Our final day had come at last. There was no forestalling it, no asking Father time to roll back the clock, so it was up to us to take as best advantage of the sunlight as we could.
While we slept in just a tad, Gill and I were out on the road headed to Balboa Park. We parked over near 6th Avenue on the western side of the park so that we could walk across the Cabrillo Bridge (the Laurel Street bridge in case you don't know it by it's name). Walking into the park, Gill was instantly amazed by the beautiful detail of the Balboa buildings.
Gill said that the buildings reminded her of Greece and of Spain. We walked all over the park, seeing everything from the Old Globe, the Botanical Gardens, all the way to the United Nations Neighborhood.
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| Gill empathizing with the fish who were hiding their faces in shame |
Once we felt our tummies rumbling, Gill and I retraced our steps through the park and returned to the car. We drove the couple of blocks into Hillcrest where we had lunch at a great spot, D Bar.
I have been to this restaurant four times and I have never been disappointed. This was my first time eating there for lunch, but I was certainly not let down. I enjoyed the B.a.c.T Paninni (bacon, avocado, cheddar, and tomato) with a light side salad that was scrumptious. I could not have been happier with my sandwich. Gill enjoyed herself to a scrambled egg dish that had goat cheese, pesto, and ultra yummy potatoes. (Goat cheese is my numero uno cheese in case anyone is wondering.) So I helped Gill to consume her plate a bit. AND as if our meals weren't enough, we also ordered the CH-CH-Churro dish for dessert. This was my second time having this dish and yet again, it was quite satisfactory.
From Hillcrest, we headed to Seaport Village so that I could take Gill to the best coffee shop in San Diego, the Upstart Crow. The Crow is filled with books, knick-knacks, and oddities and it is a whole lot of fun. If those aren't your cups of tea, worry not, for it's almost guaranteed that there will be a cup with your name of it in that shop. It did not take Gill and me long to find ourselves delightfully entertained.
Seaport village was our last real oo-rah for the day. We walked around, stared out into the harbor for a long while and allowed ourselves to relax in the sun.
We went back to my house so that Gill could collect her things. Our plan was to meet my friend Devin out for dinner at Sushya, then my parents at Wine Steals before taking off for the airport. Both locations are within NTC Liberty Station, what is essentially the mall beside the airport. We ate some seriously spicy sushi while simultaneously meeting my sister Amanda and her fiance Tim. It was a nice farewell dinner, but it was time for one last glass of wine.
With tears forming in all of our eyes, my parents bid Gill goodbye. The pair of us, the lone trekkers, drove off for the airport. The ride was short and the run to the check-in even shorter. Those airport airport goodbyes are always tough and I'll admit that I left Gill snuffling, but the last thing I said to her probably stuck with the people around who heard, "Gill, stay classy."
It was an amazing, incredible, wonderful, beautiful, larger than life type of adventure that neither Gill nor I will ever forget. I am so happy and I feel so blessed to have had this week with one of my dearest friends. Indeed, Gillian, the West will always be here awaiting your next adventure. San Diego is paradise, I mean, even our trees are happy!
So dear readers, I hope you've enjoyed our traveling tales as much as we have in creating them. Tune in tomorrow to see what grand traveling adventure is coming my way...
Until tomorrow,
Your humble author,
S. Faxon
PS - Don't forget to check out Gill's blog too - https://memoirsofawayfarer.wordpress.com/
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