Record temperatures hit both the California coast and our hometown of Garden, Michigan today. The guilt started to creep up along with the thermometer, which hit the mid-eighties for us, while back home school was cancelled for the second day due to extreme cold. But despite the realization that friends and relatives may resent the absolute perfect timing of our trip, we determined to have a wonderful time.
The day began with a drive south to San Juan Capistrano Mission. Along with incredible three-hundred-year-old architecture, the mission offered some entertaining goldfish that showed off their skill at follow-the-leader, and a sweet little bird that posed on a fountain. We'd hoped to go horseback riding today, but the statue "Empty Saddles" at the mission is as close as we came to a horse.
We walked through the shopping district and happened upon a restaurant in an Amtrak depot. While we ate our meal of chili and a turkey wrap, a train came through the station, whistle blowing and diesels roaring. The gentleman at the table next to us had just answered his phone and had to leave the patio for the quiet of indoors to finish his call.
We headed to Dana Point Harbor and signed up for a whale-watching cruise, picking up some nice windbreakers at a wharf-side shop for our voyage. Two gray whales traveling the coast met us just outside the harbor. I spent the next two hours snapping pictures each time they surfaced. I finally got a few good shots of spray, humps, and tails. Before disembarking, we recognized Tracey Glenn, a former Garden, Michigan resident, proving decisively that the world really is small.
We wrapped up our day with steak and lobster at the yacht harbor. The sun set just as we finished the last delicious bite.
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