San Diego

Before heading to Costa Rica, I spent my last week in the United States this summer playing around San Diego with Aidan.  I had such a great trip!  One thing I love is that Aidan and I can have fun doing just about anything.  Weather it be actively playing in the ocean or lying in the desert under the stars; I am bound to be having a great time.  As usual, we managed to pack quite a bit in, even in a short amount of time.  Here are some pictures from our adventures together.

My first evening there we decided to hike to Potato Chip Rock.  This is basically just a really thin rock that juts out in an overhang at the top of Mt. Woodson near Lake Poway.  We joked that it’s a good thing neither of us had eaten too many potato chips so the rock wouldn’t break.  Though there were warnings of mountain lions, the most interesting life we found was some kind of gecko.

This is how I imitate mountain lions

Gecko!

Potato Chip Rock

This evening hike became a little stressful when we realized that the park closed at sunset, and as you can tell from that last picture, we were approaching the designated time while still on top of the mountain.  The 4 miles down were completed in record time I think (for us at least), and we passed many groups moving more slowly.  We ran down as fast as we could to try to make it back to the car to get out before the gate closed and locked us in for the night.  Thankfully Aidan is pretty quick, and we made it, even though the park rangers had decided to keep it open longer because of all the vehicles still in the parking lot.

The next day we decided to stay a little closer to San Diego and try out surfing.  For me, I’d say that looked more like floundering around in the water, but it produced quite a bit of giggles and smiles and despite taking a few tumbles by the waves I had a great time!  Though we went surfing a couple of times, I wouldn’t say I improved any.  I did manage to get to my knees and ride a wave for a little bit, but other than that I stuck with boogie-board style.  Eventually my head was filled with enough seawater and it was nice to take a break and just enjoy the sunset without the stress of running down a mountain.

The board is way bigger than I am!

Aidan actually surfing!

Having already explored the mountains and the ocean, we decided that it would be best to go camping in the desert for our next adventure.  So after work on Friday we headed east to the Anza-Borrego Desert.  I had never been to the desert before.  I would best describe it as hot and dry (go figure).  We found a camping spot just as the sun was setting and quick put up the tent while it was still light.  I brought my binoculars and we took turns looking at the moon and the stars.  The next day we were planning on going for a morning hike.  But as soon as that sun crested the horizon we realized that even a morning hike would be too hot.  We did walk around a little, and climbed to the top of a hill, just to say we did something, and were out of there by 8 am.  We didn’t see any wildlife, just heard the coyotes howling through the night, and the only painful encounter was a cactus to my ankle, which thankfully could be removed without too much of a problem.

Emily in the desert!

Aidan licking a cactus...

So. Hot.

We just barely made it back to the car for water.

Just kidding, we never really strayed too far from the car to begin with.  Just a 20 minute walk made me appreciate the ruggedness and difficulty of those cross desert journeys made by so many refuges all over the world, throughout history and today.  The Long Walk by Slavomir Rawicz takes on a whole new dimension…  Aidan and I brought plenty of water, and the cool air conditioning of the provided instant relief.

After leaving the desert so early in the morning, we still had a whole day to fill with exciting activities.  So we drove to Julian, California, which apparently has the best pie in the world.  Being the pie connoisseurs that we are, we just had to stop and make sure they were telling the truth.  I can’ t think of a better breakfast experience than apple mountain berry and strawberry rhubarb pies topped with cinnamon ice cream and whipped cream respectively, enjoyed in the shade of a tree with my best friend.

Aidan really likes pie...

From there we drove to the San Diego Zoo!!  I have been to this zoo once before, when I was less than one year old.  I’m not really sure that counts.  I enjoyed my visit on a whole new level this time around, studying the mammals and birds as well as marveling at them.  I think this is probably the best zoo I have been to, and I loved walking around with Aidan and looking at (and sometimes imitating) the animals we encountered.

Emily as a flamingo

Aidan as a monkey

A real monkey.  Allenopithecus nigroviridis

This camel seemed to have a lazy hump.
I had a camelbak so figured I fit right in!

Koala!  Phascolarctos cinereus

I was introduced to the sloth (Bradypus variegatus)
And am now all ready for Costa Rica!

Save the pandas!

Aidan's arms are almost as long as an Andean Condor's

I practiced being a biologist in the rain forest.

On Sunday we went to church and then made pancakes (as usual).  Though not as exciting or adventurous, Sundays are still my favorite day.  God knew we’d need a day of rest with all the exploring of his creation he left us to do for the rest of the week.  And a day to slow down, praise God, and spend time with the people you love is a great way to spend the day, because once Monday hit, it was time to hit the ground running, or, snorkeling.

Working directly with the Steller sea lions at the SeaLife Center could not have prepared me for this snorkeling experience.  La Jolla Cove provides habitat for vibrant fish and California sea lions alike.  Intimidated about swimming on my own at first, I was hesitant to exploring far beyond the cove.  As I grew more confident, I began to dive down towards the fishes and observe the sea lions from a safe distance.  However these strong swimmers can go wherever they choose.  At one point, a sea lion swam directly under me, maybe 10 feet away.  Too terrified to move, I held my breath as the animal inspected me for a second before turning away.  Unfortunately I did not get a picture of that one, however my under-water camera came did come into use!

Zalophus californianus

Fish!

That evening Aidan and walked around the beach and Torrey Pines State Park.  It’s not a trip to the ocean without a long walk on the beach.  I found seaweed that looked like a neuron, and we debated trying to catch a skate with our bare hands.  We saw people surfing and fishing, and we watched the sand crabs scuttle in the waves.  Mostly, we just enjoyed spending time with each other.

For just a week we sure managed to pack it in.  The only problem was it ended too soon.  I can’t complain though.  I was lucky enough to sandwich my summer between two weeks with this amazing guy, and hopefully we will have many more adventures to come.