In the family of California cities, San Diego has always been considered the youngest child, existing in the shadows of San Francisco and Los Angeles. Well, San Diego is growing up. While the city has previously been known for its beaches, zoo, and perfect weather, they're not necessarily the main focus anymore. San Diego is ready to compete with its older siblings on a different level with a virtual explosion of world-class museums, theaters, and fine dining.
Rivaled by none, Balboa Park is not only home to the biggest attraction in the whole area, the San Diego Zoo, but it is also the museum capital of San Diego. The Prado stretches across the center of the park, surrounded by the numerous museums, which are designed in a sixteenth-century Spanish style. The House of Charm is home to the Mingei International Museum, which focuses on world folk art and showcases modern artists working in various mediums, as well as the San Diego Art Institute, which highlights local artists in continuously changing exhibits. The Museum of Photographic Arts is one of the finest museums in the country dedicated solely to the photographic arts. The San Diego Museum of Art offers a large collection of Renaissance, Spanish, Dutch, American, and Asian works. The Reuben H. Fleet Science Center offers numerous hands-on exhibits, letting kids (and adults) explore the world around them, and is home to the huge dome of the IMAX theater. On the other side of a gushing fountain, the Natural History Museum is dedicated to explaining and exploring the natural history of Southern California and beyond. Amazingly, this is only a fraction of all the museums in Balboa Park.
But San Diego culture is not confined to the park and its reaches. In fact, at every turn in the city and the neighboring regions, you can find galleries exhibiting either national or local artists. The Museum of Contemporary Art has two separate locations (La Jolla and Downtown), which have recently included exhibitions of Frieda Kahlo, Diego Rivera, and Jean Lowe. The La Jolla location is a sight to see in itself, with the Pacific Ocean in full view from the wall-size windows of some of the gallery rooms. La Jolla itself is a haven for galleries, varying in focus from the modern SOMA Gallery to intricate glasswork displays at Georgeo's Collection. To round out a great day in this wonderful beach town, go for lunch at The Marine Room, one of the most prestigious and well-known restaurants in the area. The restaurant is right on the beach so you can enjoy fresh seafood while watching and listening to the gentle crashing of the surf.
Another sure bet is Escondido, a 30-minute drive north of the city. The California Center for the Arts in Escondido contains a fantastic contemporary art museum, a wonderful concert hall for listening to musical guests or watching a ballet, and a very relaxing park where you can enjoy the desert heat. A short walk from the center takes you to West Grand Avenue, the main drag of Escondido, where a vast number of antique stores, art galleries, and restaurants have recently opened up, rejuvenating the area. Numerous fine dining establishments (such as 150 Grand) lining the avenue create the perfect atmosphere to feast on a Friday night and watch "Cruisin' Grand," the weekly automobile parade. Car aficionados bring out their hot rods, classics, and other fascinating automobiles, driving back and forth on the strip. This has become a hot spot for families in the San Diego area to enjoy a nice Friday night.
For theater lovers, San Diego has a thriving scene that is gaining increasing national attention. The Old Globe Theatre in Balboa Park has earned its reputation as one of the best places to see a theatrical performance in the West Coast--it won a special Tony award for excellence in 1984. Most recently, it has been home to The Full Monty, which will make its Broadway debut near the end of 2000. For an even more intimate setting, the La Jolla Playhouse, located on the UCSD campus, offers an up-close and personal experience. Opera lovers should not forget to pay a visit to the San Diego Opera. The Lamb's Players Theatre in Coronado offers a more relaxed (but no less entertaining) brand of stage performance.
Speaking of Coronado, even a visit to San Diego for the museums and theater would not be complete without a fantastic dinner in front of a glorious sunset over the Pacific. Azzura Point, the nationally-acclaimed restaurant in the Loews Coronado Bay Resort, offers rich food and wine (with prices to match) with incredible views of the Coronado Bridge, the bay, and the cityscape. The menu is constantly changing but everything is deliciously fantastic. Make sure to make a reservation before the sunset so that you can take in one of the most glorious sights San Diego has to offer. If you're feeling a little adventurous, The Gondola Company brings a little bit of Venice to the area with gondola rides on the bay. Based at the hotel, the Azzura Point package lets you sample the gourmet cuisine on the water in the privacy of your own gondola.
Add the local film festivals, huge abundance of artists' studios, local dance troupes, chamber and classical music performances, and other assorted festivals throughout the year, and you soon understand why San Diego has finally come into its own.•
