San Diego makes it easy to lose track of time – and difficult to decide. 60 hours – three evenings and two full days – is actually far too little for a city that smells of salt air, limes, corn tortillas, fresh strawberries and hot asphalt. A city in which Italy is only a few blocks away from Mexico, the Pacific is always glittering somewhere on the horizon and even a visit to the supermarket is an experience.
I was only there for a short time. A weekend, a rental car, a hotel by the water – and the plan not to see everything, but to see the right things. So: float around the Little Italy Mercato in the morning, look for Mexican ceramics in Old Town, put your feet in the sand in La Jolla, browse between chilis, fresh tortillas and salsas in the Mexican supermarket, eat dumplings and baos in the trendy Chinese restaurant in the evening – and at the end watch the light gild the Pacific again.
Saturday morning at Little Italy Mercato
A ship’s horn wakes me up on my first morning. From the balcony of my room I can watch a large navy ship being pulled out to sea. Into a bank of fog that will soon disappear again. Today is market day! Saturday morning on the Little Italy Mercato is something of a must in the city. And shortly after nine there is already a lot going on here. I don’t have breakfast at the hotel. My plan is to have breakfast at the market. Maybe empanadas today? The immediate proximity to Mexico provides the market with an abundance of citrus fruits. There are wonderful vegetables and lots of sweet pastries. I discover a stand that specializes in spice mixtures for preserves. This is where I strike first. Not that I’m not capable of making my own spice mixes for my pickles, but I’m a victim of packaging and these little bags are just too pretty. If you buy 3 at once you get a preserving jar. Of course I will bring this home with me too.
And I buy Japanese cucumbers. They are very mild, as slim as Japanese eggplants and I can almost taste the cucumber salad flavored with chili oil and sesame that I will make at home after my long flight home.
Mexican pottery in Old Town
If you’re like me and are constantly looking for plates and bowls, two places in the city are important. The little one Casa y Cocina in North Town (wonderful) and that El Centro Artesano in Old Town San Diego. The latter is located in the middle of the open-air museum, which aims to give an impression of what it used to look like here. You have to take into account the amount of visitors, as well as a lot of souvenir stuff that you can buy here. But the selection of traditional Mexican ceramics here is overwhelming. Certainly a few kilometers further across the border they only cost a third of what they charge here. But a trip to Tijuana wasn’t on the agenda.
Luxury and lifestyle in La Jolla
La Jolla is the moment when San Diego suddenly changes volume. Just a moment there’s a market, streets, supermarket shelves, ceramic colors – and then you’re standing in front of the Pacific, that big, bright, brazen blue – or one of those mysterious banks of fog that roll towards land from the ocean. The coast here is not soft and pleasant, but dramatic: Sandstone rockssmall bays, eroded caves, surf, seabirds, sea lions (which I didn’t see) lying on the warm rock slabs as if this place had always belonged to them. Which, if you’re honest, is true. La Jolla is definitely the most luxurious address you can have here in San Diego. Chic villas, parks, restaurants and galleries – everything that manifests the upscale lifestyle. And underneath is the wild Pacific.
In the Village of La Jolla You can stroll around wonderfully and the bars and cafés are well attended. So just sit down somewhere, order a margarita and watch the people.
The mystical fog banks
In San Diego, this phenomenon has even been given a name. Or better yet, two. “May Gray” and “June Gloom”. But now in March they are here too. And more and more often. So often that even those San Diego Union-Tribune reported about it. Usually in the early morning hours a thick layer of fog comes in from the ocean. You can’t help but think of the horror film “The Fog”, that’s how thick the fog is. But unlike in the film, he doesn’t bring any harm, but simply dissolves again. Sometimes you can also see a curtain of clouds and fog stretching over the coast from the sea. I know this sight. With foehn, this phenomenon can also be observed in Munich. A band of clouds as if cut with a knife.
Dinner at Steamy Piggy
The Mexican cuisine get closer – that’s the culinary plan for San Diego. But sometimes these plans don’t really work out, because after a carnita at the market, I wanted something different for dinner. So I read the restaurant reviews in the local newspapers and I found my favorite: Steamy Piggy. The steaming piggy is the perfect address for Asian fusion food and dumplings. And because it is so popular, I ended up on the waiting list. Well, it’s Saturday evening and if you really want to go to one of the hottest restaurants in the city, you’ll have to put up with it. And yes, it’s worth it. The website points out that only the freshest ingredients are used here and that MSG (glutamate) is completely avoided. By the way, I don’t really see the glutamate issue, but it’s good if that’s the case. And yes, the dumplings are great here. The lighting is a real nightmare for photos, but ultimately it’s all about enjoyment. And it is also extremely generous. My bulgogi burrito is so large that I have half of it wrapped up. The prices here are quite moderate.
In the Mexican supermarket
“Carnival” is the name of the supermarket and is my hope of finally finding chilies, tomatillos and salsa in abundance. The avocados pile up into small mountains. And then: Cascabel, Ancho, Guajillo, Poblano, Chipotle, Pasilla and Pequin – all chilies and a seemingly endless shelf of them. I’m overwhelmed. Here are also uninterrupted fresh wheat tortillas baked, they taste delicious and can’t even begin to be compared to the sad flatbreads you get in the supermarket here. If you’re in San Diego, you definitely have to visit a Mexican supermarket. Where else can you get fruit gum with so much chili on it that it brings tears to your eyes? In Mexico they love it really spicy.
One last sunset at the Sunset Cliffs
And then it’s almost over. My last evening. Tomorrow the road trip that took me to LA, the desert and San Diego is over. I admit it’s hard for me to leave. I experienced so many contrasts, enjoyed driving here so much and am intoxicated by the diversity. So what do you do on your last night? A perfect sunset should crown my short trip. So I go to Sunset Cliffs. Where you can also jump into the sea from a rock arch. I’d rather just watch than jump myself. I enjoy the view of the rocks turning golden in the light of the setting sun. Every evening many visitors come to spread out their picnic blankets and simply watch the sun go down. I would have loved to see, taste and visit so much more.
Ocean View Accommodation – Sheraton San Diego Resort
For a short visit like this, the Sheraton San Diego Resort was an ideal home base. Not hidden on some side street, but large, open and facing the water on Harbor Island – with that typical San Diego mix of marina, sky, palm trees and urban flair. The location is perfect – you can get anywhere quickly from here. And you can also just do some work in peace and quiet with a view of the sea – if you have to (I had to).
The various restaurants offer variety and so on the first evening it is simply comfortable to indulge in the richness of Cali-Baja cuisine in the hotel’s own restaurant Rumorosa. Crispy empanadas, fresh salad, seafood and a cocktail.
Here in the Marina Tower on the 11th floor I wake up in the soft morning light over the marina. And at night the skyline glitters.
Don’t be put off by the immediate proximity to the airport – I noticed almost nothing about it. I particularly liked the attentive and caring staff and the parking directly in front of the hotel, where you are always guaranteed to get a space and just have to hold your room card against the barrier for it to open.
Sheraton San Diego Resort
1380 Harbor Island Drive
San Diego, California, USA 92101
Disclosure: My stay at the Sheraton San Diego Resort was partially supported by the hotel. However, the impressions are entirely mine.
