Showing posts with label USA (California). Show all posts
Showing posts with label USA (California). Show all posts

Sunday, May 9, 2010

Coronado, California

The Hotel del Coronado is a world famous beach resort in Coronado, California, often referred to simply as "the Del." The dome and cupola above its oceanfront ballroom is its trademark. Built in 1888, it maintains the Victorian touches of that era in its furnishings and ambiance.
Coronado beach is a broad expanse of sand. My husband lived just 8 blocks from here as a child. His mother took him out to the beach in front of the Hotel Del to watch part of the filming of Some Like it Hot, with Marilyn Monroe, Tony Curtis and Jack Lemmon. Dave was only 7 or 8 at the time, and he was much more interested in playing in the ocean and on the beach than watching the filming of the movie.
My husband went to Coronado recently to speak at a conference, and this was the view from his room at the Del. The low buildings in front are the new Villa units that are part of the Hotel Del Coronado complex. This is a view down Coronado beach. Across the sea is Point Loma, and the entrance to San Diego harbor is between Pt. Loma and the end of Coronado.
Coronado has perfect weather, in the 70's (F) (21 - 25 C.) all year. This makes it a desirable place for people to live, and flowers and gardens bloom all year. Santa Barbara style architecture is popular. This house is a fine example.
There are also some Victorian homes remaining from the early days of Coronado. Because my husband was on a business trip, sadly he did not take his camera. He took these photos with his Blackberry after he finished his meetings and before leaving for the airport on his last day at his conference.
The main street of Coronado is Orange Avenue, shown here. When my husband lived in Coronado in 1957 - 1960, the bridge connecting Coronado to San Diego had not been built, and people would have to take ferry boats across the bay. Most of the people who lived in Coronado back then were retirees and Navy personnel stationed at North Island Naval Air Station, which occupies the northern part of Coronado. The first traffic light was installed on Coronado when Dave lived there during his 1st - 3rd grades, when his father was the Supply Officer of the Naval Air Station.
From the Hotel Del Coronado, looking south down a peninsula called the Silver Strand, which leads almost to Mexico, there are large condo buildings right on the beach. Condos in Coronado are popular with people who live in Arizona, as it is a short 1 hour flight or 6 hour drive to escape the hot desert summers and enjoy the perfect beach weather.
The pool and patio next to the ballroom at the Del is an ideal way to spend an afternoon. They often will have a band playing, so you can enjoy the music, sun, fresh ocean air, and the hotel staff will make sure you have enough food to drink. The hotel is regarded as having ghosts, and some people reserve the rooms where people have reported seeing the ghost of a woman. I don't know why a ghost would stay up in a room when she could hang out at the pool instead.

Sunday, December 13, 2009

The Animals of Monterey, California

OK. I will confess that I did not take this photo using my underwater camera. I took this photo in the Monterey Bay Acquarium. They have an amazing jellyfish section. This jellyfish looks like an answer to the question "What would you get if you crossed a blue pin cushion with a cauliflower?"
The Monterey Bay Aquarium also includes a penguin exhibit, which is popular with children, and adults.
We have moved from the aquarium to Monterey Bay, home to many seals. Lying on the top of these rocks does not look very comfortable to me, but I guess they have a lot of padding, and the air must be warmer than the water.
The sea lions seem to be as curious about us as we are of them.
This sea otter was looking for food among the rocks along the sides of Monterey harbor.
The otter found a crab to eat. They will float on their backs and use their chests as a table. This is cute, except for the crab.
Another of the jelly fish in the Monterey Bay Aquarium.
A whale just off shore from Pebble Beach on the Monterey peninsula. You can see that this whale was close to the houses along this shore. Monterey Bay has an deep water trench that extends into the bay and that causes more diversity of marine life than would occur in areas where the ocean is shallower close to shore.
This is not a space ship. It is a delightful, unusual jelly fish. The lights radiate up and down the strands of the jelly fish, which give it even more of the appearance of a space ship as it glides through the dark ocean.
This is a typical view of the Monterey coastline, with Monterey Bay in the background. Monterey was an early capital of California, and it used to have a cannery industry. Now, it depends on tourism, along with Pebble Beach and nearby Carmel-by-the-Sea.
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