Mission Bay RV Resort, January 20 to February 20, 2016

Rating: 3.5 on a scale of 5

Location: From my perspective, the location of this park is perfect for a month-long stay in San Diego. It is on the north side of San Diego and, therefore, close to La Jolla, Pacific Beach, Mission Beach, and Ocean Beach. Additionally it is located on De Anza Cove of Mission Bay. The fabulous Mission Bay City Park is nearby and we enjoyed many morning and evening walks in the park affording beautiful sunset views. The 5 (I-5) is a very short distance from the park, so it is very easy to travel anywhere from this location. On this one dimension, this park is a 5. 

Lot size: There are only back-in sites here and they are relative narrow. We paid for a "preferred" site and were therefore on the perimeter in site 7. Preferred perimeter sites are 1-35 and 159-163. Sites at the end of each row are also identified as preferred sites, but the perimeter ones are better from my perspective. There are also 18 (36-53) "bay view" sites that are very nice, but cost considerably more. 

Amenities: The Snack Shack is open for breakfast and lunch. The first day we arrived we ate here while waiting our site (check-in is 2:00 pm, but we got in around 1). The food was good and reasonable. 

Wifi performance varies significantly dependent on usage and we had problems hooking up to the cable service. Thanks to the effort Kevin, a wonderful employee of the park, he was able how to figure out how to make it work (we needed a cable box that we got from the office for $40/fee returned when we returned it at departure). He was fantastic! 

The laundry facilities are poor (we only did our laundry there once (4 worn-out washers and 4 driers). We went to nearby Ms Bubbles Laundromat on Garnet Ave that was great for our needs. 

Also, the dog run is a small, dirt, fenced-in area. 

But the nearby Bay Walk is where we, and pretty much everyone else, walked their dogs. There are plenty of free bags and trash receptacles along the walk for doggy poop. Access to the walk is through a security gate (you have to know the passcode to get back into the park) and was very convenient. There are beautiful views of the bay along the walk. 

Cost: $975 + electric and trash (about $100/month). Bay view sites are $300 more/month. Prices have since increased by $100/month.

Management: The folks in the office were friendly and helpful. Our check in was smooth and efficient (although we arrived early and had to wait for site). As I mentioned previously, Kevin was a huge help in figuring out our issue with connecting to their cable system. Apparently, he spends a lot of time helping others as well. The security at this location is fantastic. There is a security gate at the entrance that is manned 24x7. 

General Comments: This park does not accommodate mail delivery, therefore, we had to use FedEX or UPS for mail delivery (as they can delivery directly to each site). We would definitely stay at this park again in the future due to its great location in San Diego. 

www.missionbayrvresort.com

Balboa Park and Botanical Building, 2/19/2016

Located near downtown San Diego, Balboa Park is the largest urban cultural park in the US. Fifteen major museums, performing arts venues, luscious gardens, and the San Diego Zoo are all part of this amazing park. The architecture and landscaping are the legacy of the 1915-16 Panama-California Exposition (commemorated the opening of the Panama Canal) featuring Spanish-Renaissance buildings and the 1935-36 Pacific International Exposition (held to boost local economy after the Depression). 

We visited the park several times during our month-long stay in San Diego to see the zoo and several museums. On our last day before leaving the area, we wandered around Balboa Park to see some of the amazing architecture here. 

The Botanical Building and Lily Pond in one of the most photographed sites in San Diego. Built in 1915, it is one of the world's largest wood lath structures. 

There are over 2,100 tropical plants in the permanent collection. We loved the orchids and bromeliads. 

The Alcazar Garden was created in 1915 for the Panama-California Exposition. Inspired by the 14th century Royal Alcazar garden of Seville, Spain, it is a lovely retreat in Balboa Park today just as it was during the exposition.

Plaza De Panama has the San Diego Museum of Art to the north with a beautiful fountain. To the east is the beautiful California Tower. And to the south is El Cid Campeador, a sculpture by Anna Hyatt Huntington in 1927, it is a 23' high bronze statue of El Cid, legendary hero of Spain. This is one of several identify statues...the original is in front of the Hispanic Society of New York City. This one was dedicated here in 1930.

There are multiple performance venues at Balboa Park including the following:

The Old Globe is a leading regional theatre and California's oldest profession theatre organization. More than 500 performances are held here annually on its three stages. 

www.TheOldGlobe.org

Casa Del Prado Theatre (the oldest youth theatre in the US) is today home to the San Diego Youth Ballet, San Diego Junior Theatre, and San Diego Youth Symphony.

www.juniortheatre.com

Year-round performances are held at The Spreckles Organ Pavilion on the world's largest outdoor pipe organ. www.sosorgan.org

This is only a fraction of the many sights to enjoy at Balboa Park. Be sure to stop by the Visitor Center for a map and information about the many museums and gardens. Tours are also offered daily that start at the Visitor Center. There are also restaurants, shops, and other attractions here. For additional information, see their website at www.balboapark.org

San Diego Museum of Man, 2/19/2016

The central exhibit of the Panama-California Exposition in 1915-16 was "The Story of Man through the Ages." Early man fossils (and casts of ones in museums) were gathered from Alaska, Siberia, Africa, the Philippines, Peru, and Europe resulting in the most comprehensive physical anthropology exhibit ever assembled. When the expo was over, a group of visionary San Diego citizens created the San Diego Museum Association to retain the collection and preserve/promote other museums in the area.

Housed in the California Building, on the Register of Historic Places, was built for the expo in 1915. It served as the entrance to the exposition. The building has an impressive facade as shown below and the iconic 3-stage tower is a symbol of San Diego. 

Anthropology is the focus of the museum. There are both permanent and temporary exhibits on display. Maya: Heart of Sky, Heart of Earth showcases huge majestic monuments and ancient artifacts from the Mayan world. There are both zoomorphs (boulders shaped as a mythical animal with bas-relief carvings and inscriptions as well as free-standing monuments in the exhibit dating to 780 AD.

Proceeding to the second floor is the Footsteps through Time exhibit that explores four million years of human development revealed through scientific discoveries. This is an exhibit of the largest known primate (that lived 9 million to 400,000 years ago in SE Asia). Remains have been found along with homo erectus (a predecessor of Homo sapiens). They were 10' tall and weighed about 1,200 pounds...double the size of a modern-day male gorilla. 

There are lots of interactive displays like this one where you can compare the size of your hands and feet to those of various primates. 

This display of skeletons of a chimpanzee (top), mountain gorilla (lower center), and man (left and right) shows the similarities and differences of the species. 

The Footsteps through Time exhibits has extensive models comparing modern man to early hominids including the genetic similarities found in our DNA.

The Time Tunnel is a fascinating exhibit that documents the history of modern man (homo sapiens) over the last 40,000 years starting with the first rock art (40,000 years ago), early musical instruments and the like to modern technological milestones. 

The Human Lab has interactive displays the wonders of the human mind...very interesting.

The Race: Are We So Different? Exhibit explores the folklore and assumptions we make about racial identity and its connection to genetics and biology. For example, sunlight and vitamins determine our skin color, not race. There were many interactive stations in this exhibit.

A surprising number of mummies are on display in the Mummies: Ancient Egypt, Mexico, and Peru exhibit. Many of the mummies found in tombs in Egypt are headless due to the theft of valuable jewels and amulets. This mummy and the child sarcophagus date to 305-30 BC. The two Egyptian mummies date  664-343 BC. 

The adult mummy was found in Mexico and is approximately 750 years old. The child mummy is Peruvian and 550 years old. 

These shrunken heads (yes, they are real!) are from the tropical rain forest of Ecuador or Peru. During intertribal warfare, the heads of enemies killed in battle were shrunk and worn as a necklace to give the wearer the power of the slain warrior. The practice was banned in the last century.

Native Americans, the Kumeyaay, lived in this region of the American Southwest. They were highly skilled basket weavers and pottery makers. There are multiple displays about their lifestyle with various artifacts for hunting, entertainment (music and games), etc. 

Also displayed are Zuni kachina dolls. 

Admission to the museum is $12.50/adults; $10/seniors. Tower Tours can also be purchased in conjunction with museum tickets at $22.50/adults; $20.00/seniors. The tower guided tours were sold out when we were there, so we did not have the opportunity to see the panoramic views from the top.

We really enjoyed the display at this museum. It has a very interesting array of interactive displays about us (homo sapiens) and our evolutionary roots. For additional information about the museum, hours of operation, etc., check out their website www.museumofman.org