Leaving death Valley yesterday was as awe inspiring as the drive in as the desert changed once again, from a rocky hot waste land to a sandy hot wasteland and as I entered the Mojave to thoughts entered my mind. First was how much this was like the opening scene of fear and loathing in Las Vegas and secondly how isolated I was on the road, if the car broke down I was at least 50 miles in each direction from any form of civilisation and at 7.30 it was already 25 degrees C.

The sandy desert landscape typical of the drive from Death Valley through the Mojave.

My destination yesterday was San Diego and the drive would be the last big drive of the trip so far, around 5.5 hours through the Mojave Desert and a climb through the Sierra Nevada Mountains. What was really noticeable on this drive was the almost instant change in landscape as a I got on the coastal side of the mountains, from desert wasteland to a Mediterranean paradise in a very short distance. The Architecture changed to with houses looking more and more European with terracotta roofs , I was so stunned by the beauty of the place I didn’t take any good photos!

I arrived at my cousin Erica’s house around 12.30 ahead of schedule and ready to relax and enjoy what I have decided may be the perfect city for me (after Birmingham of course).

Reasons San Diego is my kind of city:

Its home to Ron Burgundy
The Weather makes milk a bad choice
You can go snorkelling out in La Jolla cove and swim with seals and sea lions
It has some amazing surfing beaches
Dolphins will often surf with you
There are only small sharks in the sea that probably couldn’t pull off a limb
There are always military aircraft flying around to provide something interesting to look at
There are lots of bars and restaurants
You’re within a drive of a ski resort
Every one seems to own a dog
Its classy

That is all…

Erica showed my the sights of La Jolla and we went for lunch at a beautiful restaurant with some spectacular views over the ocean. I also had some traditional Mexican food in he form of some delicious fish Tacos, no grease or processed cheese to be found! I would definitely recommend.

What made it even better for me was the sight of a Black Hawks on manoeuvres over the bay and a P-51 Mustang flying overhead, just having a good time by the looks of it. The sound of the Merlin Engine in a P-51 is one of my favourite sounds in the world.

The view from where we had lunch

After Lunch we walked around the cove looking at some of the wild life, one of the beaches had been completely taken over by some seals who really know how to relax.

Momments after this photo was taken Erica got splashed by a very large wave, fortunately she protected me from most of the water, taking one for the team.

One of the beaches in La Jolla that has been taken over by Seals

Its tough being a Seal in La Jolla, I assure you despite looking dead they are all alive and well, just very relaxed

After Lunch we picked up Erica’s Husband Stephen from work and headed out for the beach at Del Mar with the dogs Ringo and Giselle along for a very leisurely stroll. People were surfing in the Pacific until sunset, you can finish work here and go to the beach, I am slightly jealous.

Below are some gratuitous shots of a beautiful part of the world.

The gorgeous beach at Del Mar around a 10 minute drive from La Jolla

I’ve been to worse places.

Me, my cousin Erica, Ringo the sheltie (he’s still not my friend but I’m working on it) and Giselle the friendliest dog in the world who is my friend.

The sun sets over the Pacific

After the beach we went out for food and then on to the comfiest cinema ever to watch the Hangover 3, the chairs at Cinepolis recline fully and each armchair has a button to call for food and drinks when ever you want, it was almost as good as the Electric Cinema in Birmingham.

I’ll be exploring San Diego this morning then its up to LA this afternoon for dinner with more of my family.

I love California!