tHirTieTH bDAy trippin' 30-30-30
Lucky me, my birthday thus far, has landed on days right before school officially starts! ... but, at least, I get that much! We decided to take the boys to the ocean, since any type of traveling is my favorite. Plus, after completing two weeks of work meetings/classroom prep, this was a welcomed dreamy vacation right before the chaos!
SAN ONOFRE BLUFFS CAMPGROUND
Although the spots are RIGHT next to each other, and I mean like RIGHT NEXT TO, I wouldn't say this was my favorite spot ever, but seeing how we were gone the entire day and mostly just slept in our tents, it was a fun one time experience. Our first day was Wednesday, and because this campground is located right across from camp Pendleton, we had military choppers flying over all night. They were extraordinarily loud, to the point where we thought we were gonna die one time.....but, we eventually got used to them and the noise from the nearby train tracks with speedy trains going by. Plus, there was hardly anyone around us the first couple of nights, although sleeping was a little tougher when the crowds came for the weekend. Another plus of this campground is some spots had a decent ocean view and it is centrally located between Dana Point and Oceanside....
We hit the nearby SAN CLEMENTE STATE BEACH
Busy. busy. busy. You have to cross the train tracks to get there, but the swimming was quite excellent at this spot, plus the Calafia Beach Cafe is a great spot to pick up some drinks, snacks and ice cream.
DANA POINT AND WHALE/DOLPHIN CRUISE
The next day we took the boys to see dolphins and hopefully a whale. We didn't catch a whale in sight, but we did see many, many common dolphins and had a WHALE of a good time.
We tried yummy place called Harbor Pizza and enjoyed the amazing, humid, fresh breezes as they came by.
We went with the same charter company as a few years back, Dana Wharf Sportfishing and Whale Watching. We are very impressed with their service and the boys had a magical time on the boat!
The last time we did this, both boys were little, although, Kohen did vaguely remember our trip with Grandma Irina..... or so he says. They both enjoyed standing up the entire time at the front of the boat and loved catching the air in their faces as we picked up speed.
We had the perfect morning, with amazing visibility and such perfect lighting for photos. Pizza probably had the biggest smile, watching the dolphins racing the boat and doing tricks for us.
Aren't they just marvelous? Thank you, Dana Point, for a swell time!
DOHENY STATE BEACH
This one is rocky, and attracts mostly surfers, but a nice place to go while in Dana Point. The boys had fun, even though, we couldn't really swim because of the crushing waves. We enjoyed Boneyard Beach Cafe at the end of the day, with a beautiful sunset.
OCEANSIDE
How does Tony do the beach? Like this:
And this is why I do this to him:
I got into the waves this time, and the water temperature could not have been more perfect, I had a swell time, swimming by myself, and all!
lunchtime.
got a "mangonada". it's basically a yummy drink with fresh mangos and a bunch of spices/cayenne sauce and other stuff. it was so good!
THIS IS PURE MAGIC!
SAN DIEGO TIMES
Once again, San Diego delivered the most magical time!
We purchased tickets to the USS Midway, and it was A-mazing! Of course, I say that about everything, but.... it's SO worth a visit. I wished we had more time! My most favorite was showing the kids what things "used to be" and "used to look like"; like the typewriters, and old computers, telephones and the vintage soda cans! It was all SOOOOOOOOO nostalgic.
Although some passages and corridors were a bit tight, we had the best time in the world of Navy officers and the ship's other crew members. The sheer size of this thing is almost incomprehensible. There must be over a thousand rooms/hallways/corridors. One of the workers said "you can't get lost in this ship!" - yeah, sarcasm much!
After touring the ship, we walked to Seaport Village, one of our favorite places to visit. The kids enjoyed some ice cream, live music and watching us eat our MASSIVE dinner at this Hawaiian themed restaurant.
Oops! I mean, it was DELICIOUS!
LONG BEACH, CA
ONE LAST BIRTHDAY ADVENTURE FOR THE ROAD
Aquarium of the Pacific and Bubba Gump.
BIRTHDAY LUNCH
One of my presents from family was a DNA kit, which was sent off a couple of months ago. I was anxiously waiting for the results, and here they are! The thing about Russian people is that back a few years ago when we tried to do some genealogy, we could only go so far with my biological family, based on what my mom Irina was able to tell us, but we couldn't find further records because most had been burned and technology wasn't as advanced then (i know, right.....). This was SOOOOO cool and trippy at the same time, NOT what I expected at all, but it makes sense!
My two biggest percentages were Saami and Norway. When we looked up to learn about the Saami people, we found multiple spellings and that they were original to Norway, but about 2000 of them had immigrated to Russia. I also have some genetics from other cool, European countries and some from Asia. However, my most favorite is that I am 3% Egyptian! Oh yeah, Cleopatra!!!!!!
I was expecting more Mongolian/Asian since when I was a child, I was frequently teased about my "asian eyes", like whaaaaat?..... I was also happy to find out that I have Mordovian blood running through me, which is the native "Russian" tribe of Russia, who also claims my biological grandmother on my father's side.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sami_history
Aren't I adorable?
Pretty cool present, I think! Thank you, mommy!
And goodbye, my beautiful ocean, until next time!
SAN ONOFRE BLUFFS CAMPGROUND
Although the spots are RIGHT next to each other, and I mean like RIGHT NEXT TO, I wouldn't say this was my favorite spot ever, but seeing how we were gone the entire day and mostly just slept in our tents, it was a fun one time experience. Our first day was Wednesday, and because this campground is located right across from camp Pendleton, we had military choppers flying over all night. They were extraordinarily loud, to the point where we thought we were gonna die one time.....but, we eventually got used to them and the noise from the nearby train tracks with speedy trains going by. Plus, there was hardly anyone around us the first couple of nights, although sleeping was a little tougher when the crowds came for the weekend. Another plus of this campground is some spots had a decent ocean view and it is centrally located between Dana Point and Oceanside....
We hit the nearby SAN CLEMENTE STATE BEACH
Busy. busy. busy. You have to cross the train tracks to get there, but the swimming was quite excellent at this spot, plus the Calafia Beach Cafe is a great spot to pick up some drinks, snacks and ice cream.
DANA POINT AND WHALE/DOLPHIN CRUISE
The next day we took the boys to see dolphins and hopefully a whale. We didn't catch a whale in sight, but we did see many, many common dolphins and had a WHALE of a good time.
We tried yummy place called Harbor Pizza and enjoyed the amazing, humid, fresh breezes as they came by.
We went with the same charter company as a few years back, Dana Wharf Sportfishing and Whale Watching. We are very impressed with their service and the boys had a magical time on the boat!
The last time we did this, both boys were little, although, Kohen did vaguely remember our trip with Grandma Irina..... or so he says. They both enjoyed standing up the entire time at the front of the boat and loved catching the air in their faces as we picked up speed.
We had the perfect morning, with amazing visibility and such perfect lighting for photos. Pizza probably had the biggest smile, watching the dolphins racing the boat and doing tricks for us.
Aren't they just marvelous? Thank you, Dana Point, for a swell time!
DOHENY STATE BEACH
This one is rocky, and attracts mostly surfers, but a nice place to go while in Dana Point. The boys had fun, even though, we couldn't really swim because of the crushing waves. We enjoyed Boneyard Beach Cafe at the end of the day, with a beautiful sunset.
OCEANSIDE
How does Tony do the beach? Like this:
And this is why I do this to him:
I got into the waves this time, and the water temperature could not have been more perfect, I had a swell time, swimming by myself, and all!
got a "mangonada". it's basically a yummy drink with fresh mangos and a bunch of spices/cayenne sauce and other stuff. it was so good!
THIS IS PURE MAGIC!
SAN DIEGO TIMES
Once again, San Diego delivered the most magical time!
We purchased tickets to the USS Midway, and it was A-mazing! Of course, I say that about everything, but.... it's SO worth a visit. I wished we had more time! My most favorite was showing the kids what things "used to be" and "used to look like"; like the typewriters, and old computers, telephones and the vintage soda cans! It was all SOOOOOOOOO nostalgic.
Although some passages and corridors were a bit tight, we had the best time in the world of Navy officers and the ship's other crew members. The sheer size of this thing is almost incomprehensible. There must be over a thousand rooms/hallways/corridors. One of the workers said "you can't get lost in this ship!" - yeah, sarcasm much!
After touring the ship, we walked to Seaport Village, one of our favorite places to visit. The kids enjoyed some ice cream, live music and watching us eat our MASSIVE dinner at this Hawaiian themed restaurant.
Oops! I mean, it was DELICIOUS!
LONG BEACH, CA
ONE LAST BIRTHDAY ADVENTURE FOR THE ROAD
Aquarium of the Pacific and Bubba Gump.
BIRTHDAY LUNCH
One of my presents from family was a DNA kit, which was sent off a couple of months ago. I was anxiously waiting for the results, and here they are! The thing about Russian people is that back a few years ago when we tried to do some genealogy, we could only go so far with my biological family, based on what my mom Irina was able to tell us, but we couldn't find further records because most had been burned and technology wasn't as advanced then (i know, right.....). This was SOOOOO cool and trippy at the same time, NOT what I expected at all, but it makes sense!
My two biggest percentages were Saami and Norway. When we looked up to learn about the Saami people, we found multiple spellings and that they were original to Norway, but about 2000 of them had immigrated to Russia. I also have some genetics from other cool, European countries and some from Asia. However, my most favorite is that I am 3% Egyptian! Oh yeah, Cleopatra!!!!!!
I was expecting more Mongolian/Asian since when I was a child, I was frequently teased about my "asian eyes", like whaaaaat?..... I was also happy to find out that I have Mordovian blood running through me, which is the native "Russian" tribe of Russia, who also claims my biological grandmother on my father's side.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sami_history
Aren't I adorable?
Pretty cool present, I think! Thank you, mommy!
And goodbye, my beautiful ocean, until next time!