January 29, 2007

  • The Fall Concert 2003

    The Fall Concert 2003

     

    December 3 – I took off from LA at about 10:30 am.  The drive was pleasant with hardly any traffic whatsoever.  It was sunny and breezy.  I actually enjoyed my drive to La Jolla.

           I checked in at the Residence Inn at around 1 pm.  They gave me an upgrade to my room at no additional cost.  Man, was it an upgrade!  My room turned out to have two stories.  There was a bed on both floors.  At the foot of each bed was TV.  I also had a living room with a couch, coffee table, loveseat, fireplace, and a TV.  I also had a kitchen complete with stove, refrigerator, sink, utensils, cutlery, silverware, china, and a little dining table for four.  There was a bathroom for both floors.

           I had lunch at TGI Friday’s.  I had me the Wall to Wall chicken.  Basically it is a platter of Buffalo wings, sesame wings, celery sticks (yes, I actually ate all of them), and potato wedges smothered with cheddar, onions, and a sweet sauce.  It was filling.

           After a stop at Sav-On for some film it was off to the Stephen Birch Aquarium.  This aquarium is affiliated with the Scripps Institute of Oceanography.  In front of the aquarium are two fountains.  One has a statue of a whale’s tail sticking out.  The other two had two whales (gray, I think) standing on their tails.  Inside there were lots of fish including sharks, rays, and eels.  There was also a giant octopus, jellyfish, lobsters, lots of anemones, abalones, and many more I can’t recall at the moment.  There was also an entire seahorse exhibit.  I liked the sea dragon.

           I returned to my hotel to drop off some stuff.  I then trekked on foot to the UCSD campus.  The hotel complex is right to the south of the campus.  The walk brought back memories and it was neat to see what has and has not changed about my alma mater.  There was construction going on which is true about all UC’s.  I once told someone that UCSD stood for Under Construction, Still Developing.

           It was 5:30 pm.  There was still an hour and a half before the concert started.  I decided to visit the UCSD Bookstore at the Price Center, the center of the university.  I bought a Christmas card which I plan to give to my professor who will conduct the upcoming concert.  I also got myself a T-shirt.

           7 pm.  Showtime for the UCSD Jazz Ensemble.  Every band member wore a red shirt.  Most had black pants.  The dress code had never changed since my days playing with the band.  The tunes are mostly the same comprising predominantly of Count Basie and Duke Ellington material.  Cameras were not permitted so I did not take any pictures of the concert.  The band is led by Jimmy Cheatham.  Jimmy is a trombonist well known among jazz circles.  He and his wife Jeannie lead a band called the Sweet Baby Blues Band.

           After every concert there is a reception with lots of tasty food.  However there was some sort of mix-up this time so all we got was a slice of pizza.  I greeted some band members who still play with the band since my days there.  It was nice to see them and they were pleased to see me.  I gave the Christmas card to Jimmy.  He was very happy and told me that Jeannie would be ecstatic to see it.  It was great to see Jimmy again.  I plan to be back for the winter concert.

           Due to the scarcity of food I walked around that immediate area for some sustenance.  I walked, and I walked, and I walked.  It was past 10 pm.  Nothing was open so I returned to T.G.I. Friday’s.  This time it was fish and shrimp and chips.  I then returned to my penthouse suite for a relaxing shower and nap.

     

    December 4 – I woke up this morning to see a foggy morning.  This is the typical La Jolla morning as I was quickly reminded.  I filled out a couple of Christmas cards and then walked to the campus.  I went to the on campus post office to send the cards off.  I then walked back to my hotel and checked out.

           I drove to Old Town State Historical Park.  This park basically restored and kept the buildings that were around when San Diego was first born, basically Old Town San Diego.  This was during the early 1800’s.  The style of most of the buildings definitely had Mexican influence.  I kind of passed by looking at the various structures and took photos.  There were many kids there.  It’s a nice place to spend a relaxing day to shop, eat, and/or just chill.  By this time (ca. 11 AM) the sun had burned through the fog.

           I then drove to downtown San Diego to the historic Gaslamp Quarter.  It’s a 16-block section of town that retained its old Victorian architecture.  Its long history included Wyatt Earp and prostitution, for example.  Now it’s a center for dining and clubs.  I had lunch here at Trattoria La Strada.  I saw this being advertised back at the hotel.  My pasta dish, Capellini in Barca, was delicious.  It consists of angel hair pasta with shrimps, mussels, clams, and scallops smothered with a white wine and tomato sauce.  It cost me over $17 but well worth it.

           I then walked around the Gaslamp Quarter and took some photos.  There was also a bar owned by Jim Croce simply called Croce’s.  Walking along I saw Petco Park, the future home of the San Diego Padres.  It is still undergoing construction but looks pretty nice.  I just don’t know about that name.  Petco Park!?  Then again I wasn’t keen on other names like Staples Center and Heinz Field.

           I then headed to Belmont Park.  It’s next to the ocean.  I wanted to go there because of their old wooden roller coaster called The Giant Dipper.  It’s $4 a pop so I paid it.  It’s not as big as anything you’d find at Magic Mountain.  It’s also smaller than California Screamin’ at Disney’s California Adventure.  Nevertheless, it was fun.  I then paid another $4 to ride on it again.  I took a couple pictures as the coaster was ascending to its highest point.  I then walked to the bike path to look at the beach.  It’s nice when the weather is sunny but cool.  In fact I had my jacket on all this time.

           I drove to Ocean Beach.  There is a fishing pier there called simply the Ocean Beach Pier.  It claims to be the longest pier in California.  It was pretty long.  The end of the pier is an extension that is perpendicular to the outward jutting part.  This makes the pier look like a letter “T” sticking out into the ocean.  The sun shone brightly and beautifully over the water.  The shores were picturesque with homes and cliffs.  Below were dudes and dudettes trying to hang ten.  I wonder if they really believe that if you catch a wave you’ll be sittin’ on top of the world.  Never mind.

           I then made my way back to LA.  Along the way I stopped in Irvine to have dinner with my friend James.  We went to a Chinese place.  It was just James, his little daughter Miriya, and I.  Afterwards I headed back to LA and finally it’s home sweet home.

           I had a good time.  It would have been great to share this experience with someone but perhaps next time.  This is my kind of therapy.