[Day 3] La Jolla Underwater Park

I woke up at 8am this morning. I debated with myself about going for a jog and finally stepped out of the house, into the sun, at 9am :> I thought I'd jog to the beach and back. I set off with US$2.20 in my jumper pocket just in case I needed to get the bus back.

My house is just on the junction of a very busy road. Not the best for jogging I would say, but I had to run along that road before I reach any nice jogging areas. I checked out googlemap before I set off, but things always look closer than they are on these maps. I mistook the road Liz took me on, as Torrey Pines road, and thus embarked on a long journey in search of the coast.

The roads in San Diego are really scary or its just that I jog along the roads that I should not be jogging along. Torrey Pines only has a pavement for pedestrains on one side of the road, which of course was not the side of the road I was on. I did not realize that until I entered the stretch of the road that had a unsurmountable road divider in the center of the road. By that time, there was only lush green vegetation on both sides of the road and no houses in sight. I felt pretty uneasy about being stuck on the seemingly endless road where I only had a little bit of the side of the road to go on. I carried on and finally reached a more populated area with houses, a school and lotsa people.

The search for the coast was still difficult after I emerged from Torrey Pines. I jogged into a residential area and ran towards the palm trees and the little bit of ocean I could see. Unfortunately the whole beach in that area is owned by a country club which I of course could not access.

I carried on, feeling more determined to find the beach, the more time I spent searching for it. I then saw a sign that read 'public access to ocean'. Unfortunately, it was a little pathway in between some houses that led directly to the sea. No beach, just the sea. But I could see a really nice coastal area from there. I quickly went on my quest. There were other joggers on the road, so I thought I could not be far off from a nice beach.

Finally, I saw a sign that said 'Coast'. I jogged into the side-road with excitement. The scenery that engulfed me was nothing like I had imagined.

It was beautiful. The blue sky and the deep navy sea. Seagulls chirped as they soared over the winds. The waves threw themselves on the rocks, to an upbeat rhythm. I looked across to the neighbouring cliff and spotted a path that led to the next headland. On the face of the cliffs I could see many sea bird perched on there. I could also see an amazing-looking patch of white rocks past those cliffs. I totally regretted not bringing my camera along. There were many houses lined along the coast and I thought how lucky those residents are to enjoy this view everyday.

I went on the path, and little did I know I had entered the La Jolla Underwater Park. I walked over to the cliffs I had watched from a distance and was not prepared to see all the different kinds of wildlife that was there. There was a little squirrel running over the rocks, close to where I was standing. There were not only Sea-gulls and sea birds, but huge Pellicans grooming themselves on the rocks. These were the white rocks I saw and a close up look made me realize that there was a possibility the white 'paint' on those were Pellican waste. This idea was reinforced by the smell of bird poo and salt in the air. I saw a family of seals looked on, as some of their family members frolicked in the sea. There was so much life around me I was taken aback.

I walked on along the coast till I reached a little park where there was lotsa people going down to the beach for scuba-diving, kayaking and swimming. There were restaurants and cafes all around. I had a nice stroll on the beach before heading back home. I definitely would want to come back here again. Perhaps not on foot the next time :p

The journey back was long and tiring. I saw the bus stop for the bus service that goes to my house, but could not cross the road to get to the bus stop. I walked further along the road, hoping to find a crossing and find the next stop. When I finally crossed the road, I could not find another bus stop. So I decided to walk home.

By the time I got home, I had jogged for 50 mins to the beach, strolled for 1 hour along the beach, and walked for 1 hour 20mins back home. Not bad as an activity on a Sunday morning I guess.