VISIT TO SAN DIEGO, VOL I
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Wow! I can't believe that I actually found this thing on Google Earth! We are in flight here from Albuquerque to Salt Lake City.
Tom: Bev and I looked down and (I can't remember which one of us had the thought first) we wondered if this may be where you did some rafting a few years back. Now that I'm home, I see that this is Bowknot Bend along the Green River, just west of Moab, Utah (which is where you were, right?).
I have marked the center of the island in the bend on the "Map This" function (click the button above). To orient yourself, realize that to your right in this photo is northwest, so as the river passes to your right on this photo, it passes up and to your left on the Google "Map This" map. Now is that cool or what?!
To get a good look at this on the "Map This" map, you will need to click on the thumbnail for this photo (which should be to your upper right on the map page -- clicking it will highlight this location on the map) and then zoom in (the zoom tool will be to your upper left -- with this location highlighted, you will automatically zoom in on it). Don't zoom all the way, or you will just see a few square feet in the middle of the island (the capabilities of these Google maps still amaze me). Zoom to about 8 hashes short of full zoom (I know, that is indeed how people describe me -- "Yes, he's about 7 or 8 hashes short of full zoom." But that's OK).
I do hope that the two of us are headed for different runways!
The colors and landscape around the Great Salt Lake always impress me.
Ascent out of Salt Lake City. We are now San Diego bound.
Sometimes you can nearly imagine that the salt on the flats is ice on a polar cap. No penguins or polar bears here, however.
A thousand miles later. On final approach to San Diego.
Now we are on the San Diego Waterfront. The U.S.S. Midway was the first United States aircraft carrier commissioned after the end of World War II. She saw plenty of action, including Vietnam and Operation Dessert Storm. Decommissioned in 1992, she finally made it to a permanent dock built just for her here in San Diego in 2004 to become a maritime museum.
Because there is such a large area covered on the "Map This" function for this album (from Utah to San Diego), to see the relative locations of the San Diego photos, you will need to zoom in, as described in the Bowknot Bend photo (except, highlight one of the San Diego thumbnails in the right-hand column and then use the zoom tool to...um....zoom in on it).
Black jellyfish. I'll let Olga tell you about it as you watch the video (make sure that your volume is turned up).
Some of the individual "birds" from the giant bird of paradise.
This is the bird of paradise which is more familiar to me. Smaller plant. Vibrant colors.
Seaport Village: Such a quaint and nice downtown waterfront.
This fellow had lots of birds and allowed people to hold them. He had a box for contributions, but did not require any payment to allow handling of the birds.
Pretty well-trained fowl, if you ask me.
Lots of performers along the water front. This was one of the more unique ones.
Out on a pier. Signs everywhere said "No Fishing or Swimming," but poles were also everywhere. This fellow had caught a banjofish. He released him back into the bay after showing him to us.
Looking across at the Naval Yard on Coronado Island.
Junior: Is this where you were stationed when you were in the Service?
Totally cool to see him standing in front of all the bronze service people.
And, as you can tell from this video, even his voice is incorporated into this memorial.
One can just blend right in and be a part of the crowd.
I'm sure that most of you know of the photo that this sculpture is based on. Basically, it was snapped by a very lucky and skillful professional journalism photographer. President Truman had just announced the end of WWII and the photographer happened to be in Times Square. The air was so jubilant that people were apparently going wild (I can only imagine). When this sailor grabbed the nurse and landed his kiss, the photographer acted on impulse in the spur of the moment to capture one of the most iconic images in American history. I was drawn to this sculpture partly because I had heard only a few weeks before (June 20, 2010) that the woman had just passed away at age 91. Apparently the identity of the man has never been determined, although several have come forward and claimed to be him.
I know that they update Google maps from time to time. However, as of this writing, you can see on the "Map This" view an awesome shadow of this couple extending north from the statue (best seen on maximum zoom -- the highlighted marker will show where I was standing when I took the photo, and the statue will be slightly to your left {west} from there).
More on the photograph (including the photo itself and notes from the photographer) at the following link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/V-J_Day_in_Times_Square
Apparently this man and woman were total strangers on that day, and never met afterward.
Our day ended with a wonderful dinner at the Fish Market Seafood Restaurant. You can see the bow of the U.S.S. Midway jutting from your right. The pink fuzzy ball in the distance is fireworks across the bay.
The place is a bit pricey, but the quality is commensurate with the price. I highly recommend this place.
You can find out more about the Fish Market Seafood Restaurant, view the menu, and even make reservations at the following link:
http://www.thefishmarket.com/locations.aspx
Who knows: Maybe I'll see you there!
