Kim Qi

Seen on a highway in San Diego, the driver was not Korean, not Asian

Racine & Laramie - old school tobacconist

I visited San Diego's Old Town one afternoon - its basically a recreation of what a town would have looked like back in the 1800s. There are a bunch of houses & stores surrounding a town square / commons all renovated in the old style.

I generally don't like very touristy places and Old Town was no exception - too much blatant souvenir selling and too many tourists. However there was one gem to be found and that was Racine & Laramie, an old style tabacco shop.


Racine & Laramine was apparently San Diego's very first tobacco shop. Today it's one of the most interesting shops in Old Town.


Here is the old school entrance, complete with native Indian statue to greet visitors.


Inside is a plethora of antique or antique style tobacco products & accessories like lighters, cigarette cases, pipes, zippos, cigars, posters, etc. I really like the old school atmosphere of the place. As you can see things were just strewn everywhere on those wooden counters & display cases.


Here the very knowledgeable grey-haired salesman is debating the intricacies of an antique pipe with an equally well-informed, white-haired customer.


Some cigars on display. There was also a separate room for the fine cigars...no Cubans though.


The entire store with the wooden panelling and old-style furnishings made me think I was in a time warp. If you are a tabacco enthusiast or like old fashioned things, this just might be worth coming to Old Town for.

Lunch at Georges

Went to a classy restaurant overlooking the sea the other day. It's called Georges at the Cove located in La Jolla. There is a proper restaurant on ground level which is very $$$. So we had lunch at the Ocean View Terrace on the roof, which is much more affordable and just as good (same chef).


Here's my fish taco, seafood with a Mexican flavor, a favorite with San Diegans. It was tasty, crispy and light. They also came with red and green taco chips, very festive!


Here's Chris' shrimp kabab, it was pretty good as well.


Jumbos by the sea.

Exploring an aircraft carrier

The USS Midway has a long and decorated history. It was first launched in 1945, was involved in the Vietnam war, Desert Storm and was the first carrier group to be stationed in Japan. It was finally retired from active service in 1992.

Today it functions as a museum at Broadway Pier in downtown San Diego. The entrance fee is $17 which includes a great audio tour. There were also a number of past crew members employed as museum guides on the ship. It was particularly fascinating talking with them. I don't think there's any other actual aircraft carrier museum in the world....highly recommended!


Walking to the entrance, what a huge boat!


Chris as a hot seaman. How did they fit into those bunks???


These huge chains are attached to the carrier's anchor.


Engine room - imagine having to man this station...


Gotta keep the ship well oiled


Hilarious guide to the organizational structure of the Navy.


On the deck of the USS Midway.


Here is a model of an F-18 Hornet. By strange coincidence there was a tragic F18 crash in a San Diego neighborhood a day later.


Here is the bridge of the ship, too bad we didn't get a chance to go in as there wasn't enough time.


Finally we're at the bow of the ship. San Deigo is the largest Naval base on the west coast Those two ships on the other shore are both active aircraft carriers based in San Diego.


Here is the menu of what the crew ate everyday.

Living in San Diego

Ever wonder why San Diego is such a laid-back place? It's because of the 300+ days of sun and the gorgeous beaches. It is so laid back that it's common for people to goto work in their flip-flops and shorts! Wearing khakis & a collared shirt is considered dressed up. People even go surfing during their lunch hour! It's no wonder that people who live here never leave.


This is a great view of La Jolla shores, look at that sky!


Here is Matt & Amy's house. Its a cozy 3 bedroom, 2 floor house in a new suburb right next to a section of farmland. Sometimes we can see hot air balloons landing nearby!


There place is about 30min drive from downtown and is not far from the mall. I wouldn't mind living in this neighborhood!


Imagine surfing here every morning...this is like the exact opposite of Beijing...sigh....

News: Free WiFi in BJ by 2011

Interesting news from Danwei says that there will be free WiFi access throughout Beijing by 2011!!

Too bad, I probably will have moved back to Hong Kong by then.

San Diego - Food

The last time I was in the States was about 6 years ago, so I was looking forward to eating some good wholesome (fat) American food and real Mexican food this time around. Here are some pics of the food I had in day 1 & 2:


Ah, the breakfast burrito, a staple of the SoCal morning routine. Scrambled eggs, bacon, fried potato chunks and cheese wrapped in a warm, soft tortilla shell - the perfect start to the day! Don't forget to add the jalapeno hot sauce!


Breakfast was so filling that I didn't need to have lunch. So dinner was at Bamboo Hut - a Hawaiian joint. What's Hawaiian food? Creative sushi rolls, rice and lots of meat. This was pork and garlic rice.


Here's Amy's favorite spam sushi - everything tastes great with spam.


Some kind of fried sushi roll - not bad!


This small joint called El Pescador (means fisherman in Spanish) in La Jolla sells fish caught fresh everyday. I had fresh grilled seabass sandwich and clam chowder soup. The fish was very fresh, making the sandwich nice and light...the best sandwich I've have had in a long time!

I definitely have to visit this place again!

stay tuned for more food posts!