Sabins on the Sea - Day 8 - San Diego
by Nina Sabin
We actually slept in today. 7:15 am is the latest we slept so far.
When we woke up, we were already docked in San Diego. As I mentioned in yesterdays blog, today 200 disembarked and 600 embarked. Plus, there was additional staff added and a new captain. Since we woke up later and knew we were going to be walking around San Diego, we skipped going to the gym.
I forgot to mention a few days ago, just before San Fransisco, I had a mishap of sitting on my prescription sunglasses. My friends in San Francisco bought me a couples of pairs from the dollar store. If you noticed I have new sunglasses in the pictures, that is why. We ordered a new pair and having them sent to our friends in Honolulu. Praying they show up on time. Good we have friends to send them to. About San Diego - California's second largest city and the United States eighth largest, San Diego boasts a citywide population of nearly 1.3 million residents and more than 3 million residents countywide.
We had planned to explore the city by foot. The Waterfront park which is north of the terminal has beautiful walking trail, great views of the bay and the city. The views of the ship are amazing from the walkway.
As we walked south along the bay we saw the Broadway Pier and military ships. Two popular spots to see are the national Salute to Bob Hope next to Tuna Harbor Park, and the iconic statutes of when the war ended. We also walked along the Seaport Village. Such a quaint area right next to the bay. We proceeded into the city. The Gaslight area is nice with lots of restaurants and shops. However, as we walked just a few streets we were in a rougher part of the city where the homeless had tents set up.
It is sad that so many cities struggle with a homeless population and drug issues. We saw it in Vancouver, San Francisco, and now San Diego. Even though we know the zoo is supposed to be amazing, we were not in the mood for the zoo. Instead we went back on the ship, enjoyed a nice lunch at the pool, took a nap, and then went to the Crows Nest for welcoming drink for all the new passengers. There we met a couple closer to our age (since the average age seems to be 70). We had a lot of things in common and spent the afternoon chatting with them. We enjoyed their company so much they we connected for dinner and then went to listen to music with them. Our new favorite evening event is going to the Rolling Stones Lounge to listen to music and dance. Great band and music sets. We had a full day. We are back at sea for five days before our next port.