Making Lemonade in San Diego

In the last month I have seen way more of the inside of a hospital than I would care to see in a lifetime. In this day and age though, acting as a patient advocate is a necessity if you want to make sure that those you care about are getting the best treatment possible. So what does a person do to make lemonade out of this lemony-situation? Naturally I turn to my camera. Can't complain about the view from the patient's 11th floor room. You can pretty much see all of San Diego.

The early morning drives in the dark (attempting to catch Doctors when they make their initial rounds for the day) caused me to pay attention to signage and other landmarks that I typically don't notice during the day. This neon sign for El Cajon Boulevard is a beauty, and celebrates what was once known as U.S. Route 80, the principal automobile route from San Diego to El Cajon, the Imperial Valley, and points east.



Along the way you can see Rudford's Restaurant (ate here once many moons ago after a night on the town):



The infamous Red Fox Room, which was just about the only place my late Aunt cared to dine:



The Red Fox Room was an old inn in Surrey, England and dates from around 1560.



The room was dismantled in 1926 and shipped to the U.S. for actress, Marion Davies, where it was completely rebuilt as her "Ocean House."



During the 1950's, this property was sold and the Red Fox Room was again dismantled and placed in Storage.



It is from this source that the Red Fox finally found its resting place in the Lafayette Hotel.



It's always good to stop and smell the roses; or in this case, the Fox.

See more Daveland North Park in San Diego photos at my main website.

Fountain of Two Oceans

I have walked and driven by this statue many a time, but it wasn't until a few weeks ago that I actually stopped to check it out. Titled "Fountain of Two Oceans," it was sculpted by Sergio Benvenuti in Florence, Italy and is located at Fifth Avenue and B Street in San Diego. Its large nude figures represent the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.

Benvenuti was trained in Florence by Antonio Berti, an official sculptor to the Vatican and to the Royal Family. In the United States, he also made the equestrian monument for the Broncos Stadium in Denver, Colorado.



In 1982, Patrick Bowlen, President of Bowlen Holding Inc., wanted a sculpture to be created in Florence, Italy (one of his favorite cities) at a new skyscraper being built in San Diego. Bowlen's collaborator, Florentine Dudi Berretti, came to the Fonderia Marinelli (a bell foundry and an artisan foundry that produces bronze portals, bas-reliefs, church artifacts, and bell restorations). Ferdinando Marinelli Jr. and his close collaborator Sergio Benvenuti proposed a series of drawings and sketches for a fountain that would represent the two oceans framing America. The project continued with two visits to San Diego and various visits of Berretti and Bowlen to Florence, resulting in the creation of the two enlarged models in clay and the final bronze casting.



For Lee - here's take two. Again, not much detail, but it does look like the Harbor Boulevard sign as you guessed:




See more Daveland San Diego photos at my main website.

Timber Mountain Log Ride

Another day at Knott's Berry Farm as I take you on a journey through the Timber Mountain Log Ride. Debuting in 1969, this classic attraction was recently refreshed in 2013. I can't help but get annoyed by the background tower, which takes me out of my Ghost Town haze.



The rock work doesn't quite seem up to Disneyland standards, but it still works.



Plenty of waterfalls along the queue.



A little animated gif loop of the first hill in the attraction.



The back-side of water, Knott's-style:



A nice tribute to Bud Hurlbut:



The view as I saw it up the first hill (it was a challenge keeping my camera dry!):



Lots of animatronic figures along the way:









They all look fairly realistic, but I prefer the artistic stylings of the Marc Davis figures from Pirates of the Caribbean instead vs. a figure that attempts to look perfectly human.







A few animatronic animals to give a bit of a scare:





This detailed view shows another Hurlbut tribute:



Plenty of action:



Still, this attraction just doesn't pack the same wallop for me as the Haunted Mansion or Pirates of the Caribbean. Maybe somebody more eloquent can express why the individual scenes from those two attractions seem much more exciting and beg more frequent trips than the Timber Mountain Log Ride.







Another lift:









Either the blast effects were off or the grand finale just isn't very grand:



Ken Stack (of Liberty Ranch fame) and John Waite are shown finishing up their journey on this attraction:



Overall, it was a fun ride; you definitely get wet and compared to Splash Mountain, the thrills seem much more uncontrolled (in a good way!). Still, without any truly memorable characters (like the Red Headed Wench, Hitchhiking Ghosts, etc.), other than to reshoot it with my low light lens, I really can't say that I have a huge interest in riding it again soon. I have been spoiled by the Disneyland dark-ride attractions that are thought out like a very well-planned movie: perfectly designed, perfectly lit, and full of heart & humor.

See more Daveland Knott's Berry Farm Timber Mountain Log Ride photos at my main website.

Meeting at Ghost Town Grill

A few photos from my lunch at Knott's Berry Farm's Ghost Town Grill. The red-eyed ravens were perched by the restaurant's sign as part of the Knott's Scary Farm overlay.



The menu; what would you care to order?



One of the very cool murals inside the restaurant that first opened in 1946:



A panoramic view of the same mural:



You know me and light fixtures; I'm obsessed.



I love how the wagon has been incorporated into the order/serving window:



The mural above shows a covered wagon camp:



One of the cozy booths:



Vintage looking Halloween decor (including muslin cobwebs) adorned the interior:



The Boysenberry Shake that I ordered was tasty!



The Sourdough Frisco Burger hit the spot. Hazel, our waitress, made sure I cleaned my plate.



My lunch companions included Ken Stack (be sure to check out his Liberty Ranch Facebook page on amusement parks), OC Historians Phil Brigandi, Stephanie George, and Chris Jepsen. On the far right is Knott's legend John Waite (more on him in future posts!).



After lunch, we rode a few of the Knott's Berry Farm classic attractions, which will be featured here soon!

For Ken, from yesterday's post, here's a closeup of the Sierra Tower of the Disneyland Hotel:



For Cox Pilot - is this the area you thought was the Harbor Drive sign? Sorry there's not more detail!



See more Daveland Knott's Berry Farm photos at my main website.