The kids were chomping at the bit to check into our hotel.  We originally booked a hotel room several weeks ago but decided at the last minute to try our luck with Priceline.  We were rewarded with a room at the Manchester Grand Hyatt for $82, which felt like a steal, even with $26 parking. 

The hotel is adjacent to Seaport Village and the bay.  The view from our room:

The tv was bigger than the one we have at home.

After resting up we walked to the Gaslamp District, technically, the East Village, and ate dinner at j.wok.  It has good Yelp reviews, but we are usually skeptical about so-called “Asian fusion” places.

The centerpiece of the dining room is a tree sculpture made of thousands of chopsticks.

Thai pork—D thought it was overly salty, but I liked it.  Big portion of meat, and I liked how it was on a bed of mixed greens, almost like a salad.  The pickled cucumber side was also a nice contrast.

Pad See Ew—everyone enjoyed this dish, also a good size. 

Tilapia with green apple slaw—this was a “small dish” and contained three chunks of greaseless fried tilapia.  Also a nice contrast to the tart green apples.  There was a sprinkling of peanuts, so we saved this dish for ourselves and told the kids they couldn’t have any.    They still had plenty of food.

Our view at night.

This was the nicest hotel that D and I have stayed at together.  Thank you, Priceline!

Happy New Year, everyone!  2013 will be a year of change for our family, but I am looking forward to it!

After visiting the museums we went to Extraordinary Desserts.  I’ve wanted to go there during our past trips to San Diego but we never made it.  Friday was the day! 

Looking at the display case, I was paralyzed with indecision.  Everything looked so good.  Our only requirement was “no nuts”, of course.  We ended up with a slice of La Bete Noire: Creamy semi-sweet chocolate mousse, vanilla crème brûlée, chocolate ganache, are layered in between dark chocolate cakes and moistened with Madagascar vanilla bean syrup.  I almost feel bad revealing that we paid $8.95 for this slice of cake.  But, it was probably the best cake I’ve ever had, so that is saying something.  D also ordered a cup of coffee, which had distinct macadamia nut flavor.  We were planning to sit inside the restaurant, but there was a 20 minute wait in the middle of the afternoon.  So, we opted to get our order to go and ate outside, thus avoiding paying tip, at least.  We saw tons of flowers being delivered to the restaurant—I think their floral bill must explain a good part of their high prices.  After reading the menu, I regretted not ordering the Dulce de Leche cake, as featured on Best Thing I Ever Ate.  Oh well, at least I’ll know what to order the next time (if there is ever a next time…I’m kind of thinking this place will be a once in our lifetime type of place—haha). 

After our hikes we went to Lucha Libre for an early lunch.  We arrived less than ten minutes past eleven o’clock, but there was already a line out the door.  I wonder what percentage their business went up after being featured on Man v. Food?  I didn’t see that episode, but I used to enjoy that show when we had cable. 

The décor is *interesting*; a Mexican wrestling theme.  Let’s just say it would fit right in on Telegraph Ave. in Berkeley. 

This booth must be reserved.

I knew what I wanted to order: two Surfin’ California burritos ($7.25 each).  They contain steak, shrimp, avocados, french fries and a special sauce.  That is a lot of goodness wrapped in one tortilla!

Bathroom shot…

Next we went to Balboa Park to check out the Natural History Museum and Reuben H. Fleet Science Center.  We were able to use our Discovery Science Museum passes to obtain free admission to both—another score!

First up was the Natural History Museum, aka theNAT.  The two special exhibits were about chocolate and horses.  The kids enjoyed the play area set up with tents.

Isn’t that soft campfire so cute?

Chocolate gift shop.

Cacao tree—the whole exhibit smelled like chocolate!

Right across the way is the Reuben H. Fleet Science Center.

This museum didn’t take us very long to explore.  As D noted, a lot of kids’ museums have the same types of exhibits.  I’m sure the IMAX movies are cool, but we didn’t pay extra—I think it may have been too much for the kids anyway.  Both museums provided some educational entertainment, but I’m glad we didn’t pay full price for them.

“Let the little children come unto me.”  There was a series of scenes depicting Jesus’ life in the Organ Pavilion. 

Balboa Park is amazing for what it is.  A vast park in the middle of an urban landscape with grand architecture, museums, cafes and open space.  Visiting made us daydream about whether the Great Park in Irvine will ever realize its full potential. 

For our last hurrah of 2012 we went to San Diego for an overnight trip.  Our first stop was Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve.  This place holds special memories for D and me because it is where D proposed just about 10 years ago.  We hadn’t been back since, so it was nice to return with k and n.  We were also able to use one of our state park parking passes, which saved us about $10 (normally $15)—score! 

There were a lot of people enjoying the nice weather and getting some exercise in the great outdoors.  On the advice of the park ranger, we went on the Razor Point trail and Guy Fleming trail, both of which she recommended for kids.

Torrey Pines—the rarest type of pine tree in the United States, according to the sign by the visitor center. 

Did you notice k has bangs now? 

These are agave, aka century plants, according to the person D asked on the trail.  She seemed quite knowledgeable and eager to share on the topic, so we’re trusting she’s correct.