Mansells had a day of rest & preparation for their visit to rellies in Tucson.
Harveys went south to Long Beach to see what was for many years the world’s largest ship, the Queen Mary & tour the Russian submarine Scorpion that was commissioned in 1972 during the Cold War. It was fascinating but glad we weren’t part of the 75 cramped crew! 
Long Beach was gearing up for a big day of celebrations for Fourth of July with fireworks spectacular in the evening but a tad too crowded for us so we headed over to the Marina for a fabulous lunch in the cool breeze. There were plenty of tourist shops & beachside entertainment and, believe it or not, a real pirate – complete with beaded beard, talking parrot & wench. He cheekily offered me his weapon and she offered Roger her booty!
The foreshore at Long Beach was spacious & very inviting for the public to use & enjoy, plenty of parking & grassed for picnics. The immense scale of this port was amazing & we had a chance to stop & marvel at the nuclear power station nearby.
We headed back to Anaheim for a refreshing dip in the pool. It’s so pretty, 4 pools including a spa & the garden is filled with a menagerie of topiary creatures. Everyone is well behaved & the adults take great care of their children. Every group speaks a different language, I’ve lost count but there’s singsong ya-ya Swedish, German, Spanish, Japanese, lots of Mexicans & of course the odd Kiwi.
We dined at a local Italian restaurant but as we’re not accustomed to the American supersized portions yet, we had doggy bags to take home. Made it back in time to enjoy the Disney fireworks spectacular, then bed after Howard & Jayne finished their packing.
Next morning, farewell to our friends at 5:30am for their flight to Tucson. After a few more zzzz’s, we headed south again, this time to San Diego. It was a great feeling for Roger to finally ‘open her up’ on the magnificent 8 lane freeway. Speed limit is 65 mph but most traffic scoots along at a cool 80 mph! We noticed the definite temperature change to cooler air along the coast. California is the Garden State & we’ve never seen or smelled so many acres of tomatoes! Much of the coast is Navy/Defence Force land & we passed another nuclear power installation.
We cruised up to the USS Midway in downtown San Diego, extending her life of service as an aircraft carrier museum. OMG – it was massive! Yep, maybe even bigger than that. It was pretty exciting to be onboard, well organised, great audio tour & displays. There was even a mini amusements area – what the..?! It’s hard to comprehend the complexity & incredible organisation required for this floating city of 4,500 crew. That’s 1,000 loaves of bread each day … and like the Scorpion, some very hot, uncomfortable & dangerous jobs. We enjoyed some fresh air on the flight deck & viewed a variety of fighter planes with their fold-up wings. Very impressive.
Next to Seaworld where Shamu & friends were waiting to entertain us. What a show! We especially enjoyed the screaming crowd being showered with gallons of water, Shamu sliding across the stage & then shooting his trainer up out of the pool for a high dive – ooooeeee! That looked fun. We had dinner there, they sure know how to feed crowds quickly. Some weird & wonderful sights, including upside-down tiny black & white porpoises & funny puffins. We found a great motel at nearby Mission Beach, a popular, casual surfie spot.
On Sunday morning, we made our way further south along the Silver Strand (more Naval land, past US Space & Naval Command Center and the training ground for Navy Seals) to visit the grand Hotel Del Coronado, built 1888, 757 rooms! The entrance foyer was breath-taking in this fabulous wooden Victorian building. Coronet chandeliers, brunch for a mere US$69. (Movie buffs will know it from Marilyn Monroe’s Some Like It Hot). Wandered the grounds & beach with melting icecreams, then a short trip to Imperial beach to view the surf scene. Very close to the border, it’s easy to paddle up the coast for illegal immigrants & drug-runners so plenty of sheriffs around.
Back to the city centre, we found beautiful Balboa Park. This is such a wonderful asset to the city, so pretty & filled with different museums & places of interest. Gorgeous architecture reflecting the Spanish influence here, apart from the replica of Shakespeare’s Old Globe Theatre. Couldn’t get a peek inside, but glad we found it. Went to the Timken Museum to view Rembrandt, Ruben & Russian Icons -wow. Sat in the shade of Spreckels Organ Pavilion, listening to patriotic anthems on the world’s largest organ – I kid you not!
Monday has been an easy day, Bubba Gump Shrimp restaurant for lunch(!), a few HD accessories & chillin’ poolside – utter bliss.