Day Three in Coronado: La Jolla and a Delish Italian Meal

Suggested song to listen to as you read this post: Lucky by Kat Edmonson 
So Monday was basically my last day, at least in my mind, because when it gets to be the day of leaving I just get sad and end up packing and looking sadly out the window. Oh, I'm the only one that does this? Ok.
I woke up early in the morning and went out to a local coffee shop called Clayton's on Orange Avenue. They have a walk up "drive thru" window where you can order coffee and pastries to go. I got a decaf and tried one the doughnuts (not light, but homemade and very good), then took a walk to the beach. I blasted my ipod, looked out on the ocean waves (I seriously love the beach) and then walked along it.
All the Marines in training were running along the beach. I joined them, though walking, along the tide looking for seashells. I found a perfect sand dollar. And I mean perfect. I will post the photo on hear soon but I'm so excited it was totally intact!
[here is where I'll post the photo when I take it]
Later on we at at Miguel's once again, though our server was terrible. If you have a sever named Israel, be prepared to probably not get any refills or new bowls of chips!
Finally we convinced my mom to get out of bed. We travelled up to La Jolla, where I'd never been. It was gorgeous. We walked along the street and looked at cute shops and then walked down to look out on the ocean. We found an enclave that was FILLED with seals! It was so surreal.

 The road that connects the Island to the rest of California.

La Jolla's museum/ cultural society had the best storefront presentation.

HOW CRAZY IS THAT? My mom told me it was a protective measure that they huddle together like that, to keep their pray from attacking. They were barking so loudly. They were so funny, sliding around, waving. Bein' seals, I guess.

Moments I wish I had a tripod on this trip were frequent.

LET ME TELL YOU ABOUT THE COOLEST MOMENT EVER. My family had walked away and I was still taking photos of the seals and testing out the flash. Suddenly there was this fluttering near me. Was it a fairy? No. Was it a huge moth? I thought so for a little bit and almost had a heart attack but it was too big to be a moth, and flew in a different way. It turned out to be a hummingbird. Darned fast and near impossible to see (HP reference) it was like seeing a golden snitch but in bird form. I caught it on camera. Somehow. It was beautiful.

 I felt on a cloud. I had never captured something on camera as cool as this, I don't think.
Afterwards we ate at a restaurant called Piatti. It was amazingly good Italian food with exceptional service, interior design, and a beautiful back patio resting under a large tree with strung lights. It was near perfection as far as restaurants go. The lasagna was exceptional. I highly recommend. They use local ingredients, which always captures my heart. More information on their website here and I'll post photos of the food in a later post.
After it was dark and we finished dinner we returned to the hotel and went on a ghost hunt. I'll end the post here as I am content with its length, but this was a great last day in California. Beautiful, perfect weather.

Easter Sunday at the Del

Brunches at the Del are a thing. Apparently a big thing because the price is $80 for Sunday brunch, $100 during special occasions (like Easter brunch). We didn't mean to travel over Easter weekend, but it was fun nonetheless, and the brunch was quite the show. Everyone was in their sunday best. Even though the food was definitely over-hyped (and the price not exactly measuring up to what I expected), the setting was undeniably beautiful and the uber fresh heirloom tomatoes and mozzarella salad made up for it. Oh, and the amazing Jack Daniel's chocolate cake pudding they concocted. Mm... truly sinful.

I posted photos of the food on my Instagram post (here) but they didn't seem to like picture taking and it felt kind of lame to do anyway so... you'll just have to imagine. I will show pictures of the crown room, though, because it's awesome!

The Crown Room was built along with the hotel in 1888 and was the crowning glory (haha get it) of the architect James Reid. You can view it from outside (as seen above) but it's so much cooler inside.

Photo via Wizard of Baum (source)

Anyway, it was a very filling brunch. I ate as much as I could but oh... I felt so ill afterwards. My mom was still feeling sick (I think she's tired from packing/ organizing the house) but I had wanted to visit San Diego's old town which was supposed to be fun. I waited until everyone felt well enough to leave. The thought of doing anything did not sound fun for a while. 

Can we get rid of the term selfie, I hate it, but yes, gratuitous self photograph. 

 Why do we look like we're getting married in a weird way.

 Old town is restoring these absolutely marvelous Victorian homes. Only one is completed, and has been turned into a quaint tea shop. The others are under construction on the inside. Behind this circle of homes is a hill on which very modern, sleek houses sit. It all overlooks the San Diego valley. Prettier valleys exist out there, but it's still fun to see the layout, the Coronado highway, and the ship docks.

 Somehow we mustered the strength to eat again. Old Town Mexican Cafe was the nearest choice and we were snagged by the "in house made fresh tortillas." While the shredded beef taco was very fatty and had like no meat (it looked like an iceberg lettuce taco) the bean burrito was... so good. The tortillas are worth it. If you do end up going, be sure to order both the corn and flour tortillas with butter. Mmmm.. hungry just thinking about it. At this point I never wanted to eat food again.

I'm obsessed with how the clouds look here. The vertical lines are the lights from the highway that connects Coronado to San Diego. The black blurs on the water are the ships that are docked there. 

Fun with Ghosts

A lot of people may know (or may not!) about the resident ghost here in this hotel. A few years after the hotel opened a young woman named Kate Morgan came to stay, and after a few days, committed suicide. Workers, visitors, and guests at the hotel have reported over the years plenty of paranormal activity. You can visit the room she stayed in, currently listed as 3312 (though apparently room 3502 has many ghostly appearances as well). Tonight my family and I will be visiting the floor. I've been there before and it was definitely spooky, the hair on my arms stood up and everything.
Yesterday I was playing around with the camera in a state of boredom and got the idea for the following photos.

Did you know you could take photos through the peephole? Well I didn't. And if you didn't, now you know!
Many more Del photos coming up, including some reviews. I fly home tomorrow evening and am excited because there should be some products there waiting for me! Also coming up are some make-up reviewwws yayyyy.

The Del through Instagram (so far)

1) First morning 2-7) Easter brunch at The Del 8) The beach this morning 9) One of my favorite Mexican food restaurants in Coronado, Miguels. You can see their menu and stuff here. I eat there multiple times every time I visit the island.