I will be running away from home a few times these months. I am just taking a break from the world, seeing what I want to see, and finding things I did not know I wanted. For example, San Diego is warm and dry and has all these ships and sailboats, but housing is higher than Portland, so I won’t be moving here soon–but it is nice. Also, I am almost ready to sign up a cook helper in some tall ship and head out. Of course, I started to get seasick on the iron-hulled tall ship Star of India in port, slightly rising and falling–so it is likely not a dream that could or should be fulfilled!
Starting from the f**king stupid early flight that boarded (!) at 5:20AM, you, dear reader, can imagine me stumbling at the sound of my alarm at 3AM. I showered, dressed, stuffed the last few things into my heavy carry-on gym bag, and, with lots of too-hot coffee, took Air Volvo to PDX. I found one of the ten parking spots left in the long-term parking garage at PDX. I then walked a lifetime from the garage to security on the A/B gates.
They boarded various names of groups, but not First Class. On Alaska Airlines, I learned it is PRI for Priority for what we would call First Class. Finally, on the plane, I discovered I left my new noise-reducing earbuds at the house. But it was a short flight, and the 737-8Max was a quieter plane. It also seemed to shake less, and I felt safer (I know the plane model’s history, but I am just sharing my experience) than older 737s I have taken.
They served a hot breakfast sandwich with fruit (in Priority Class), which I had with ginger ale (always my start on flights), but finished it with coffee. I then just relaxed and likely nodded off a few times–my neck hurt, so I suspect I slept sitting up without knowing it (a new thing I developed ten years ago–falling asleep without knowing it). We landed, and while the San Diego airport was in the competition for long walks, PDX still beat them.
The pain in my right heel is back. It hurt me all day and was not improved by the ladders on the various ships I explored today. I did get something at CVS Pharmacy later today, and it is helping. Until I treated it, the pain made the long walks more than unpleasant today.
But returning to the narrative, I went to the taxi line and took the first guy. He told me he had waited four hours for a fare today. He also demanded cash at the hotel; I paid him with the money I had and included a nice tip–I forgot to ask when I got in about credit cards–usually, you pay with credit cards for airport taxis. I would be more frustrated, but the trip was under $28 with a tip. Nothing to get mad about. An Uber, without the hassle, would have been a few bucks less.
US Grant Hotel, a favorite of mine from biz trips, is now managed by Marriott and owned by a local Native American Tribe as an investment. I forgot the pleasure of Marriott’s well-run hotels. I checked in with a smart and helpful person, paying the guy who carried my bags a $1 tip (just one light bag), who announced me to the desk person. The desk person, wearing a black mask perfectly straight, not only got me a room at 10AM (they were not busy this weekend; the desk person shared) but even booked my exit on Sunday, scheduling a wake-up call and taxi to get me to the airport. Again, you forget what bright and clean is like until you return to a Marriott property.
My room, 605, was perfect, and I unpacked my few items, worked out how to use the WiFi, and how to power all my devices. I then left the laptop powering. It looks like a book in its new case. I took the iPhone, returned to the entrance, and got a taxi to the wharf area and the Maritime Museum. I bought a pass for all the ships and skipped the harbor cruise. I had left my sweater, and it was too cool for me to ride a ship.
HMS Surprise (formally HMS Rose)
I had been here back in 2006 for a Nike biz trip, my first, about the same time of year, and then they had only a ferry from 1914, Berkley, and the iron-hulled sailing ship, the Star of India. Now they had added the HMS Rose (rebuilt to be the HMS Surprise from various movies–it is not a British ship, and the HMS is part of its name), a few others, including the USS Dolphin AGSS-555, a special deep-diving conventionally powered submarine–a retired submarine now a museum ship. I could see the mix of Cold War and U-boat technology when I toured it. It was a steep ladder and a cramped walk-through.
HMS Surprise‘s construction and structures made no sense to me. It appears to be a full-scale model and not really a reconstruction. For example, the two-level main gundeck deck was non-sensical for this type of warship, but it made walking easier. It was aging poorly; like most early recreations of 1800 wooden ships, the wood did not last. The Berkley was aging well. I took the steps into the engine room, a reciprocating engine like the Titanic’s and some WW1 ships. The ferry had been converted to oil and had replaced the boilers in the 1920s. The same was done to the surviving sister of Titanic, Olympic.
The public spaces of the ferry were filled with ship models–some of the best I have seen–I loved it. There were various nick-nacks too. For example, apparently, some fishermen found a rusted Japanese WW2 torpedo in their nets and lived to have its rusted remains in a case now on the Berkley (now there is a fishing story for you). Parts of cruise ships and liners were also on display. It’s a fun collection.
They have a full-sized galleon. It was interesting to see the differences between this ship and the modern SS California, a touring sailboat, and the model-like HMS Surprise. Apparently, the gallon sails, too, for tours of the harbor. It was fun to do all of these, but I saved the best for last.
SS California is well maintained.
The galleon.
The Star of India is real, an 1863 iron-hulled sailing ship with wooden masts and mostly hemp lines. It was a cargo and passenger-carrying ship in the past. Before becoming a display, its last jig was years in the finishing fleet fishing and packing salmon in the northern Pacific.
I went into the hold and the poop deck plus, of course, beside the main deck, I slipped on the ladder to the poop deck and abraded my hand. I was happy to accept that as a warning, and I did not try any more crazily steep ladders. I enjoyed taking pictures of things I have built or need to build again. I took many photos on SS California of the deck items as I have to make some for my models yet to be started.
I headed to the bar next to the Star of India and picked the upstairs place as it was not a doing topline a price for seafood. There, I had a few good local beers and mini-lobster tacos–excellent and not insanely expensive.
I found a trip back to the US Grant (it took Uber a while to find me a driver), and I took a nap for a few hours. The lack of sleep and pain was wearing on me. As I said before, I then walked to the local CSV Pharmacy and got some items, and the pain was more manageable. I also walked a bit and discovered the tourist area.
I returned to the hotel, prepared for more walking, and grabbed my sweater for the night. I then walked and found a Persian place. And while they were enthusiastic, their food was not the best I have had, I ate dinner, and I moved on. I walked at least four blocks until I found dessert at a Cuban place. I got coffee and flan, made here, and sat and wrote. The live music started at 7PM. It has been a fun night just sitting here, listening, people-watching, eating my dessert, and writing the blog.
Thanks for reading! Saturday is USS Midway CV-41, and some walking in San Diego during the day.
Aside: While I was eating Persian food, a homeless person grabbed my hat off the table, and I pulled it back from him–like you would do to a child. He seemed harmless, and I think it was just something he did. No harm to hat or person.
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