This was our second trip to San Diego and between desert hikes to metropolitan parks, we got out and covered some ground! A stroll through Balboa Park is to experience a different time and place. The beautiful Spanish Colonial architecture and the magnificent buildings along El Prado walkway, decorated with festive lights, are warm and inviting reminders of holidays long ago. 

The Endurance: Shackleton’s Legendary Antarctic Expedition. The 1914 voyage to the Antarctic is considered one of the greatest tales of survival in history. Exhibition is combined with a spectacular giant-screen film featuring dramatic reenactments, contemporary footage and haunting photographs taken by expedition photographer Frank Hurley. San Diego Natural History Museum.

Birch Aquarium at Scripps is an exciting, educational place to experience an amazing variety of Pacific marine life, to learn about the ocean and diversity of life within it, and discover unique exhibits on seahorses, sharks, earthquakes, products from the sea, oceanographic research, and much more. Mission Beach is the center of a continuous stretch of beach known as The Strand, which extends over two miles, beginning at the Mission Bay channel entrance and ending at the north end of Pacific Beach. We rented bikes and checked out the scene. The Strand is the most popular beach area in the City of San Diego and draws large crowds in summer.