Get to Know San Diego

Balboa Park
2125 Park Blvd
San Diego, CA 92101

The Japanese Friendship Garden is a beautiful Zen garden in Balboa Park. It features a lovely koi pond, bonsai and more.

There is an admission fee, but the garden is well worth it. You can also become a member if this is a place you’d like to visit regularly.

The koi are quite friendly and used to people. On some days guests are allowed to feed the koi, which is sure to delight children as well as adults. (more…)

San Diego has a rich maritime history. This is what the Maritime Museum, obviously, works to preserve.

Perhaps the most famous ship in the Maritime Museum’s collection is the Star of India. The Star of India is a beautiful vessel, as well as being the world’s oldest active ship. She was built in 1863. But she is not the only ship in the collection. There’s even an old B-39 Soviet Attack Submarine.

The guides at the museum are very helpful. Exhibitions are set up in five permanent galleries, as well as traveling exhibits. The five permanent galleries are categorized as the Age of Sail, Age of Steam, Charting the Sea, Harvesting the Ocean and the Navy. (more…)

Every year since 1994, Little Italy in San Diego has held a celebration called Precious Festa. It has grown from a small celebration to a major event with more than 100,000 attendees every year.

The 2006 Precious Festa is on Sunday, October 8. There are some events on Saturday, October 7, but no vendors and just a little entertainment. Sunday offers more than 150 vendors with a variety of offerings, 3 stages of entertainment, two beer and wine gardens and much more.

Enthusiasts will be displaying their Italian-made vehicles. You’re sure to see some real beauties there.

The entertainment available ranges from big band music to Frank Sinatra impersonators to a variety of Italian favorites and much more.

If you’re in the area, this festival is quite worth attending.

Old Town in San Diego is fun for visitors and locals. There’s fun shopping, great restaurants and a museum. You can also visit a variety of historic buildings and enjoy living history demonstrations.

San Diego was the first permanent settlement by the Spanish in California. Old Town became a State Historic Park in 1968. Some of the buildings that still stand include the Mason Street School, La Casa de Bandini and La Casa de Estudillo.

Old Town is home to more than 100 shops and 24 restaurants. You can get some great Mexican food, of course, as well as other kinds of food. My personal favorite is Rockin’ Baja Lobster. (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…)