Birthday Trip to Oceanside

Rick and I took a little getaway trip to Oceanside, CA for my birthday this year. 

(FIFTY THREE!)

We had thought that maybe we would go down toward Bryce Canyon

 but both of us thought the beach sounded better.

And it was.

We flew out on a Wednesday afternoon out of the NEW Salt Lake Airport.  It is very nice:)

We arrived in San Diego around 4 and made our way to Oceanside.   We stayed at the Marriott Springhill Suites and had a corner room in which we could see the Ocean.  Barely.  In the past two years since we have been to Oceanside, a new hotel is being built RIGHT IN FRONT of the Springhill Suites cutting off pretty much any view it had.  Still, we were thankful to have a little view out of our window:)

Oceanside has really had a facelift the last few years and it looks really nice...an improvement from the dumpiness of a few years ago.

We started our time there with a walk down to the beach and pier.  It's our favorite!

Lots of sweethearts, surfers and fisherman!

That evening we ate al fresco at Hello Betty right next to the hotel.  The food was spendy but it was super yummy and the atmosphere was very nice.

The next morning (Thursday) we rented bikes and rode along the strand.  It was full of people walking dogs, rollerblading, surfers heading out to the water, and people just strolling along for a morning walk.  You get all kinds when you're at the beach and it was fun people watching:)  We rode clear over to the harbor where some sea lions entertained us:)  After that we made a quick stop at a bakery for breakfast and then strolled through the Farmer's Market.  Those Ebikes were a great way to spend the morning!

After bike riding we took a drive down to San Juan Capistrano to walk along the historic district.  Well, there wasn't a whole lot to see but it was a nice drive and I got some gelato!

The next day (Friday) we had a nice breakfast at Mimi's and then headed down to San Diego Harbor.  

We set up an hour and a half harbor cruise on the Hornblower Cruiseline.  It was really nice.  We were able to cruise past Coronado Island and under the Coronado Bridge.  We rode past the Navy shipyards and it was super interesting.  While we had to social distance on the ship it worked out fine because we were out on the top deck the whole time. We got a lot of wind but that made for an experience!

We both got specialty drinks....just because:)

On our way to the ship I found a new visor that I love!!

I thought this was a fun statue close by the Midway Aircraft Carrier.  

It is a giant statue based off of the famous WWII  picture taken on VE Day.

We stopped in Old Town San Diego and had lunch at the Casa De Reyes.  Oh man!  The food was super good and super filling!  I felt almost sick rolling out of there!

That night we spent some time on the beach waiting for the sunset.  It was beautiful!

The next day we spent lounging on the beach.  Rick played in the water while I read a book on the beach.

It was a perfect way to end our trip.

The San Diego Airport was a ghost town and we were lucky to find some food for dinner because pretty much everything was shut down.  

Our last hurrah of a meal were two sandwiches, chips and water for 40 bucks!

Crazy! 

 Oceanside was a fun little getaway and 

we made it home that night before bedtime!

Hurray for birthday trips!!