San Diego is a beautiful city in Southern California.
Actually, it's the last major city on the U.S. Coast
before the border with Mexico.
It's famous for the harbor, the beaches, the weather.
In my opinion, the best weather in the world,
mild year-round.
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And also, they have a strong military presence,
long-time association with the U.S. Navy, and Marine Corps.
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Look at how many ships you can visit over here.
You can go inside each one of these.
In the next few videos, we're going to show you
a few reasons why you should also visit San Diego.
Can you hear the jets?
This is how close we are to the airport.
Seriously, the airport is right here.
And in 10 minutes, you can be at the harbor front hotels here,
or even the convention center.
San Diego International Airport is the busiest
single-runway airport in the world.
Hello, I'm Renata, and this is my husband, Gordon.
We lived in Southern California for many years. In L.A., right?
- Yes, and we love coming to San Diego.
- Always bringing family and friends here.
What do you like most about San Diego? - Weather.
- And why is that? - It's perfect.
- See? - See?
Right now, we're at the Embarcadero, downtown,
and look at what a beautiful place.
Downtown is San Diego's cultural hub,
and there are some very distinct areas here.
In this video, we're going to show at least two.
In between, we're gonna cross the bay.
So let me show you what are the things to do along the harbor.
We're gonna walk all this.
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We're here at nine in the morning.
It's a little bit early because all the museums only open at 10.
Here there's more than just boat tours.
I mentioned that one of San Diego's main economic engines
is related to military and defense, right?
Not only that, but here, they host the largest naval fleet in the world.
Look at how many ships you can go inside.
Here there are a few historical ships you can check out at the Maritime Museum,
including an American and a Russian submarine.
Here they have one of the largest collections of old ships
you can find anywhere in the United States.
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Did you know that when you only compare the population of the city,
this is the second most populous city in California?
- Yes, and Los Angeles is number one.
Los Angeles is number one, yeah,
but I thought San Francisco would come first, right after L.A.,
but no. - No.
What's the last?
- Oh, baby, I don't know. [laughs]
Here there are some really cool bayfront restaurants.
And right over here, this is the cruise ship terminal.
You can even get a Disney cruise look at that.
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Look at how cool.
Some people arriving here for a cruise.
There are a lot of international cruises departing here.
This is the Celebrity Millennium.
Look at how many boat tour options.
Here they got a ferry to Coronado.
Look at that, $7.
It adds up, you know, $7 each way for two people.
So we'll prefer to drive.
Also, we won't be stuck to their times
because the boat is only once an hour every hour.
Hi, I just have a question about the ferry to Coronado
because I read online that there is a commuter service early morning, right?
- Yes. - And that's free.
Is that available for tourists also or you have to show some kind of ID?
I don't know. - It is like before like 8:10.
- Yeah. - No, you just let them know.
Well, they'll be at the gates, so you just walk in.
- Just walk in? - Yeah.
Okay, thank you.
- Okay, that is good news.
So if you're willing to wake up early,
the commuter service is also available to tourists.
Here is the wood ferry all the way there in the end, the yellow.
Fun fact: this is the oldest working wood ferry in the United States.
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Now this is the most famous ship over here, USS Midway.
I saw some information online.
I don't know if it is true
that this is the most visited historical naval ship museum in the world.
USS Midway was the largest ship in the world until 1955.
It was about 10 years,
as she was commissioned right after World War II.
She operated for 47 years into becoming a museum here in 2004.
- Oh, we were here when it first opened then, probably.
- Yes, yes. Yeah. - Yeah.
It is very worth a visit,
not only for what you see inside,
but also because we have an amazing view
of San Diego Bay and the bayfront.
My favorite part is probably the flight deck.
You see all the old military aircrafts,
and the short space they had to take off.
- You see? This is how they bring to the ship the planes up.
They store them all on that level. - Yeah.
- Interesting, huh? - Very interesting.
Pilots have to be very talented to take off and land on top of the ship.
They also have an audio guide included in the ticket,
and it is narrated by former sailors.
USS Midway was America's longest serving aircraft carrier
of the 20th century.
This is the famous statue known as the Unconditional Surrender.
- There's a famous picture.
I believe on Times Square.
- Uh-hmm. - There's a parade after the war was over.
That's where it comes from, I think.
- It's the Unconditional Surrender.
- Of the woman. - Of the woman!?
Come on! [laughs]
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Bob Hope, he was a very well-known famous entertainer...
- Uh-hmm. - ...comedian,
and he would do tours with the military, bring shows.
- Uh-hmm. - He was very famous for that
for the longest time.
- Yeah. - And he would even have a...
yearly show on television.
- They have a few sculptures simulating military men
listening to him and laughing with him.
- Yes. - Very cool.
Each stature here represents a soldier from a separate conflict.
Well, there are even speakers here, and you can hear some of his jokes.
It's very nice.
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What have you learned?
- This was the center of tuna fishing in the United States.
- Tuna fishing? - Yeah.
- Really? - Yeah.
- Centered right here in San Diego.
- Seaport Village, straight ahead.
- Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Is that why you're rushing?
- Yeah - [laughs]
As you keep walking, you arrive at a great place to see
after you visit one of these museums.
Seaport Village.
How much are the hats here?
- $25 - Okay, thank you.
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So many restaurants over here.
Look at how nice.
Oh, here you can buy just a slice of pizza.
Look at that, $4 for a cheese slice.
New York-style, huh? [laughs]
- No good. You won't like.
- Oh, no?
Ah, yeah. [laughs]
Mmm, very tasty.
Mmm. It actually reminds me of New York.
[laughs]
- Give me another.
- Cheers!
- Look how thin the crust is, and it's cooked all the way through.
- It's very nice.
The view is amazing.
It's an easy walk from the Convention Center.
- Absolutely, like 10-15 minutes walking, you'd say?
- Probably.
- And it's not only dining here, there are a lot of shops.
Very, very cute area.
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This carousel here is historic.
The original placement was in Fair Park, Texas, 1895.
And it's been to so many cities,
until getting to San Diego in 2004.
Right behind Seaport Village,
you find one of the most traditional hotels in San Diego.
This is the Manchester Grand Hyatt.
One of these towers here is actually the tallest on the West Coast waterfront.
- I don't believe that.
I think Seattle has a taller building and both are on a bay,
but this one is closer to the ocean.
- Let's see, maybe Gordon is right and the internet is wrong.
- You believe the internet?
- [laughs]
They have a rooftop place with amazing views,
but unfortunately, it's only open for dinner.
La Punta De Los Muertos.
Dead Men's Point. - Yeah.
- What does it mean?
Someone died at this point.
- Not someone, but a lot of people...
- Why? [in Portuguese] - ...died here, it says right here.
This is the burial site of sailors and marines in 1782.
They died of scurvy.
- Yeah. - Way back when.
So they are all buried right here.
Right here. This is a...
- I felt them. - Oh, baby, come on.
- This is considered one of the oldest European burial sites
here in California.
All this is a landfill.
Seaport Village was built more or less over a cemetery.
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That's Coronado.
And look at how close it is.
Look at that. No toll.
It's just to deceive you, baby.
- Is there a toll going back?
- Did you get scared for a moment?
Because we are on a rental, and we didn't get the, uh...
- toll. - ...the toll device.
- Toe tickler. - Yeah.
That bridge was almost a little bit too scary, wasn't it?
- Why? - Oh!
That bridge is not for everyone.
- No, you should see it on a 7.0 earthquake.
- Oh, my God! Yeah.
- It's beautiful.
It's worth it choosing the bridge to come here to Coronado
just for the view alone.
- And the earthquake. - Don't even joke, baby.
Oh, look at this area over here, too. How charming!
There's a lot of little eateries and some shops, too.
"Repeat after me: I deserve a new outfit."
But the main reason why everyone comes here
is this view.
Look at this.
Welcome to Coronado.
A lot of people call this an island, but it's actually a peninsula.
It's connected to the continent over there.
- Yes, it's a nice island.
- Except that it's not an island.
- You tricked me. - [laughs]
- No, but seriously, even the city here,
I was checking their official website, and they call this an island.
The best view of the San Diego skyline.
If you catch the ferry, this is where you arrive.
Oh, it's faster to come driving, actually. Look at this.
It's like 10-15 minutes for you to come all the way from there,
cross the bridge, and get over here.
It is really close.
And over on this side, there's even a small beach.
Your language challenge for the day...
- What? - What's the meaning of Coronado?
- I don't know. - The crowned one, in Spanish.
- Oh, really? - Yeah.
So this is a separate city, right?
And it's nicknamed the Crowned City. - Oh, really?
- Yeah. - Interesting.
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Here is a bike path all over here,
and there are bikes here you can rent.
This would be so fun.
The view is amazing, huh?
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This is Orange Avenue.
This is a very cool avenue
for you to walk around,
enjoy Coronado.
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Let me tell you something that, uh...
I'm almost sure you don't know.
- Try me.
- Look this way. - Yeah?
- Do you see anything unusual or different over here?
- A bunch of hills, sand hills.
- It's more than that.
Actually, Coronado is written right here.
- Oh, is it? - Yeah.
You can only see from high up above.
- I knew that. - Ah, no, you didn't.
- Yes, I did. - No, you didn't.
As we can't fly the drone, we'll have to trust Google Maps.
You can see from Google Maps. - Can you?
- Yeah. Oh, cool.
As you drive all the way to the other side of Coronado,
Look at this amazing beach. Wow!
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Here in Coronado, they also have a hotel
that is a symbol of the city:
Hotel Del Coronado, or simply, Hotel Del.
This is the historic beachfront hotel built in 1888.
Hotel Del is listed as a National Historic Landmark
and it has hosted many notable guests,
including presidents.
Do you know why they used to build hotels like this
in the end of the 19th century?
They used to build a beautiful big hotel
to attract people to buy land.
- Ah. - That was a secret.
And it worked in many cities in the U.S.
Because you show them it's beautiful and everyone gets emotional,
and then they buy a property, and someone makes all the money.
You know the trick.
It wasn't a Pereira.
[laughs]
We were not so smart back then.
[laughs] - Were we?
[laughs]
They have a miniature over here.
This is how you can see how big the hotel is.
When the hotel opened, that was in 1888,
guess how much it was a room?
$3.50. - Oh, no way.
- Yeah. - No way, you read that online.
- No. I didn't.
- No, you can't be that good.
- Are you serious, $3,50? - Yes, $3.50.
For a hotel room and also two meals.
- Wow. - Yeah.
- $3.50. - Yes.
- I'm good.
- This is the second largest wooden structure in the United States,
only after a museum in Oregon.
That little piece of land all the way over there,
that's Point Loma.
We're going there another day on this trip.
Look at that, San Diego.
We're taller than some of the buildings.
That is Mexico over there.
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And to close the day, we're back downtown San Diego
in one of the coolest places you could come in the evening.
This is the Gaslamp Quarter or simply the Gaslamp.
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The development here began in the 1860s,
and this became known as the New Town in contrast to the Old Town
which was the original Spanish colonial settlement here.
Very cool place as well,
that I'm going to show you in the next video.
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Ghirardelli is my favorite chocolate in the world.
I couldn't resist this store here.
- Great, thanks. - Thank you.
[laughs]
Wow, man, that's thick.
That is so thick.
It won't come up.
- And how is it? - I haven't tasted it yet.
- Oh, come on. [laughs]
And look at mine, how they serve the ice cream here.
In fact -- ah!
- No way! - What did you do?
- Oh, my God! - Renata!
- What a disaster.
So much care with the ice cream, and it breaks.
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Mmm.
Always delicious.
- What are you doing?
- That's the Brazilian way, baby.
[laughs]
I still want my cone.
Oh, look at that, even the building is historic, too.
The first theater to be built
with the new building ordinance for fire safety.
So this was not a good area of the city to be in.
When development first started here... - Yeah?
- There were a lot of gambling halls...
- Drinking, gambling... - Prostitution...
- Oh, all that good stuff.
- Well, the good thing is that look around,
there are many old buildings, well preserved and well maintained today.
And this became a really cool place to come and see.
- Now it's back to drinking.
[laughs]
This avenue here is Fifth Avenue,
look at this, totally close to cars.
They leave the streets in between open, so that the traffic continues,
but the blocks of Fifth Avenue are totally shut down.
It is really cool.
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Here at the Gaslamp, there are almost 100 historical buildings,
but this one here is the oldest.
New Town's oldest surviving structure.
This today is the Gaslamp Museum,
but it was built in 1850 to be the house
of a very important businessman here at the time.
When you come here earlier, you can check out inside.
..."his menagerie which included a wildcat, noisy monkeys,
an anteater, and his pet bear who escaped...
The bear was also known to lick the face
or even take a bite out of a passerby."
Ooh! - Ooh! That was quite an area, huh?
- Yeah, scary place.
The kind of place I'd hang out in.
- Oh! You? - Ha-ha, ha-ha.
Now, I read some conflicting information online,
both that there were Gaslamps here when this neighborhood first started,
and that they were not,
that since the beginning they had arc lighting.
Either way, Gaslamps here are not prevalent here anymore.
They just have these cute lights everywhere.
Something very cool is that there are different types of establishments here,
from sophisticated restaurants to bars, nightclubs.
There's something for everyone.
I thought everything here would be so busy,
but because there are so many places, right?
So many restaurants... And all this outdoor space...
- But it's early, wait till nine or ten o'clock at night,
and it's winter. - Okay.
- Not summer [in Portuguese]
- [laughs]
- It's not summer? - No.
I guess you're right. - What? What?
I guess you're right, baby.
[laughs]