Tuesday, September 22, 2009

Loving San Diego

San Diego, like Shakespeare’s Cleopatra, “…age cannot wither nor custom stale her infinite variety…” enjoys a glamorous reputation. The Southern California city, is a sparkling jewel set about with water and dotted with lovely hotels, fabulously fun entertainments, and historical sites such as SeaWorld, San Diego Wild Animal Park, San Diego Zoo, architecturally adventurous Balboa Park with its many museums, the USS Midway, and the first of the 21 California missions, Mission San Diego de Alcala, established by Franciscan Friars in the 18th century for the Spanish crown.

It is true to say that no matter how many times one visits San Diego there is always more to see and relish. Having written about San Diego for decades it is refreshing to know there is always something left unexplored to which one can look forward. Though summer is past, fall offers continuing warm weather, with fewer tourists, online discount coupons and lower hotel rates.

There are many special events to entice visitors: Fleet Week San Diego, actually runs into mid-October with many events, including US Navy ship tours; Miramar Air Show, Oct. 2, 3 and 4; SeaWorld’s Halloween Spooktacular; Little Italy Festa, Oct. 11 and SD Wine & Food Festival, Nov. 18-22. Admission to SD Zoo and SD Wild Animal Park is free for children ages 3-11 in October. The Da Vinci Experience (to Nov. 1) at the SD Air & Space Museum features over 30 full-sized and interactive replica Da Vinci machines along with reproductions of 12 of Da Vinci’s most famous paintings. It’s best to consult the San Diego Convention & Visitors Bureau, one of the best such sources, for complete information on the vast array of attractions: www.sandiego.org or call 619-236-1212.

Recently we treated two of our grandchildren, Michelle, 11 and Andrew, 9, to a few days in sunny San Diego in order for me to be introduced to the killer whale, Shamu – a celebrity nearly as famous as the late Michael Jackson. Alas, we had missed him on previous visits to see artist Edgar Degas’ Little Ballerina sculpture, the Pompeii exhibit, the SD Zoo pandas, the Wild Animal Park giraffes, the USS Midway and the mission San Diego de Alcala. I was intrigued to see this world renowned performer. As I consider myself to be something of a “non-fish” person– yes, I know Shamu is not a fish, but our cousin mammal - I was not anticipating what happened to me at SeaWorld. While there are a wide variety of animals such as polar bears, penguins, walruses, dolphins, sharks, fish, whales, etc., at SeaWorld I wanted to see Shamu.

San Diego SeaWorld is an easy drive from our homes in Orange County, CA, and to cut down on driving even more we selected hotel accommodations ten minutes from Shamu’s place…we didn’t want to waste a moment. So after settling into the lovely Paradise Point Resort & Spa on Mission Bay, www.paradisepoint.com, a 44-acre charmer with lavish tropical gardens, five pools, bike trails, marina and an 18-hole putting green (Andrew’s favorite), we dashed over to see Shamu.

It was love at first sight.

Much to my surprise – and not a little embarrassment – I became emotionally enthralled as Shamu began to perform. Silly to say, but I felt as I did the first time I’d seen Frank Sinatra in person and immediately understood his half century successful career. I felt he was singing especially for me. And Shamu – with apologies to Frank – was nearly as enticing. Shamu seemed to be smiling at me as he slid up from the water in a marine salute to the audience. My emotional response accelerated and produced a near-Stendhal syndrome experience. I’d heard about the Stendhal or Florence syndrome after being dazzled by the art at the Uffizi Museum in Florence, Italy. Apparently, it is a recognized phenomenon in Italy. A highly emotional response consisting of a mixture of awe, wonder, delight in great art or natural beauty which can produce, among other things, dizziness, fainting or weeping.

How else to explain that Shamu, in his own way, was nearly as awesome, in the correct sense of that over-used word, as a Florentine art treasure. It seemed to me Shamu is one of the wonders of the world.

Shamu is sleekly black and white, spectacularly beautiful, agile and talented – and yes, he certainly has personal charm. It was the Sinatra effect all over again. This glorious creature graciously enacted improbably daring – they looked that way –skills just for me. Well, OK, for the entire audience.

The show is artfully conceived and Shamu is presented in a creative narrative in an aquatic theater overseen by highly talented trainers and performers. And like the Stendhal response I nearly wept with the beauty of what I was seeing. Even now, I’m not sure why I responded so emotionally to what is, after all, only an animal act. I can only say the Shamu (actually there are several killer whales that enact the role) I saw perform has “it” – that indefinable quality that grabs an audience and leaves an indelible impression.

We also saw the dolphin show, which was wonderful. The dolphins are trained to swim around the perimeter of the water tank while flipping water at guests – who love it! It was fun, but I did not fall in love with any of the performers, same with the dog show. Cute pooches doing cute things, but no love affair developed. The Wild Animal Park denizens were lovely to see, especially the giraffes that come up close to the guest tram to nibble one of the few trees – maybe they it would be good to plant more trees in the animal area. Anyway, again, no bells ringing. Yet, I’m willing to bet that each visitor will have his or her unique experience in response to the splendid variety of experiences within San Diego. No doubt someone has fallen in love with the giraffes or dolphins, as I did with Shamu. This is a city which offers so many entertainments return visits are necessary.

With fall there are more special promotional discounts on parks and accommodations.The best strategy is to first check the San Diego Visitors & Convention Bureau, then the individual attractions you wish to see. Leave time for unexpected delights that will certainly turn up. One should check online for discount coupons for SeaWorld and other attractions, as well as hotel rates, vacations packages and operating hours for various attractions. Request any available informational booklets, brochures, coupons, etc., be mailed to you. Once you go, you’ll know and will return again & again.


Before you go:

* SeaWorld – www.seaworld.com, and www.seaworldsandiego.com, 1-800-25-SHAMU.
* San Diego Convention &Visitors Bureau – www.sandiego.org, 1-619-236-1212.
* Paradise Point Resort & Spa – www.paradisepoint.com, 1-858-274-4630.

Angela Rocco DeCarlo, copyright, 2009