Blog Entry V San Diego

From water to wine

Nothing biblical meant here!  Simply put, our plan for the day was focused on tasting some of that famous California wine. Our inspiration could have been Psalms 104.15: “...wine...maketh glad the heart of man,” ….maybe, but it wasn't.

The day started as it often did, on the beach....and this  time it was to Black's Beach for a quick walk to the "rocks" before the tide came in.  


Then, a little lunch and onto the hills behind S.D. to scout out a local wine-lovers favorite, the Bernardo Winery.

Southern California's oldest continuously operating winery did not disappoint. A tour of the centuries-old buildings and shops in the village just whet our appetite for what was to come.


When we found the tasting room, our friendly hostess, Juanita, gave us a choice of any 5 wines in their selection.


It was great fun. By the time, I finished my fifth glass, I came to the realization that wine improves with age. The older I get, the better the wine gets.

Most enjoyable though, was Juanita, for whom we were just a captive audience for her jokes. “And what was the joke of the tasting?”, you ask.

Mother Superior calls all the nuns together to make a serious announcement:

“I must tell you something.... We have a case of gonorrhea in the convent.”

“Thank God!”, says an elderly nun in the back. “I”m so tired of Chardonnay.”

A five-dollar, a five-dollar 300-foot long Sub!

Recognize the theme song?  Another cloudy day drew us back to San Diego's fascinating harbour front. There docked near the Maritime Museum was a huge Russian-built submarine. 

Once used to track U.S. warships around the world’s oceans, this once-proud piece of the Soviet navy provided for many of the Cold War’s most tenuous moments. Today her new home is S.D., where she is berthed lifelessly amidst her former enemies. No longer able to dive or hunt, she sits, barely afloat, a monument to a bygone era and of precious little value to anyone.

Tijuana and “Don't fence me in”

• Knock, knock, Charles
• Whose there, Linda.
• Tijuana.

• Tijuana who, Linda?
• Tijuana head down to the border to go to the Los Americas factory outlets? 

Shop till you drop!!

For the shopping neophyte, like me, it was an amazing sight to behold.

Presidents' Day holiday week-end at the outlet mall is a big party; everywhere, 40% reductions had been added to things already discounted by 30%. Really, it was just incredible!

Regrets? Only a few: I didn't get a “tatt” nor did I really get to see that infamous border fence separating the U.S. From Mexico. I guess we'll just have to come back.

Until next time.