La Jolla is Too Much

    

View from Coastal Walk

    La Jolla has too much of everything. Too much beautiful coastline. Too much nice weather. Too much lush vegetation. Too much year round recreation: surfing, kayaking, canoeing, hang gliding, sailing, running, swimming, parasailing, scuba diving, snorkeling, paddle boarding, whale watching, fishing, and  tennis. Too much fresh fish, boutique shopping, sweeping vistas, stunning sunsets. 

Lush life in La Jolla

       What's not to like? I have enjoyed the too-muchness of La Jolla for many years because Darr's brother Frank and his wife Jane had an open door policy for friends and family since they moved there in the 1960’s. 

Windansea Beach

I even love the bag

    We have certain routines there, we have a favorite walk from Jane's house to Windansea Beach; we eat at Old Town Mexican Café; and shop at my favorite store Bazaar del Mundo. We always get a quick fix of Mexican food at Don Bravo, and stand in line for pastries at Wayfarer Bread, both in walking distance. 

With Jane and mounds of cormorant poop

    Jane and Darr and I went on the La Jolla Coastal Walk Trail and talked about eau de bird poop. The cormorants have done a number (number two) on the cliffs and the pungency has made outdoor dining challenging. We shopped at Sea Salt, a pretty boutique with a $5 million view of La Jolla shores. We had lunch outside at the divine La Valencia Hotel. 

La Valencia Hotel

The Del Mar Thoroughbred Club  

Del Mar Racetrack

    The Del Mar Thoroughbred Club and Racetrack was built in 1936 when horse racing was second only to major league baseball in sports popularity. We had Clubhouse box seats in shade and an attentive waitress. The people-watching was almost as good as what was happening on the track. Men wore blazers over polo shirts but it being California chose sneakers instead of penny loafers. Women wore long sleeveless frocks and some sported fascinators, oddly out of place in the California sun. A man alone at a table near ours had a bottle of white wine and two appetizers, and then, like magic, a big bottle of bourbon and a bouquet of roses appeared on his table. We guessed that he was a winning horse owner. 

Racetrack fans

     Jane taught me how to place bets, what to look for in the horses, how to play the odds. I played it safe and came out ahead by $15.  Jane had more fun with her bets, choosing horses for their names like Nasty Habit and I’m a Bad Boy despite their poor odds. I had a little excitement with one horse I picked to win, Sweet Azteca who came in second, but shot up to first place because the two horse ahead of him had defaulted. The winner had caused the other to trip, which sent the jockey flying onto the track (he was all right). 

My lucky loser Sweet Azteca

 Catalina Island 

Santa Catalina harbor and monster cruise ship

    The day can be nicely divided into 90 minute chunks. We drove an hour and a half to Newport Beach, took the 90-minute ferry to Catalina Island, waited in line 90 minutes to get a golf cart to go on a 90- minute tour of the island, and spent the final 90 minutes addressing my urgent hanger at Avalon Grille followed by ice cream at Scoops Catalina Creamery. Rinse and repeat the cycle for the trip home. 

     Tip number one: if you are going to Catalina Island from La Jolla, spend the night. Packing it all into a single day was quite frankly…too much. 

With Jane and Darr on Avalon Canyon Drive

    Aboard the Catalina Flyer, we were tormented by a huckster who would try to sell you your shoes if they weren’t on your feet. He delighted in telling us that a cruise ship with 5000 passengers had just docked in Catalina, so everything touristy fun thing, especially the golf cart rentals would be sold out. Except...for some of his company’s special offers. With a combination of hard sell and striking FOMO into the hearts of the trapped ferry passengers he sold every ticket he had for tours on a glass bottom boat, and a submarine that doesn't submerge.

    Jane, a veteran visitor to Catalina warned us off these offers and told us the golf cart was the best way to see the island and would be worth the wait. Thankfully Darr volunteered to drive this gassy contraption. I got a little scared when he said the brakes didn’t work very well. 

Our golf cart driver

     Tip number two—don’t go to Catalina Island when a cruise ship is in port. 

    I hadn’t done any research on Catalina Island, it existed only as a gauzy image—a getaway for wealthy Los Angelinos and Hollywood celebrities, yacht-y, exclusive. So when we came in sight of a gigantic rock formation with cliffs, canyons and caves, I was shocked. 

     Santa Catalina Island (they dropped poor Santa) is 75 square miles, 22 miles long and 8 miles wide, with only one square mile of commercial development, the pretty seaport of Avalon, packed with tourists. 

     Tip number three—don’t go to Catalina Island in the summer. 

     Then it occurred to me, what were we doing traveling in the peak of summer? We didn’t have school age kids, we didn’t have teaching jobs that required us to be back by Labor Day. Darr reminded me that it was because we needed to get away from stinking hot swampy Bethesda. Oh right. 

La Jolla lushness

    We had also planned to go sailing with our dear Tucson friends David and Kacey who have a boat in the Chula Vista Marina, but our fearless captain David got sick. They hoped it would it not be too much to ask us to come back again and do it another time. 

    No, it would not be too much at all.

La Jolla succulent