San Diego Shooter
By Mark Hiss
If you are contemplating a visit to San Diego, you may already be familiar with its lauded beaches. Even "Dr. Beach" -- aka Florida International University professor Stephen P. Leatherman -- is a fan, naming Coronado the nation's number one beach in 2012 (the first time any California locale has claimed the top spot).
After rigorously examining everything from bacteria levels to sand texture at beaches around the country -- including Hawaii -- Dr. Beach gushed: "Coronado Beach is the toast of Southern California; it is a veritable oasis by the sea." Yes, San Diego may be just what the doctor ordered when it comes to fun in the sun, but many are surprised by the cosmopolitan art, culture, and culinary scene that complete the picture.
Photo caption: Checking out some cormorants and pelicans with La Jolla Kayak, San Diego.
While San Diego has become justly noted for its leadership in the microbrew beer world, the city is also at the nexus of three vastly different wine regions. To the north, just across the Riverside County line, is the Temecula Valley, with 30-plus wineries ranging from mom-and-pop operations to slick oenophile resorts (see www.temeculawines.org). To the east is the mountain town of Julian, better known for its apples but also a burgeoning location for winemakers (check out www.julianca.com). To the south is the Napa Valley of Mexico, the Valle de Guadalupe, where more than 20 wineries are garnering international notice (go to www.wineriesinbaja.com). Each of these areas is about a 90-minute drive from downtown San Diego; or elect to take a wine-country tour to Temecula via Grapeline (tel. 888/894-6379 or 951/693-5755; www.gogrape.com) or to Mexico via Five Star Tours (tel. 877/704-0514 or 619/232-5040; www.sdsuntours.com).
Photo caption: Menghini Winery in Julian, California
Every four years, much of the world becomes obsessed with the Summer Olympic Games. And while that global frenzy lasts only a few weeks, in San Diego the Olympic spirit burns every day at the U.S. Olympic Training Center (tel. 619/656-1500 or 619/482-6222; www.teamusa.org). One of only three such facilities in the nation, the sprawling OTC is home to elite athletes training in such events as volleyball, swimming, rugby, and track and field. The center is open year-round, with self-guided tours available daily, 9am to 4pm, and guided tours offered Saturdays at 11am.
Photo caption: The Olympic Training Center, San Diego.
The La Jolla Playhouse (tel. 858/550-1010; www.lajollaplayhouse.org) and the Old Globe Theatre (tel. 619/234-5623; www.theoldglobe.org) are both Tony Award-winning institutions that have sent a number of productions to Broadway. The Playhouse has forwarded, among others, Memphis, Jersey Boys, and The Who's Tommy, while the Globe has shepherded works such as Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, The Full Monty, and Stephen Sondheim's Into the Woods. The Globe is also known for its summer Shakespeare Festival, where three plays are performed in true repertory by one company of actors. Also part of the mix are smaller troupes like Cygnet Theatre (tel. 619/337-1525; www.cygnettheatre.com), queer-themed Diversionary Theatre (tel. 619/220-0097; www.diversionary.org), and the socially conscious San Diego Repertory Theatre (tel. 619/544-1000; www.sdrep.org).
Photo caption: The Old Globe Theatre in Balboa Park in San Diego, California.
So it's another beautiful day in San Diego and the last thing you want to do is languish in the artificial light of a museum. No worries. Two of San Diego's most notable collections of contemporary art are gloriously alfresco. Spread throughout the leafy campus of the University of California, San Diego, the Stuart Collection (stuartcollection.ucsd.edu) is a site-specific assemblage of 18 creations by artists such as Robert Irwin, John Baldessari, and Bruce Nauman. The Chicano Park murals (www.chicano-park.org), which adorn the support structures of the San DiegoCoronado Bay Bridge, are a blast of color, pride, and history. There are more than 70 murals here, representing the city's most important pieces of public art. As an added bonus, both sites are free to visit.
Photo caption: Public opening of Do-Ho Suh's "Fallen Star" installation art at the Stuart Collection, UCSD.
If you are contemplating a visit to San Diego, you may already be familiar with its lauded beaches. Even "Dr. Beach" -- aka Florida International University professor Stephen P. Leatherman -- is a fan, naming Coronado the nation's number one beach in 2012 (the first time any California locale has claimed the top spot).
After rigorously examining everything from bacteria levels to sand texture at beaches around the country -- including Hawaii -- Dr. Beach gushed: "Coronado Beach is the toast of Southern California; it is a veritable oasis by the sea." Yes, San Diego may be just what the doctor ordered when it comes to fun in the sun, but many are surprised by the cosmopolitan art, culture, and culinary scene that complete the picture.
Photo caption: Checking out some cormorants and pelicans with La Jolla Kayak, San Diego.
Photo caption: Menghini Winery in Julian, California
Photo caption: The Olympic Training Center, San Diego.
Photo caption: The Old Globe Theatre in Balboa Park in San Diego, California.
Photo caption: Public opening of Do-Ho Suh's "Fallen Star" installation art at the Stuart Collection, UCSD.