So, now the countdown until next year!

Rainy St. Patrick's Day.

View of the big storm hitting San Diego on St. Patrick's Day. I did get out of the house for some shopping and food and am now drinking a Guinness beer.

Highway 52 Bike Ride

Just like my bike ride a week ago along highway 56, I didn't really know if I was going to go all the way with this Saturday bike ride. I woke up with a headache, but after coffee, food and aspirin I felt better. So I put on my biking gear, filled my water containers, pumped up my tires and headed off. My ultimate goal was to ride from my house to Santee via the bike path along highway 52. Getting there is not direct. You have to take lots of surface streets, pass over many freeways, some twice, and then after about seven miles of riding you reach the beginning of the bike path.

I had seen this bike path before as I drove along 52, but never really saw many bikers using it, unlike the path along highway 56. Probably because it is so hard to get to, plus, the hill you have to climb to get from one side to the other is pretty steep. The bike path is on the north side of the freeway, and is separated from the freeway, most of the way, by a duel guard rail. However, you are riding very close to the freeway where cars and trucks are flying by at 60 to 80 MPH.

I was lucky that it wasn't too warm and there was a slight breeze to keep me cool. The path heading east was not as steep as I thought. I averaged about 8 MPH up to the summit, which is 821 feet above sea level, as you can see by the sign in the photo above. I had to stop, take off my backpack, get my phone to take this photo. I'm sure people driving by wondered what I was doing. After this small break is was all down hill. The hill was steep and I easily did 30 MPH but didn't feel comfortable going much faster. The bike path is not that wide, and there was a cross wind that made me feel less stable. Then there were the two bridges. They spanned valleys that were at least 100 feet below, and not liking high places, I slowed down and and tried not to look over the guard rail.

Once I got to the bottom where the bike path ends, I took a surface street another mile before I stopped to eat a protein bar, stretch my legs, and take a photo of my bike with El Capitan mountain in the background. After resting about 10 minutes under the shade of the tree I put my back pack back on and headed back home. It was only 14 miles to get here, so I knew my ride would be about 28 miles, and it was.

The ride back up the summit was slightly steeper. I averaged 6 or 7 MPH, either that or my legs were really tired, which they were. One major hazard on the bike path is the grates over the water drains. The spaces between the metal grates are wider than bicycle tires, so you have to be careful not to ride over them. I assumed that if I did ride over the drains, the bike would get stuck causing me to crash, and there are quite a few along the west-bound side of the path.  Other than that, the ride back was uneventful. I only saw there other bikers on the path, so I didn't have to worry about being passed or passing any one, unlike the ride along Kearney Villa Road where I was passed by two large groups of bikers.

Once back at the end of the bike path, I retraced my ride back home. I think I had a good tail wind and made pretty good time. The entire bike ride took 2:20 minutes. My average speed was 11.6 MPH, which I think includes the stops I made. My computer does not record average moving speed separately from average overall speed, apparently. I burned 1556 calories, so I had to be sure to eat a healthy lunch and dinner, because one cheeseburger could add those calories right back on to my belly. So, after this fun and challenging ride, I need to plan my next biking adventure.

SR56 Bike Ride

So my plan was to go for a bike ride this morning, but not the usual route. I decided to ride towards California State Route 56 (SR 56) from my house, with the possible intention of taking the bike path along the highway all the way to the end. It was a six mile bike ride to get to the beginning of the bike path along SR 56, and I felt good, so I kept on going.

I had wanted to take the ride for some time, but never felt I was ready. I thought about bringing (on my car's bike rack) my bike to the starting point, but I really prefer riding from my home. What I liked about this ride was being able to ride without worrying about traffic or stopping. Well, at the very start you have to cross over Interstate 15, and the intersection there is very busy and I'd say dangerous. I waited for the cross walk but made sure the drivers turning right in front of me saw me, as they were looking to the left for on-coming traffic.I'll admit that a week before I come close to hitting a biker there, but to my defense, he was wearing all white and blended into the background.

The path at the beginning was a little narrow, with brush growing on either side that needed trimming. Then the path followed a road before the "real" SR 56 bike path began. Since the path heads west towards the coast, it is mostly downhill. Along the way you have to cross some street and wait for the cross-walk signal. There was also that point on the trail where a biker was kill last year. There was a nice memorial for the man, including a white painted bike attached to the fence.

As I got closer to the ocean, I wasn't quite sure how far the bike trail went, but my  plan was to stay on the trail and not take any local streets. At one point the trail paralleled a private street where there were signs that  indicated where the bike trail was and where the "private property" was. It was a nice, well kept neighborhood in Carmel Valley. From there the bike trail went over a small creek (yes, I had to ride through water), under some bridges and then joined up with a local riding/running trail. As I continued to follow the trail it came to an end, with a sign indicating the "END", as you can see from the photo. The mileage to this point was 16.5. At this point you are almost to Interstate 5. I stopped here to stretch my legs and eat a snack. After about 10 minutes I turned around and headed home.

The temperature at the start of the ride was around 55 degrees, but was slowly warming up. Also, the wind switched directions and was now blowing from the east, so I had a nice strong head wind riding back. I was doing fine for a while, but then my leg muscles really started to burn. I knew I could make it home, but each small hill felt much steeper that it was. It was a very good ride and I'm glad I went all the way to the end (well, the end would have been the Pacific Ocean if I'd taking the surface street - maybe next time). Once home I looked at the data recorded by my Garmin 500.

Distance: 32.92 mi
Time: 2:49:23
Avg Speed: 11.7 mph
Calories: 1,747 C
Moving Speed: 13.1
Max Speed: 34

Elevation Gain:	3,276 ft
Elevation Loss:	3,270 ft
MinElevation:	-158 ft
MaxElevation:	688 ft