Sunday 14 Mar 21 San Diego Maritime Museum
15 Mar 21
I got up at 8 and took the dogs on their morning potty walk. I decided to go to the Waterfront Park and stopped at a Burger King on the way. Their senior coffee was $1.19 with tax. They only had to-go orders and even their outdoor dining area was roped off. I found some steps nearby and drank my coffee there.
After finishing my coffee I fed the dogs. After they finished I secured everything and drove to the Waterfront Park. I found a parking area that had meters with credit card readers. I paid for 3 hours which was the maximum. I walked past the Midway Aircraft Carrier and on to the Maritime Museum. I paid $15 for a military pass which included a 45 minute boat ride on a Vietnam Swift Boat. I had over an hour before my 12:45 boat ride so I checked out the boats on display. They had the oldest active sailing ship there,The Star of India. She was built in 1863 at Ramsey shipyard in the Isle of Man. She was originally called Euterpe. She began her sailing life with two near disastrous voyages to India. They had a Russian submarine B-39 that was surprisingly still afloat from all the rust.
There was a replica of San Salvador. the first European ship, a Galleon to sail to California. It arrived to what later became San Diego on September 28th 1542. The HMS Surprise which is a replica of the Royal Navy frigid Rose. It was used in the film Master and Commander and one of the Pirates of Caribbean movies I think the fourth one. It was built in 1970. Swift Boat PCF -816. This is the boat that took me on a narrated tour of San Diego Bay. We went to and under the San Diego Bridge. There are several other ships at the San Diego Maritime Museum that you can read about.
After the boat ride I hurried back to the RT since I was about to run out of time on the parking meter. There were two minutes left when I got to the meter. I walked the dogs then I fixed lunch which was the remainder of a sandwich I had bought in Walmart yesterday. I put the maximum 3 hour limit on the meter and walked the opposite direction to the San Diego Balboa Park. There is a very old Carousel in the park. The park is very nice with lots of shops and restaurants.
When I got back to the RT the parking meter had just barely expired. I secured everything and drove the short distance to Old Town San Diego. I had been there a couple of times before. Once with Zackary and Allison and the last time just by myself on a Fly and Drive trip. It is amazing how it has changed between the three trips. Or perhaps I just don't ever remember it correctly. I walked around a little while checking out all the shops. There was an amazing wind chime shop with hundreds of chimes. Later I had dinner at the Mexican restaurant Bara Bara. After dinner I walked back to the RT and wound up staying the night where I was parked.