San Diego Tour Guide (Day 3)

Hey There:

Today is Monday and I helped my friend packing her kitchen. After three hours I left wanting to cry from how tired I was and how overwhelming it is to be in a pack-rat's apartment. Every drawer, every cupboard, every freaking shoe box is stuffed with things. Hours and hours of work and there seems to be no progress. It's awful!!!!

OK so, anyway, back to my Tour Guide story:

What and where? Walk from Pacific Beach to Mission Beach

Why? Luckily my friend was more interested in not missing his morning workouts, rather than going out every night. So this morning I left him at the corner of Garnet Avenue & Everts Street in PB with instructions to walk all the way to the beach, turn left and walk/jog until he reached Mission Beach, which he would recognize when he saw Belmont Park's roller-coaster. That would give him a few miles of walking, plus an added challenge if he did it directly on the sand. My friend had a blast looking at the cool shops, the beach, the girls in bikinis and he did some shopping. He was a happy camper!

What and where? Lunch at Roberto's Taco Shop

Why? There are tons of great taco shops in San Diego, but since my friend was already in Mission Beach and we were both famished, I went for the shrimp burrito while he had his first fish tacos of the vacation.

What and where? Old Town!!!

Why? San Diego's birthplace, with several haunted dwellings, like the Whaley House, some houses at Heritage Park, among others. This place started back in the times of the Wild Wild West and it looks very cool. Even though I like this area for its historical value, I don't necessarily like to eat or shop there, too much of a tourist trap for my taste. I've read several books on San Diego History, so I can give some interesting information about the area.

Money saving tip: The Casa de Estudillo is a free museum open until 5 PM, it's an old adobe house from a very prominent Mexican family back in 1827. It's beautifully kept and even though it's free, I always like to leave a donation. It's also rumored to be haunted, I think I'll be updating the Wikipedia page pretty soon.

A view of the old cemetery

The grave of Yankee Jim, one of the ghosts that haunt the Whaley House.
Check out the grave behind this one, weird reflections there.

Courtyard of La Casa de Estudillo

My friend Tom checking out Lucha Libre masks in Old Town

I was just made aware of this episode of Ghost Adventures featuring the Cosmopolitan Hotel and Casa de Estudillo, so here it is:

What and where? Window shop at Las Americas Premium Outlets in San Ysidro

Why? Actually I had to do an errand in San Ysidro and since we were already there we went to the outlet center. My friend got to see the border crossing and the fence, even the McDonald's there looked different to him since everyone around us spoke Spanish. We did go into several stores, but we didn't see too many deals, so it was more of a window shopping trip.

San Diego Tour Guide (Day 2)

Hey There:

Today is Sunday, my first day helping my friend pack. While I did that (and I'm not even going into that, it was awful!) I left my friend at Balboa Park.

What and where? Walk around in Balboa Park.

Why? It's an amazing place filled with museums, Colonial Style Spanish architecture, natural scenery, local performers doing shows for tips and so many things to look at.

Money saving tip: The Botanical and Timken museums are always free. On Sunday afternoon the houses in the International Cottages are hosted by people from those countries there to answer questions about their country. My favorite is the House of Scotland, very chatty people. Every week one of the houses offers a Lawn Program with food, dance and culture from that country.

House of Palestine putting on a Fashion Show

One of the many beautiful views in Balboa Park

What and where? Lunch at Crazee Burger in North Park

Why? This place has been featured Diners, Drive-Ins & Dives on the Food Network. But besides that they have amazing burgers, fries, great beers on tap and since it's an old house converted into an Italian food restaurant and now a burger joint, it has a very charming feel to it.

Money saving tip: Happy hour!!! (check online for details)

Cajun Burger

North Park location

What and where? A stroll through the Mission Basilica San Diego de Alcala

Why? The first of the 21 missions throught California founded in 1769, the next one is in Oceanside. Even though this is not the biggest it still gives a sense of wonder about that time and place. The Church looks amazing and even if you're not religious you can't help but admire the architecture.

Money saving tip: If you go on a Sunday everything is open and you don't pay to get in the courtyard area where you can look at the chapels, the friars rooms, etc. On weekdays this is more of a museum, but I believe it only costs $3 for adults to get in.

Front of the Mission San Diego Alcala

How the Mission used to look like

Friars Rooms

What and where? La Jolla Children's Pool

Why? You used to be able to see the sea lions lounging. Not sure what's going on but this time I only saw people and one sea lion wanting to approach but seeing people it went back to the ocean. One of my friends in Foursquare mentioned the same thing, hmmmm.

Money saving tip: Park, stroll around, take in the awesome view and take tons of pictures.

What and where? Mount Soledad in La Jolla

Why? Another free park where you can see an amazing view of the city and as you get up there you can see very beautiful homes. It's just amazing.

Finally for dinner we went back to my place and we had my specialty Cochinita Pibil, as I mentioned on a previous blog I love this dinner because I just leave it in the crock pot, by the time we got home the meat was done, I made Spanish rice and 15 minutes later we were having a great dinner.

San Diego Tour Guide (Day 1)

Hey There:

Today is Saturday and I ended up not getting my tattoo. I couldn't get a hold of the artist and I wasn't going to cross the border on a weekend unless I knew exactly where I was going. Ah well, maybe next time. So I picked up my friend at the airport and these are the places we ended up going to:

What and Where? Lunch at El Pollo Loco located in Mission Valley

Why? Fast-food cheap prices but very tasty and healthier type of food. This location has jazz as background music, seating looks modern, fast courteous service and even a guy coming over each table offering us whatever we wanted from a platter filled with hand wipes, toothpicks, condiment packets, etc. Not to mention the view, the big windows show a bunch of small palm trees, blue skies and a glimpse of the outdoor mall. All of which is normal to us, but looks awesome in the eyes of a visitor.

Money saving tip: They have $5 combos (hope they stay for good)

What and Where? Stroll through the pier from the USS Midway to The Star of India

Why? Blue, clean ocean, street vendors with very unique items, Urban Jungle sculpture exhibition all over the pier. As you stroll you see the USS Midway aircraft carrier, the Hornblower yachts, an occasional cruise ship, The Star of India sail ship and submarines.And when you finally look away from the ocean & ships and see to your right on Harbor Blvd, you see a line of palm trees against a blue sky (very Cali!). Turning your back to the ocean is the Downtown skyline with buildings made of glass, it looks very futuristic.

Money saving tip: Get there near or after 6 PM or on Sunday so you don't pay the parking meters.

What and Where? Dinner at El Camino in Little Italy

Why? Passing through Little Italy is always a treat, looking at all the shops, restaurants and pretty people. We went to El Camino, in my view the best Mexican food restaurant in San Diego. With a small menu, every choice is a good choice, the place is an explosion of Mexican culture with items from Lucha Libre, bull fighting, Mexican Bingo, pinatas, Day of the Dead symbols, icons from the revolution, colonial style chandeliers and of course La Virgen every you look. The variety of 80's / 90's music, makes it feel like you're inside a piece of art and I love the bathroom, it looks so cool!

Money saving tip: Happy hour every day from 5 - 7 PM (even weekends) not to mention Taco Tuesday all taco plates 1/2 off.

What and Where? Stroll through The Gaslamp ending up at Jolt'n Joe's and then The Field.

Why? They were having $2 beer specials at Jolt'n Joe's so we took advantage of that, pretty cool and very big place. They're two floors with a bar in each floor, pool tables, dance floor and areas to sit down. The outside deck overlooks Dick's Last Resort, I liked it!

As for The Field, I just love it, it's "turn of the century Irish pub shipped literally piece by piece from Ireland and relocated in the heart of San Diego's Historic Gaslamp Quarter". And everyone I take there love it as well, you get a cozy feeling and if you go upstairs you can have a pint and have a chat with friends without being in the middle of the crowd.

Money saving tip: If you're not planning on having a late night, get to Horton Plaza just before 9 PM and get your ticket validated inside the mall (no purchase neccesary) that will mean three hours free parking. If you get to the mall after 9 PM it'll be a $20 flat rate, so you might as well look for other parking lots that cost $10 - $15, since street parking will be nearly impossible to find.

As for deals on drink, walk around the Gaslamp and you'll see people advertising their bars and specials on the sidewalk and go right in! And for The Field if you're on foursquare, you get a discount on the meals with every check in.

San Diego Tour Guide (Intro)

Hey There:

Today is Friday (OK it's not, but things are nuts, so just go with it) and I'm on the eve of a very busy week, tomorrow I'm getting a new tattoo, a dear friend arrives from New York, he'll be staying at my place for a week and I promised to be his tour guide and I'll be helping my future landlady in her packing.

I'm very excited about the tattoo, my artist used to live in Tijuana and moved to Guadalajara, he comes back once or twice a year to work on his local clients. I'm faithful to him and have been waiting for his return for months. I'll be getting a skulls and flowers design on my thigh, I plan to make a video of the process. The design will be based on this top I have, have it start at the side of the thigh and end in the front, once I get with the artist we'll make the final decisions on the design. Can't wait!

The thing I'm not looking forward is helping my future landlady pack her condo. She's a packrat, I've seen her place and it will be a daunting task. I'm doing it for two reasons, first she's my friend and I know she needs the moral and physical support, if she's left alone at this task she'll give up and probably hang herself. Second reason is that I'll be renting her condo and I want to make sure she takes/throws away as much of her stuff as possible so I don't have to deal with it later.

As for my friend, we've meet online over a year ago and are now very good friends. He loves California, but has never been to San Diego, so when his vacation time came, of course I told him he could stay in my place. I have a lot of activities planned for him so he gets to see the tourist and normal every day side of San Diego.

So I plan to blog about the places I take him and since we're both on a budget I tried to find things to do that were affordable or free. Only thing about San Diego, you do need a car, and gas ain't cheap.

RAW:Natural Born Artists in San Diego

Hey There:

Last Thursday I was invited by Wink Artisans to attend RAW: Junction at the Ivy Nightclub @ Andaz. This is a monthly event that features independent San Diego artist and pre-sale tickets are only $10, just contact any of the featured artists for tickets.

And now this will be one of my laziest entries, since I'm only gonna copy & paste the event invitation. Check the video at the end of the post, I made it and it shows what these events have to offer, as well as the awesome earrings I got from Wink and you might notice I gave some extra footage to certain models. So if you go to one of these events, have fun, support local talent and tell others about it!

Click on this link to see other items I've bought from Wink Artisans

WHAT'S RAW?

RAW:natural born artists is an independent arts organization that hand-selects and spotlights independent creatives in visual art, film, fashion, music, hair and makeup artistry, photography, models and performing art. RAW's mission is to provide up-and-coming artists of all creative realms with the tools, resources and exposure needed to inspire and cultivate creativity so that they might be seen, heard and loved.... RAW educates, connects and exposes emerging artists in 20 artistic communities nationwide through monthly showcase events.

Join us in celebrating the work of these artists.

WHAT CAN I EXPECT?

RAW events are multi-faceted artistic showcases. Each event features a film screening, musical performance, fashion show, art gallery, performance art and a featured hairstylist and makeup artist. These artists are all local, hand-picked talent who have been chosen to feature at RAW.

RAW events are 21+ and feature a cash bar for cocktails while you enjoy the night. Dress code is COCKTAIL ATTIRE, so dress the occasion and get ready for an artistic circus of creativity!

Hosted by Sacita Duffy
Video by Charles Thi
Photos by Brent Harrison
DJ Jay Luera of House Junkie

FEATURED RAW ARTISTS

- VISUAL ARTISTS -
CRYSTAL POWELL
MACKENZIE NEMETH PHOTOGRAPHY
WINK ARTISANS
JAMES HUBLER
ROBERTO WARNER
SOMNANG
BASTIAN
RAD
ALINE SPELLMEIER

- MUSIC -
SOUND DRUG
DESTRUCTO BUNNY
CRUCIAL BLEND

- RUNWAY SHOW -
JEWELRY DESIGN SHOW BY ERIN FADER
FEARLESS CLOTHING DESIGNS

-HAIR AND MAKEUP-
JEANETTE MARIE CRUTCHFIELD

- MODELS -
HOLLYANNE HENDRIX

Ivy Nightclub

Wink Artisans

I bought those cute red skull earrings! Love Them!!

Marisol from Wink Artisans talking to her fans

A Social Media Socialite Day

Hey There:

I've put in my bios on different sites that I'm a Social Media Socialite. So I get asked what is that? To me it means that I go and do very interesting stuff thanks to Social Media. For example last Saturday this is what I did:

I received an e-mail from Matt Brown (@mattsurfs) he's one of the organizers for the @SDBloggers Meetup group I belong to. The e-mail was to gather up help from the network in order to help Dave Cynkin, founder of Blogworld (@dave_blogworld)who is competing in Ford's Ecoboost challenge, there were several things he had to do to win the event and if he did, San Diego (yeah! San Diego) would get a free tank of gas. One thing we were asked to do is to vote for him in Facebook and the other was to volunteer time to help build a community garden at Bayside Community Center in Linda Vista. So I had no idea who these people were (other than Matt) but I decided to go and help. That was on Saturday morning, I shoveled for about two hours and my hands and shoulder blades ached for days and days. Went there not knowing people and now I have new friends and I've been invited to go on Mondays when they teach about growing your own food, great people and community. Here are some pics from that morning.

Had a bad feeling there would be shoveling to do

Getting our instructions and making the teams

Shovels, picks, rakes waiting for us

Dave Cynkin, founder of Blogworld, competitor in Ford's Ecoboost Challenge

This is for a good cause! This is for a good cause!

Had lots of fun with my digging mates, made new friends

I left my new friends to get a much needed shower and be on my way to The San Diego Soul Food Festival where I would eat all the calories I burned shoveling and then some! In this case I didn't find out about the event by Social Media, I saw a flyer at Lestat's. BUT I went to the event with a friend I met through the San Diego Beer Club Meetup group. And of course I did get more info online, the event was to benefit Meals on Wheels and was organized by AListProductions. The ticket included all you can eat (ribs, fried chicken, pulled pork, wings, greens, cornbread, and more) plus 4 drink tickets for beer or cocktails and all the water and soda you can drink. The music was great but they ran out of food and there's wasn't enough shade but I was so happy with the 4 Heineken I had that it didn't matter to me.

By then I was tired and went home to take a nap and later on get ready for a Meetup at a British Pub called Elephant and Castle in order to see the Doctor Who Series Return Viewing Party...that's right thanks to my friend Darlene (@darleneeats) I saw she belonged to a Meetup group called Madman With a Box, so I immediately signed up and I was there with 30 other Whovians watching an Amazing TV Show, I even got to wear a fez (it belongs to Darlene's husband, he loves it!)

I was supposed to go to a club after that event, but my friend flaked so instead the night ended with other friends talking and having coffee until 3:30 AM. So Thank You Meetup, Blogger, Twitter and Facebook for giving such a great time!

Comic-Con 2011 and beyond

Hey There:

Comic-Con is an annual grand event in San Diego. It's a convention that started 42 years ago at the U.S. Grant Hotel with 300 in attendance. Back then it was dedicated to comics, now The Con has over 130K attendees shows everything that has to do with popular arts; everything from comics, TV, movies, anime, manga, art, costumes, gaming and the very exciting actors, writer and directors panels and autographs.

I've been immersed in this since I arrived in San Diego 12 years ago. This year I decided to take more videos than pics. As I edited and published them I was surprised to know so many San Diego residents had never been to it and I was asked a lot of questions about it. So here are some of the things I can tell you from my years of personal experience (been there 8 times):

Registration

• You can only buy them online and this year badges sold out in the same day.
• Many people were able to pre-register on site, so many are already secure with their 2012 badges.
• If you want a badge this year which will be on sale this fall, you need to follow Comic-Con on Facebook, Twitter or check their website for updates and be ready when the time comes!
• For 2012, prices changed and the 4-day badge will be more expensive. This is done to discourage people from just buying the 4-day badge and so they can purchase badges for only the days they will actually attend. The first time I attended was on a Sunday, just to check it out, it was cheaper and I still got to see lots of things.

Volunteer

• If you don't have the money, already been to Comic-Con several times, or you didn't get a badge then try the volunteering thing.
• Same thing, register online and do it quickly because spots run out.
• You only volunteer for 3 hours or so and then get a badge for the day you volunteered, you may pick the hour but not the assignment. But the staff are pretty cool and you may get easy assignments, especially if you have experience and have good reviews from your supervisors.
• You will only be able to register for one day at a time and the first time you go I suggest to print the e-mail and any attachments they send. For some reason the registration number I was given was from 2010 and I didn't appear as a 2011 volunteer on the system, but I had all my paperwork and they registered me on site. It was a scary moment when my name didn't appear, what if I couldn't get in??
• My worst assignments have been "line management", it's easy all you do is tell people where the line is, tell them to get closer together, and stuff like that. But it's dull work and you don't get to see anything.
• My best assignments have been "event giveaways" in Ballroom 20 and Hall H. Here you get to see the panels while you're working and once you're done you can stay there avoiding hours and hours of line.
• Especially on Thursday and Sunday, you might get lucky and your services won't be needed, so you get cleared without doing a thing!
• This is a video of what I did as a volunteer this year:

Attendees

• Unless you're a super-organized person that takes their food, snacks, water, etc. be prepared to loose some pounds as you survive on caffeine, sugar, carbs and pay as if they were gourmet food.
• Be prepared to walk the equivalent of 6 - 8 miles each day. Expect to be sleep deprived and in pain, but you'll still be going. 
• When you register you get a huge bag that can be worn as a backpack or tote bag, use that or take your own.
• Wear comfortable clothing, but if you wish to dress up in a costume be prepared to have your picture taken a lot! So have a friend with you to carry your stuff or just don't bring anything other than your phone and badge. There was a girl dressed as a Dalek who had her picture taken and then she would give people a business card so she could be tagged on the pics people took. That was cool, she got quite a collection and I tagged her on one pic and a Doctor Who video. She even appeared at a Doctor Who special documentary done by the BBC!
• Look at the schedule of panels and exhibits beforehand and make a list of what you want to see, as a rule of thumb panels in the small rooms will require a 30 - 60 minute wait before the event. Anything in Hall H or Ballroom 20 might require camping out...more on that later.
• Try to get there using public transportation, otherwise be prepared to spend anywhere from $15 to $45 per day on parking. 
• Since I live in San Diego I don't know about getting hotel accommodations, but I hear it's a nightmare.
• Best days to check the convention floor are Thursdays (less people, lots of merchandise) and Sundays (less people, and lots of deals on what's left of the merchandise).
• Be sure to carry enough batteries and a charger with you, and just in case...pen and paper for an autograph.
• I saw several people carrying small stools, these are useful when you're waiting in line, but will be useless if the line is constantly moving. I think I might get one for next year.
• These videos are a tour of Comic-Con and the things you can get there.

Panels and Autographs

• The coolest part about Comic-Con is that you get to go to panels where you can see exclusive previews, panels from your favorite shows, your favorite authors, etc. If you're into obscure ones in the small rooms, no problem. If you're into popular shows...you have my sympathy.
• I wanted to see The Big Bang Theory Panel which started at 12:30, I started the line at 10 AM, didn't get in; a girl I met started the same line at 8:30, she didn't get in. I remained in line hoping to get in and later get a bathroom pass so I could return for True Blood at 5 PM, but at 1:30 I had to leave the line and go do my volunteer duties. I was pissed!
• If you want an autograph for limited signings (like the True Blood, Torchwood or Dr Who panels) you need to get in line for hours in order to participate in a raffle. 
• So how do you get in? The "lucky" ones camp out or arrive at 4 AM or so to get in line. Comic-Con opens the doors at 9 AM, so they do their lines outside of the convention center. So let's say you camped out on Friday night and get inside Ballroom 20 on Saturday morning, you will be able to stay there all day if you want to since the room doesn't get cleared out between panels; you can request a bathroom pass and get to come back.
• This year I had my volunteer duties on Sunday morning on Hall H since I wanted to be already inside to watch the Doctor Who panels, I was discharged from my duties early and had to endure the Glee panel (I mean...seriously?? WTF is Glee doing at Comic-Con???) then I sat through Supernatural (not bad) so I could finally see the 11th Doctor...it was awesome!!
• If you just don't want the hassle of long lines or camping out, you can still see repeats of the panels later at night in one of the smaller rooms, you just don't get to see the exclusive previews.

People on Friday night camping out for Saturday Panels

Videos

• Here are some of the videos I uploaded on YouTube, because of the pesky copyright thing I edited out theme songs with extra pictures and a Star Wars montage, so if you want to see more add me as your friend on Facebook.

Any questions??