San Juan Capistrano, California

My goals for this week

My friends do an annual camping trip at Doheny Beach which is just a stones throw away from Capistrano.  They always have a great time.  Above is more my style of camping.

Sunday April 28, 2019

The ROAD TRIP wasn’t bad at all. We left the house at 7:15 a.m. and arrived about 3 p.m. which included stopping for gas and lunch.  We took the scenic route through Lake Elsinore which was supposed to be 30 minutes longer but we think it was about the same amount of time due to the traffic on the 60.  We didn’t hit traffic on the I-10 until we past Palm Springs.  It also bunched up on the 60 so were glad to see the cutoff for the 215 and get out of that mess.  Once we made the transition to the 74 it was smooth sailing.  A little twisty-windy but a beautiful drive. 

We had stopped for lunch at Ruby’s Diner right outside of Palm Springs.  I don’t recommend it.  Burgers were not very good. 

When we arrived at the condo our room wasn’t ready yet.  She had one available on the back side of the building but we obviously chose to wait for the ocean view.

We found our way to Ralph’s and did a little grocery shopping.  There is a Mexican restaurant next door to the condo, Olamendi's, so we went there for a margarita.  The margarita was nothing special but the chips and salsa were good.  It’s one of the restaurants that was recommended so we will check it out for dinner one night.  

Rooms ready. We unpacked and rested a bit before dinner.  Ought oh.  No internet access.  It wouldn’t even let me get to the point of putting in the password.  I called the front desk and she told me to bring it down.  No go.  She tried turning off my firewall.  No go.  Not to worry, firewall is back on.  I had to call Cox.  He had me reboot.  Nope.  Clear my cache.  Nope.  He said he could try one more thing.  I said “what if that doesn’t work?”  He said “then I tell you sorry, thanks for calling.  Not really, I would have to create and elevated ticket”.  He ended up rebooting the access portal to my room.  Wah-La (I know its voilà but I don’t write in French).  Thank you very much Zachary.  That’s 45 minutes of my vacation time I’ll never get back but I’m glad he was able to get me up and running. 

View from my patio - to the left

View from my patio - to the right

View from my patio - Bird of Paradise - Mom's favorite

We went to Agostinos Restaurant for dinner.  It’s walking distance so that was convenient.  The food was good. Pictures not so great.

Paul had the special - Halibut.  He said it was delicious.

I had Linguine Augustino - Shrimp with white wine lemon sauce.
The shrimp was good but to be honest the pasta could have used a little more sauce.  It was borderline dry.

The Tiramisu was amazing.  

A quick walk back to the condo.  

Paul had warned me that the bed was hard as a rock.  I actually slept pretty well and I’m not a good sleeper.

Monday April 29, 2019

Weather app said rainy Monday.  App said it was going to rain from 2 a.m. until 10 a.m. then no more rain the rest of the week.  I woke up at 4 and looked outside.  No rain. The street was wet so it rained a little sometime in the night but when I looked at my phone, the rain is done for the day.  It’s about 6:30 a.m. and a little cloudy but it’s not really cold.

Today we’re going to venture out and try to find our way around this town.  I want to find the Amtrak station so I’m not stressed out about finding it when Janet comes in Thursday.  I also want to check the schedule because the lady at the front desk didn’t have one.  I told her we wanted to maybe take the train to San Diego.  She said we’d have to take the Amtrak and then transfer to the MetroLink.  Hmmmm.  I thought there was an express train.  I guess we’ll find out.  I know the train station is right across from the Mission so maybe we’ll do that today.

Time to hop in the shower and get my day going.  

Navigating around this town is definitely challenging.  It doesn’t help that my car app thinks we’re still at home. I set up directions on my phone and it’s totally normal.  When it plug it into my dash it reroutes starting from home.  So annoying.  Luckily I can unplug it and just use my phone but that sure sucks up a lot of data.  I will consult Mr Google when I have a spare minute. Anyhow…

Agenda - Breakfast then the Mission San Juan Capistrano. 

We got a tiny bit lost once we got to the Mission trying to find the breakfast place.  We decided on the Hummingbird House Café.  GPS took us right there on little back streets but there was no parking. It’s a little touristy block of old houses that are now restaurants and shops.  We finally found our way around to a parking lot on the other side of the tracks, and then still had a little trouble finding it.  It’s right across from the Train Station so you have to walk across the tracks.  Paul had Eggs Benedict and I had French Toast with Fresh Strawberries and Bacon. 

As Lisa called it, vacation food. 
Definitely vacation food.  I don't eat like this is real life!

After breakfast we walked around the little street.  

I love this garden gate covered with roses

It would be vacation without a picture of Paul reading historical markers

Sign says "Butterfly Sanctuary"

Flowers growing out of a crack in the concrete

Morning dew

Then we walked over to the mission and spent a few hours there.  The gardens are amazing.  They have audio wands that you can punch in the number at several areas and listen to the story.  They also had a printed version for Paul since he can’t use those with his hearing aids. 

The famous Swallows of SJC.  The rim under the arch are swallow nests.  

Ruins from the original mission

Spring has sprung.  The flower gardens were amAZing.

Rhubarb in their food garden

We left there and went to an Irish Pub which is traditional when we’re on vacation.

Then headed back to the condo.  We pasted a Jeep dealership so I told Paul if I can’t figure it out the problem with the navigation system once I Google it, I’ll go to the Jeep dealership and see if they can help me.

I received a text from the front desk that it was Margarita Time in the Portico from 3 til 4.  Okey dokey then.  We went down at 3 and sat by the pool for a while.  Free margarita comes at a price.  We had to have our picture taken with props!

We decided to go to Dana Point for dinner.  I had changed my settings on my phone per Mr. Google’s recommendations.  We left the condo and I plugged it in and, son of a nutcracker, it still thinks I’m at home.  Trip to Jeep dealership is added to the agenda for tomorrow. 

I mapped us to the Marina but that’s not where we needed to be.  Mapped us again to the Wharf.  Bingo.  There are several restaurants and some shops.  We walked around looking at menus and decided on Gemmell’s.  It’s a French restaurant.  

Paul had Duck with Caramelized Banana and Rum Sauce

I had the special de jour.

Chilean Sea Bass with Lemon Caper Garlic Sauce

M-M-Good. 

We split a Blueberry Tart

Back to the condo and down to the Jacuzzi.  My hip has been bothering me for weeks and it’s been pretty bad with all the walking.  Jacuzzi helped a little bit. 

From our Room with a View

We turned in early. 

Tuesday April 30, 2019

Woke up this morning to rain! WHAT?  There is no rain in the forecast!  It says cloudy.  Sometimes I think they should ditch their fancy forecasting equipment and just look outside. 

We had decided yesterday that we’d go to Catalina Wednesday.  Good thing we hadn’t decided to go today. 

Today’s agenda is to go back to the Marina to scope out where you catch the ferry to Catalina and get our tickets there.  I could buy them online but since navigating around this town is a PITA, I’d rather experiment today instead of when we’re on a time schedule.  Not much is planned today except R&R and with the weather that was probably a good plan.  Although in the time it took me to type this, the rain has stopped.  For now…

We went to Dana Point and had breakfast at Proud Mary’s.  Meh.  The view of the marina was great.  People getting ready for their charter fishing boat to leave. 

That brought back lots of memories of me fishing with Dear ole Dad back in the day.  We would take charter boats out of Dana Point, Ventura, Port Hueneme, Redondo.  Dana Point has changed a LOT since then.  

Anyhow Proud Mary’s not very good.  I had basic bacon and eggs with potatoes and toast.  The bacon was good. I'm not much of an egg lover so I'm fussy about them when I do eat them and they weren't right. I typically enjoy breakfast potatoes but they tasted like dirty grill so one bite was more than enough.  I ate the bacon and part of the toast.  Paul had an omelet. After breakfast we bought our tickets for the ferry to Catalina tomorrow.  We walked around the Wharf a little bit then went to Jeep to see if they could figure out why my navigation system thought I was still at home.  The service writer told me the guy who deals with “that kind of stuff” was pretty backed up and I’d probably have to leave my car there until tomorrow.  Em no.  Were on vacation and don’t have another vehicle so that won’t work.  He said he’d come out and look at it but he probably couldn’t help.  I had the address of the condo pulled up, five miles away.  I plugged the cable into the car and the map pulled up.  Guess what? The condo FIVE MILES AWAY.  Are you kidding me?  He said “kind of like going to the doctor and the pain is gone”.  It hasn’t worked the past two days.  Whatever the problem was, I’m glad it figured itself out. 

We headed south on PCH to see how far you had to go to get across to the beach.  There is a bridge right outside our condo. 

It’s three flights of stairs up and over the train tracks.  With my hip pain, there is no way I would be able to go up and down (three flights - twice) to walk on the beach.  Down a ways is a cross over but I’d have to drive there so I probably won’t get any beach walking in this trip.  Then we continued down the highway to San Clemente.  Then we decided to hop on the freeway and go to Oceanside to Mission San Luis Rey.  Mapping is working but it won’t talk now.  I give up.  At least it shows the route with step-by-step instructions. 

We got to the Mission and church service was going on.  We went in for a while then went to the Museum and mowsied through there. 

Disney filmed Zorro at this Mission in 1957.
These are the original doors they put up at the entrance to the Church during filming

The garden was pretty but not as impressive as the one at Mission San Juan Capistrano.  It has the oldest Pepper Tree in California.  It was planted in 1830. 

We walked through the old cemetery before leaving. 

Back to the condo for that R&R that was supposed to be happening today.  I took a little nap while Paul was out on the patio enjoying a beer and cigar.  I woke up and he was taking a little nap. 

We’re going to walk next door to the Mexican Restaurant for an early dinner. 

Then come back for an after dinner dip in the Jacuzzi. 

Dinner at Olamendi's was not great.  I decided with all the “vacation food” I’ve been eating I should have a salad for dinner. I start off with albondigas soup which was okay.  I got their house specialty salad which was kind of like a taco salad without the taco shell.  It was okay.  Paul got a combo plate which was also just okay.  Their prices are pretty hefty (like $30 for steak fajitas) so we thought it would be better. It wan't bad, it was just nothing special.

It's still Christmas there, so there's that!

We got back and had the Jacuzzi to ourselves.

Wednesday May 1, 2019

We woke up to a beautiful morning and easily found our way to the Dana Point Wharf.  Finally finding our way around a wee tad.

The ferry ride over is an hour and a half.  

Once we arrived we wondered around checking menu’s to decide where to have lunch.  From my past experience (more than 25 years ago) the little seafood shack on the pier was much better than the full service restaurants.  We decided to eat there. 

The place all the way at the end

My Shrimp was perfect

We walked around the little shops and up to the Wrigley’s old Casino (in the background below) which is now a theater.  

The sign on the box office said “tour in progress”. Hmmm a tour!  We walked around the outside.

The wall murals were painted by John Gabriel Beckman, the designer of Grauman's Chinese Theater. They were pretty amazing for being 100 years old!

Fly the W.   Cub's fans "fly the W" when the Cubs win.
These W's are due to the upcoming Centennial.
BTW, as you probably know, the Wrigley family used to own the Cubs. 

We headed back to the Visitor Center to find out about the tour.  We bought tickets and walked ALL THE WAY back for the next tour.  It was very interesting.  It is still privately owned by the Wrigley family.  The wall murals are original although they had to refurbish the ceiling of the theater because it was silver leaf and tarnished.  They thought they’d have to restore the wall murals inside the theater however they were just dusty!  The tour guide said they are painted on a surface similar to burlap.  

Sorry, not the greatest photos.  BTW, the Casino was never used for gambling.  They say - Casino is an Italian word for gathering and it was used to host big band dances and other events. The ballroom could hold 250 couples. We went up to the ballroom which still has the original wood flooring and lighting. 

 View from the ballroom balcony

The Casino budget was $600,000.  It cost 2 million.  Mr Wrigley paid cash.  That's a lot of chewing gum!  >;}

After the tour we had time for Paul to have a beer before heading back to the dock to catch the ferry back.  We got to Dana Point at 7 p.m., right on time.

We had dinner at Wind and Sea.  No Bueno.  I think our server was new.  He was very polite and his favorite word was “absolutely”.  I started with a Wedge Salad which was very good. Paul had Clam Chowder.  He never offered fresh ground pepper and I could see the peppermill right near our table. I can live without it. We had to ask for bread.  I ordered the fish of the day, Ono, which is usually one of my favorites. The basil pesto didn’t pair will and the fish was dry.  Paul had Macadamia Encrusted Mahi-Mahi which he said was good but skimpy on the macadamia nuts. We had to ask someone to find our server so we could get our check. Off the list. 

We got back pretty late so we skipped what has become our evening ritual, the Jacuzzi. 

Thursday May 2, 2019

Today Janet comes in via Amtrak at 9:45 a.m.  YAY.  We don’t have any specific plans except an early lunch, location TBD.  

We skipped breakfast since we planned early lunch and headed to the train station.   Janet had text that her train was about 15 minutes late but they made up most of the time. We had an hour before the restaurant opened at 11 so we walked around the street behind the station (where Paul and I had breakfast the other day) and then down the main street. We spent some time in the antique mall before heading back to the station to have lunch at Trevor’s on the Tracks.  Best food yet.  

Janet and I had the "Burger of All Burgers". It was amazing.  

Paul had the Parisian Prime

Back to the condo for some catching up time on the balcony.
I received a text that there was Rock Painting in the Portico (lobby area).  Janet and I went down.  There was some paint on a table but no people.  I asked the lady at the front desk "Where's the rock painting? She said "Did you bring a rock?"  Janet and I l👀ked at each other.  I said "Where do we get rocks?"  She said "Over the bridge and off the beach".  emmm no.  No rock painting for us.  

We went to San Clemente and walked up and down the pier. 

Then we went to Old Town which was nothing but restaurants and service businesses.  I told Janet we could go from business to business to the chiropractor, get our hair done, get a massage, get our nails done, get lashes and then eat.  We left.

We found the real shopping district and walked around those stores.  I found a cute top on the $5.99 rack in front of a boutique.  Paul looked at the tag and said “made in Paris”.  I said “I think that’s a sign!”  They had a dog bakery and I wish I would have taken a picture of their baked goods.  They could have sat side-by-side to any upscale bakery in town.  We went into another shop and Paul bought me the cutest pants ever.  Unfortunately for him, they were not on the sale rack!  Thank you dear. 

We went back to the pier and had dinner at Fisherman’s Restaurant.  It was really good.  Paul had a Caesar and Janet had Clam Chowder.  I had some of the Caesar and it was really good. 

Janet's Scallops 

Paul's Cajun Halibut

My Shrimp Linguine 

Eat fresh seafood they said.  It's healthy they said!
Mudd Pie - OMG!

This was so much more dramatic in person.
The sun was a bright orange ball resting on the horizon.
Couldn't capture it on our phones or from my camera.  

Cropped version

Back to the condo and Janet and I went to the Jacuzzi.  There was a nice couple from Colorado and a man from Pasadena soaking in the hot bubbly cauldron. 

Such a beautiful day and lovely evening.

Friday May 3, 2019

Today is my nephew’s Birthday.  Happy Birthday Jeff. 

No idea what we’re going to do today.  Janet’s train leaves at 8 p.m. so we’ll have dinner by the train station.  The rest of the day, we'll see where the road leads.  

We decided to eat at Dana Point but first we drove into Doheny Beach so Janet could show us where they camp every year.  She’s been going there for family vacations since she was 8.  Her family has about 24 camp sites now in the campgrounds for their annual Spring trip. It is really nice.  There was also a small aquarium there so we stopped for a few minutes.

From the rocks up is a wall mural.
The bottom part is a pond

Shark!

By the time we got to the Wharf it was almost 11 so we decided to skip breakfast and have lunch at Johnny’s Fish Market.  Janet and I split a seafood platter with fish, shrimp, and scallops.  Paul had his favorite clam strips. 

We left there and went to Laguna Beach.  
We went to the Pacific Marine and Mammal Center.  They have rescue seals.  Sea Lions, Elephant Seals, Fur Seals.  They call them their patients. 

Sunbathers to the left, soakers to the right

Sunbather to the right, swimmers to the left!

They have a little gift shop.  I bought a jellyfish pin and Janet bought a book.  The volunteer said “Thank you for your support.  The proceeds go directly to feeding and caring for our patients”.  How nice. 

We drove down to the main shopping area and got Gelato. 

Then we walked down to the park/beach and enjoyed the beautiful day.

Back to the condo for a while until it was time to leave for dinner.  We went down by the train station and ate at El Adobe, a very old Mexican Restaurant down the street from the Mission.  I had albondigas soup and an al carte taco.  It was very good.  Paul and Janet had combo plates. 

We walked down to the train station and waited for Janet’s Amtrak back home.  So glad she was able to join us for a couple of days.  See you 4th of July Mrs. S.    

Saturday May 4, 2019

Our last full day here and we are blessed with beautiful weather again. 

Once again, we have no idea what we are going to do today. 

We headed to RJ’s Café and sat on their very dog friendly patio. I think there were more dogs than humans!  It was 11 so I had lunch and Paul had breakfast.  Food and service were very good.  

My version of Bacon and Eggs.  Cobb Salad - De-lish

Paul had Banana Stuffed French Toast

We left there and drove up the “point” to the Ocean Institute and walked around there for a little while.  The view off the point was amazing. Hold onto your hat, it's a wee tad windy!

Random stranger said I "looked stunning". Thank you very much!

Then we headed to the San Juan Capistrano Historical Society O’Neill Museum.   It's down behind the train tracks.
First off - this happened: 

Strap of my handbag broke - stitching came out.
Drat!

Carrying a purse that is not meant to be carried is a PITA.  
NOTE TO SELF: Add "extra handbag" to my packing list in the future. 
When we were in Laguna, Janet and I were in a nice handbag shop that was having a big sale.  Too late. Too bad we're not going back to Laguna today.   
Anyhow...

There was a petting zoo

Beautiful rose garden

Inside the O'Neill House.
When you're a fan of fans you put your fans in fan frames.  

We walked around the little shops before going back to the condo and next door for a mid-day cocktail.  

This time I had a mojito and it was good

Dinner tonight at The Vine in San Clemente.
It's a cute little restaurant on the main highway and we were lucky enough to snag one of their four parking places!  Street parking is difficult to find.

We sat on their nice outdoor patio

We decided to split a ribeye.  We been eating seafood most of the trip.  
Paul ordered a Sweet Gem Lettuce Wedge with smoked blue cheese, bacon, marinated tomato, picked onion, sherry buttermilk dressing and I started with House Made Spring Garlic and English Pea Ravioli with fresh goat cheese, preserved kumquat, pistachio brown butter, thai basil and mint.  I copied from their online menu because they describe it much better than I ever could.  Both were really good.  
 

Almost forgot to take a picture on my ravioli!
No pic of Paul's salad except those are his tomatoes on the side.

That's **1/2** the ribeye sitting on mashed with veggies.

Neither one of us finished our steak so we skipped dessert. 

We left there and went to Costco to gas up for the trip home. It was 'ONLY' $3.95 per gallon there.  We've seen $4.25 around town, even $4.29. 

We leave tomorrow morning.  Hopefully we'll get out early enough to avoid the Cinco de Mayo traffic at home. 

Sunday May 5, 2019

Time to pack up and head for home.  We skipped breakfast and stopped at a coffee shop in Blythe for lunch. As soon as we crossed the boarder into AZ gas prices dropped by $1.00 per gallon.  CraAZzy.  

RECAP
Accommodations: The Surfside Capistrano Inn was very nice and the staff was pleasant.  We had a great ocean view from the patio which we spent a lot of time on.  We didn't use the pool (too cold, not heated) but spent time in the Jaccuzi almost every day. I didn't take pictures of the room but the Traveler's Photos on Tr!pAdv!s0r are accurate.

Food: 
Best Casual Dining - Trevor’s on the Tracks.  The Burger was fantastic.
Best Fine Dining - a toss up between Gemmell’s and the Vine.  I think I'm leaning towards Gemmelli's.
I also really enjoyed the food at Fisherman's at San Clemente Pier.  Paul felt like the server was rushing us to turn tables so they lost a couple of points with him.  
Steer clear of Proud Mary's for breakfast, Ruby's for lunch, Wind and Sea for dinner.   

Activities: 
The Mission at San Juan Capistrano was great.  I think the fact that's it's spring time and all the flowers are in bloom added to it because the gardens were so beautiful. 
Pacific Marine and Mammal Center in Laguna was small but I still really enjoyed hearing about their rescue mission and watching the seals.
Catalina.  I recommend the tour of the Avalon Theater. In the past I've done the electric golf carts and that was a blast, but we didn't partake this time around.

Visitor:
SO HAPPY Janet was able to join us for a couple of days.  
Paul get me a little teary eyed when he told me that he and Mike used to talk about how we were going to travel together when they retired.  RIP my friend.  

Special Thanks:
To my sister aka house/dog sitter.  Thank you for taking extra good care of my munchkins.  I know my seniors are high maintenance.  Romeo is a fearful boy and Josie doesn't like to sleep all night.  They love their Aunt Diane.  
Love you beyond measure, because to the moon and back is just not far enough.  

Next Stop:
Paris!  Viking River Cruise - Paris to Normandy.  We booked it over a year ago so we've been looking forward to that one for a LONG TIME.