WINGING IT WITH A SEIKO

Yesterday was a momentous day. It made Today's walk possible. How? Read on ...

Brian came on his killer carbon fibre (electric) bike, and retrieved his loaner Seiko (worn at Glorietta Bay) 


but Helen and Vlad, bored to tears with the lockdown, contributed 3 Seikos in an effort to keep us walking and writing. (I think I promised to replace a battery to make this deal happen...)

 

We left the house well after sunrise, (new battery installed), watch on arm, and no plan. We realized we have never closed the loop around Harbor Island and the airport, so with no specific route in mind we just parked and began walking.


The bay looked calm at first sight, but a quick stretch with the zoom lens revealed some action.



Speeding across the bay towards the fuel dock and us.



As the speeding boats slowed, I caught sight of a pelican landing. Sorry they are not all equally sharp, but this is the best I could do.


Fishermen heading out for a half-day of excitement.



While someone who had been walking all night, perhaps, took a moment to cool off his feet.



A disapproving seagull watched from a safe distance upwind.



The incongruity of San Diego harbor -- bringing all sorts of people and creatures together in close proximity...








A tree the way God makes them.



A tree the way man makes them! @#&^$%# Really?



We crossed the road to the airport. Although they are made for people, airports are generally very hostile to pedestrians. Ours is no exception.



As we walked through the parking lot we came to this art installation. Hundreds of planes strung on steel cables in front of the parking garage.



A pretentious sign told us it was a synthesis of the local native peoples' skill at weaving, and the importance of flight to San Diego industry. Read it for yourself if you care. I failed to see the local synthesis, but hey, public art is to look at, not to write about it.





I would like to have a couple of those models though ... but they don't seem to be removable ...  so we moved on to the life size model of the Spirit of St Louis. I prefer my public art to be more like this airplane. The real plane was built only a few hundred yards east of here.



But tastes vary, so here are some more installations for your viewing pleasure.



This one is entitled "At the Gate" but that seems overly optimistic today!


Our visit was between 8:30-9:00 am on a Thursday morning. Look at the arrivals terminal!



The saddest thing was the inane tape running the same announcement every 2 minutes -- please maintain social distancing from your fellow travelers... Hello! There are no travelers!



Parking lots empty.



We did see this plane take off - the world's smallest Fedex freighter, perhaps? Where could it possibly go?



I checked its routes and discovered it goes to Imperial County, Orange County, Ontario, Bakersfield, Inyo, Santa Maria, Santa Barbara and sometime Tijuana. All no more than 100 miles or an hour apart from each other.




We walked past some curious buildings whose purpose was unclear to us.



I think this falls into the DON'T ASK category.



We moved on to what we have been calling the Giant LEGO Building. It turns out this is an emergency electricity generating / sewage pumping plant, so if there is a widespread power outage the city's poo keeps going west to the coast and doesn't fill up the airport runways.



Heading for home we saw another interesting tree - a cycad I think



And a beautiful Buick



all I have are boring red, white, green and gray cars. No more blue ones.



Where we walked, down there in the middle foreground, between the trees and the hotels.



Thanks for winging it with us today.



Cazalea



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