We arrived at Tranquility Bay, a family friendly waterfront property in Marathon, late in the afternoon on a Friday in September tired from driving and a day of fun activities. The reception area was refreshingly cool, small and bright. A smiling attendant greeted us and in a jiffy we checked in. A cheerful staff member accompanied us to our suite on the far side of the property.
Tucked away in a residential golf neighborhood in northeastern San Diego is an outstanding restaurant led by a dynamic, exacting and talented young chef with immense culinary promise.
Most people don’t ordinarily think of a shopping arcade as a location for a gourmet dinner. And yet, one of the better gourmet meals I have enjoyed in California was at The Dining Room at Jack’s in a shopping arcade in tony La Jolla. Once inside, I forgot I was in a mall and focused on the menu, modern décor, and lively ambiance with subdued light. Although there was a constant flow of happy hour guests at the bar adjacent to the dining area where I was seated, the noise level was loud enough to be interesting without being bothersome.
Azul offered fine dining with a magnificent ocean view. Because I arrived extra early I was able to take my pick of seats next to the floor to ceiling windows that draw the eyes of everyone in the dining room. I chose a front row seat to the Pacific Ocean. From there I could see the dark ocean waters and the beautiful landscapes of the La Jolla Cove to the south and La Jolla Shores to the north. Although the sun had been brilliant a few hours earlier, by the time I arrived at Azul mounds of clouds had rolled in and the colors were gray and muted. Even so the vista was inspiring.
The Rancho Bernardo Inn was a short drive east from the coastal highway in San Diego and a world away in style and pace. Relaxed and verdant, the property’s golf courses and gourmet restaurant were the center of attraction in an otherwise quiet residential neighborhood.
A secluded barefoot-casual, sun drenched enclave of small cabana hotel s nestled between tropical jungle vegetation and the gentle surf of the Caribbean Sea, Tulum was an idyllic “base camp” to explore the nearby archeological and natural wonders of Mexico ’s Yucatan peninsula. When we last visited Tulum, it was a barely visible icon on the map of the Yucatan , indicating the presence of a not yet excavated minor Maya site. Luxuriant tropical vegetation encroached in places upon the narrow, intermittently paved jungle road that took us there. Things have changed a lot in the past thirty years. Today, Tulum is definitely on the map! Easily accessible via a modern highway, as well as a stopping point for cruise ships, it has become one of the most visited Maya sites in the Yucatan . The spot, although small and structurally far less impressive than others nearby such as Chichen Itza , Uxmal and Coba , is spectacularly perched on the edge of a limestone cliff overlooking the turquoise waters of the Caribbean .