The Ocean

My recent vacation was something of a staycation, like the comic strip character Kathy had, in that I stayed close to home, but my son and family had to travel from Arizona to get here to join us. There is so much to do in Southern California that a staycation is no hardship. We did lots of different things but if our vacation had a theme to it, it was the ocean.

We started off by taking the Catalina Express to spend a day on Catalina Island, where the photos above were taken on the Nautilus Undersea tour. I was amazed at how much there was to do over there and plan to go back to do some hiking.

I took my grandson Nick to Redondo Beach which is just a few miles from my home, and he had a grand time. Nick is used to swimming in a pool so I was wondering how he would manage with the waves, but they only added to his delight. This photo was taken in San Diego, but the beaches were very similar. Grandma got knocked off her feet a couple of times!

We then went off to Bolsa Chica to do some birdwatching. These are Elegant Terns, one young on the left and one adult on the right. These terns nest by the hundreds at this preserve and make quite a racket!

We did a few things that were inland, like Disneyland (how could I not take my two grandsons to Disneyland!), but even Legoland had some ocean displays.


For the second week, I rented a condo on on the Bayside of Mission Bay in San Diego so we could all be together there. This was the view (below). The open ocean was only a short two-block walk to the west. We did more swimming, shell-collecting, and got sunburned. (Don't tell my dermatologist.) I buried Nick in the sand and Toddler C. had fun knocking down any sand castles anybody tried to make. My son, Nick, and I went out kayaking on the bay. First time I have ever done that. It was great fun. On our last night, we took the paddle wheel steamboat tour of the bay.


And then there was SeaWorld, about which I have already blogged.