San Diego 2015

Taking advantage of the long weekend due to Memorial Day, Tatay, Nanay, Kallai and the Tans went to San Diego.

The first day (Sat 05/23) was spent travelling from Tucson via swagger wagon. We left around 6am-ish and arrived in Carlsbad around lunchtime. We ate at a nearby Carl's Jr then spent the rest of the day at the Legoland waterpark areas.

Legoland map

We availed of the lockers which are accessible with waterproof wristbands. First stop was the wading pool (Duplo Splash Safari?) because it was the one nearest the lockers and the most baby-friendly, i guess, as the pools were cold and it was not covered.  Then, we tried the river (Build a Raft River) where they have single and double "salbabidas" (ano nga ba english ng salbabida? :p). The three of us tried to fit into the double since Lily was too small but the park did not allow us. Aside from the heat from the sun, Lily was probably sleepy and hungry already so she didn't like it that much. Once she got fed and slept for a bit, she was able to enjoy building some giant lego blocks with Tatay (Imagination Station). We just took pictures in front of the other attractions since we cannot take baby to them yet, giving us a reason to visit the park again.:)

Da who?! Tatay being silly

Architect Lily

Our accommodation for this trip is in Marriot La Jolla. Since we booked so closed to our trip date, we weren't able to get the AirBNB place that we were initially eyeing. The hotel was not that cheap and that near to the park but it was comfortable enough. They provided a crib/playpen for Lily upon request (though she wasnt able to use it as she co-sleeps with us). The ref/freezer was so small so I wasn't able to fit much of my pumped milk. There was only one microwave in the lobby so it was quite challenging to meal plan for Lily. I had packed/bought some oatmeal/bread but it was hardly touched because the long trip to have it heated up was a hassle. Needless to say, this noob mom learned her lesson on booking accommodation with baby. We also had difficulty looking for cheap dining nearby so the men ended up getting take-out from PF Changs for dinner.

We headed back to Lego Land on our second day (Sun 05/24) to check out the non-water attractions. We arrived around lunchtime so we ate at Wok and Ramen.

Accepting Duplo donations

Dinner was in Jollibee. It was already late but we still had to wait for a seat as there were still a lot of customers.

On Day 3(Mon 05/25), we went to Birch Aquarium. It was smaller than I expected but it was just right for this mama who was getting tired from carrying and nursing the baby.

Shark! @ Birch Aquarium

For lunch, we had to try the seafood and ended up at the The Fish Market, Solana Beach. It was not that satisfying for me. It might be because I chose the rockfish which I was sharing with Lily or I was expecting a "dampa" style of meal. The serving was not as many as I expected for the price. In tagalog: hindi masyadong sulit.

In the afternoon, we tried one of the cruises which is Lily's first boat ride. Afterwards, we walked around the area and accidentally found the kissing sailor statue.

Lily's first boat ride

Tsk, PDA!

For dinner, we tried the Kansas City Barbeque because according to an ad in our hotel's coupon book it was were Top Gun was filmed. Admittedly, it was not my best parenting decision as it was dirty literally and figuratively. The restroom stinks and has no changing table and there were some paraphernalia in their that would need some explaining (but good thing Lily is not old enough to be aware of such things). The food was the usual big greasy fare.

Our last day in SD was spent grocery shopping in Seafood City and having a feast (because lunch is an understatement) at Goldilocks. It was the most satisfying Filipino meal we had in a while: sweet and spicy seafood, lechon kawali, crispy pata, puto't dinuguan, sarciadong isda and lumpiang sariwa....and I ordered the last two for Lily but she ended up nursing and sleeping while her parents were binging. :))