Get to Know San Diego

Located in San Diego California, the Cabrillo National Monument provides a historic lighthouse with plenty of activities. There are great views here as well, with tidepools, flora and fauna, whales to watch, and even military history.

The Monument offers hiking along designated trails, bicycling on paved roadways, and swimming within the park boundaries. Fishing is permitted here as well, with hook and line – although only one fish may be taken. When walking the trails and exploring, make sure to be on the lookout for cliff areas, as they can be very unstable. (more…)

The San Diego Natural History Museum has an impressive range in its collection. As of this writing, there’s the fossil section, a section on the big fire in San Diego in 2003, rocks and minerals and a variety of educational programs.

We watched a movie in their movie theater. The current one is on Vikings, but of course the selection changes regularly, so don’t count on this being current information for long. The theater is large and comfortable – almost stadium seating with how the seats are tiered, but the chairs are not so high backed as in other movie theaters. The entire family enjoyed the movie.

The second floor is where the fossils are, and this was the area we spent the most time on. There’s a cave for the kids to play in, and it was hard to get my daughter to leave that area. (more…)

San Diego’s Mission Beach is a part of The Strand, a stretch of sandy beach over 2 miles long. It’s one of the most popular beaches in San Diego, and no wonder! Beautiful sand, good surf, and if you want to have a little off-beach fun, Belmont Park is right there.

Mission Beach features a narrow boardwalk, which can become crowded at times with all the people walking, skating and riding bicycles. You can only go 8 miles per hour or less – this is not the place to hurry.

The beach does have lifeguard protection, but it varies by season. You may want to check with lifeguards for exact hours, but normal summer hours are 9 AM to dusk. (more…)