San Diego Harbor

The statue based on a photograph called Unconditional Surrender - art or kitsch?

The USS Midway - a floating museum.

Barnacles show when the tide is low.

Enlisted berths

Junior Officer berths

That statue again as seen from the flight deck of the USS Midway

Flight deck of the USS Midway

The wheel!

Government building along Pacific Coast Highway

Here I am in San Diego with nothing to do today.  I sleep in but it's really not sleeping in because of the two hour time change.  I stroll down Harbor Drive wondering if I should take in the Marine Museum or the USS Midway Museum.  I walk by both of them and sit by a statue of a sailor kissing a nurse to rest and make a decision.  I enjoy people watching by the statue.  Many couples have their picture taken as they reenact the pose of the sailor and the nurse.  A large number of Japanese speaking tourists are here.  One young Japanese woman seems to be staring at me as I rest on a bench.  After 10 minutes, she sits next to me on the bench and a man takes our photo.  What the heck?  Whose photo album will I be in?  After a while I stroll to the other side of Tuna Park where the wind is not as brisk.  I sit what I hope is a safe distance away from a homeless person.  Homeless people take all the best benches around here.  I listen to him and his friends talk about fishing, taxes, the best crystal meth, bales of marijuana floating in the ocean free for the taking as long as the helicopters don't catch you, living in Mexico, living in Alaska, Obamacare, and traffic tickets.  After listening to them for a while I thought I would get in shape for my next adventure by touring the USS Midway Museum.  This decommissioned aircraft carrier has been a museum for about 10 years.  I picked up a museum audio tour player and started walking around.  I walked through the berth areas for enlisted and junior officers.  Wow, tight quarters.  The only ones who don't sleep in berths are the captain and the admiral.  They had brass beds.  I toured the flight deck where I saw planes, jets and helicopters.  They say a flight deck is one of the most dangerous work places and I can believe that.  I stopped at a museum cafe for lunch and another rest.  I had lunch outside at a table with a great view of the kissing statue and the San Diego harbor.  California Gulls, many pigeons, cormorants, and Pacific egrets were moving around.  The hallways on the USS Midway had small doorways that I had to step over at very frequent intervals.  I'm short enough that I don't have to worry about bumping my head on the doors. Some of the stairs were so steep and so cramped that I had to lean forward so my face was near the stairs to avoid bumping my head.  The museum is crowded with friendly docents and helpers.  After four hours of touring the museum I felt like I was prepared for my tiger tour of the USS Nimitz tomorrow.  Besides, I won't want to overdo it today and be in pain tomorrow.  I left the museum and walked home along the Pacific Coast Highway, lined with palm trees.  The corners here are a little scary.  There are few curb cuts for wheelchairs or strollers.  And the curbs are so high it's hard for me to step up and down.  What scares me though are the drains.  The openings for rain water are big enough for a human to be swept down.  Downtown San Diego is beautiful and I felt safe walking around today.  It was a welcome relief from the frozen land at home.