TGART Day 14; Starting the Journey East; San Diego to Tucson

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The entire time we were in California, the skies were overcast,, it was cold, the wind was blowing hard and it rained more than it didn't rain.  I thought southern California was the land of sun, warmth, bikinis and surfing!  What happened?  I thought for sure I would see lots of girls in bikinis rollerblading down the boardwalk in Venice.  Nope!  Not a one.  Everyone had jackets.  I guess I will have to make the trip again some day to see the bikini-clad girls.  But, at my age, I guess it is for the better.

Travel Tip:  I mentioned yesterday that we stayed the night in downtown San Diego.  Bad idea.  When I traveled extensively for business, someone else was always paying my expenses so I stayed at the most convenient place near where I would conduct business.  Here is the tip.  When you travel, don't stay in a large city if you have any other options.  Just for comparison, here are the differences in staying overnight in a small to medium sized town and staying the night in a large city.  In the former, on this trip our hotel would normally cost, with all taxes and fees, about $107.00 per night.  This would be a Hampton Inn, Holiday Inn Express or Comfort Inn & Suites.  Nice places to stay.  We didn't have to pay to park, didn't have to tip anyone and received a free hot breakfast each morning.  They all were nice experiences.  Staying in San Diego, the cost for a night was $215.00, we had to pay $40 to park the car, tip the valet (Only valet parking was available, no other option), and we had to find and pay for breakfast.  Oh!  Don't forget having to pay for the Internet in large cities (about $12.00 per day) when it is free in the smaller localities.  So, if you have any option, always choose being outside of a large city if you are a frugal traveler and want to keep expenses down.

 

The Breakfast House; El Cajon, CA

We left San Diego early with the intent to drive to El Cajon to visit a breakfast restaurant that had gotten rave reviews.  Breakfast has always been one of my favorite meals, as long as I don't have to eat as soon as I wake up.  We found The Breakfast House and had a wonderful breakfast.  The place was not fancy but pleasant.  The wait staff was friendly and did an excellent job and the food was prepared perfectly.  As for the taste, I'll just say that if I lived in El Cajon, I would be visiting often.

Vance had a healthy portion of Huevos Rancheros and a pancake on the side (Vance is on a lifetime quest to find the perfect pancake and this one was better than any he has had on this trip.)  I had two scrambled eggs, a piece of link sausage, some hash browns along with a piece of substantial whole wheat bread.  Also, the coffee was excellent!

Afterward, we walked across the parking lot to the nearby Laundromat and spent the next hour and a half doing our laundry.  Everyone doing laundry was a man.  What is with that picture?  As for our laundry, we are pros!  But don't tell our wives.

After the laundry was done, we drove west on I-8 and headed through the southern California mountains on our way to Arizona.  We didn't find much to see or photograph along the way, but we did stop for gas in the Naval Airfield El Centro, which is where the Blue Angels are headquartered.  It rained all the way until we were east of the mountains.  The sky finally cleared and the temperature started to climb.  Finally, good weather.

Driving east, after 440 miles, we rolled into Tucson, Arizona.  I have been to Tucson twice before, once for pleasure and once for business.  I like this town and the surroundings as I found many things to do and see in the area.  If you ever get here, the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum is a must.  Saguaro National Park is also a must see as those magnificent sentries of cacti are a sight.

Finally, after checking in to our hotel, we asked the desk clerk about a good steak house.  He recommended the Cattletown Steakhouse and Saloon.  We found the server friendly, the atmosphere nice and the food good and plentiful.

Another travel tip:  Ask locals where they eat.  More often than not, they will tell you where the best places can be found.  That sometimes means off the beaten path and out of the way, but usually, the result is a good meal.

A photographic mention here:  The photo on the right was taken handheld at 1/3 second at F/3.5 with my Olympus OMD E-M5. The image stabilization in the camera is the best I have ever used.  The image is sharp and well exposed.  The lens was a Panasonic 14-45mm F/3.5-5.6 zoom, another gem of a lens.  Good technique can bring out the best in your photography.  It is not just the gear.

Tomorrow, we will do some sightseeing around Tucson before, again, heading slowly east and back home.  Enjoy!

Thanks for looking.
Dennis Mook