San Diego on a budget

June 22, 2007

By CHRISTOPHER ELLIOTT
Fine Living Network
Tuesday, June 12, 2007

The words "affordable" and "San Diego" aren't often mentioned in the same sentence. That's because California's second-largest city isn't exactly known as a bargain vacation destination.

But it can be. Tina Toms and her two daughters discovered that on a five-day San Diego getaway recently, a vacation that included hanging out at the beach, visiting exciting attractions and eating authentic cuisine. Their price tag: just $1,300.

So how did they do it?

The Toms family recommended visiting this Southern California resort during the off-season. Hotel rates in the winter are significantly lower than during the summer, and some of the biggest area attractions, like the beach, are far less crowded. But the ladies found another way of lowering their lodging bill: They skipped a hotel and rented a condo. For only $100 a night, they scored accommodations in a choice area.

"It was right on the beach," said Tina Toms. "You couldn't beat it."

Speaking of beaches, there's no shortage of them in San Diego, with 70 miles of shoreline to choose from. Coronado Beach (http://www.coronado.ca.us/) is popular with families. Or try La Jolla, which is known for its tidal pools. Best of all, the beach doesn't cost a penny.

With the money they saved, the Tomses decided to splurge on admission to San Diego's signature theme park, SeaWorld (http://4adventure.com/SWC/). Regular admission for three to SeaWorld set them back by about $150, which let them spend a full day enjoying shows that feature dolphins, Orca whales and seals, plus aquariums full of Beluga whales, polar bears and sharks.

Tina and her daughters made the visit extra-special by springing for the dolphin encounter, a 10-minute experience that gets you up-close and personal with the friendly mammals for $40 a person.

"There's just absolutely no price that you can put on interacting with these animals," said Toms.

SeaWorld San Diego cost the Tomses $460, but the adventure was worth it. And since the family still wasn't theme-parked out, they plotted a course to Legoland in Carlsbad (760-918-5346; http://www.legoland.com/california.htm) for a day of fun with more than 50 rides, shows and other attractions.

There are more than 15,000 Lego models -- everything from replicas of famous buildings to a real Lego roller coaster -- giving every member of the family something to enjoy. "It's geared toward the younger preschool age all the way up to 13 and above," said Toms, "so I had as much fun as the kids."

Tickets to Legoland are $57 for adults, $44 for kids. For these vacationers, the high point at this park was touring the mini-cities of skyscrapers, a Mardi Gras parade and even the Eiffel Tower, all built with Legos. Plus, they sampled Legoland's specialty snack: one-of-a-kind apple fries dipped in vanilla cream.

On a $1,300 budget, that left plenty of money for the main course. They found fresh seafood on Scott Street in San Diego and authentic Mexican cuisine in Old Town. (If you're indecisive, go to 5th Avenue, better known as Restaurant Row, where you can find just about anything.)

So here's how the Tomses managed their five-day vacation to San Diego for $1,300: The condo cost $400 for four nights (and the beach was free). Add in $250 for food, $160 for Legoland and $460 for SeaWorld, and these vacationers came in under budget, spending just $1,270.

A Hawaiian treasure

May 31, 2007

By BILL WAGNER

While Hawaiian green sea turtles (honu) are still a threatened species, they are not that hard to find in Kahalu'u Bay.

Turtles swim and feed in the waters off Kahalu'u Beach and plod along the bottom of the tidal pool of the adjacent Keauhou Beach Resort in Kona on the west side of Hawaii, the Big Island.

The placid reptiles are vegetarians, content to munch on algae all day. The algae colors their body fat, giving them their name. Despite the diet, adults can weigh as much as 500 pounds.

While they graze, slowly breaking the surface to breathe, they are capable of reaching speeds up to 35 mph in open water.

They also can stay submerged for two hours or more when resting.

The turtles are unusual in that they are the only marine turtles to crawl ashore and bask in the sunlight, which obviously makes them easy mark for poachers.

Once an endangered species, the large turtles were hunted almost to extinction for their meat, skins (to make leather goods) and shells (to make jewelry).

Even though they have been protected for several decades, their high value on the commercial market means poachers continue to take hundreds each year even in the face of stiff fines and possible jail time.

Once there were tens of millions of turtles worldwide; now fewer than 200,000 mature females are known to exist.

"These ancient mariners cruised the seas before Hawaii's islands even existed. How sad that they could vanish forever in coming decades due to human impact," said Don White, president, EarthTrust.org.

Male and female green turtles look alike until they are mature. Then, the male develops a long tail extending beyond the hind flippers. A female's tail extends only a short distance beyond the end of her shell.

There are other estimates that indicate that only 100 to 350 females nest each year in Hawaii. Those females can produce up to 100 eggs or so, but only a few hatchlings survive from each nest to even make it back to the ocean, falling prey to crabs and often dying from the sun's heat before making it to the ocean.

Once in the ocean, hatchlings remain at greater risk until they grow.

Thanks to their size and speed in the water, adult green sea turtles have only two predators: sharks and people. Tiger sharks regularly feed on all sizes of green turtles.

While the life span of these turtles -- the largest of the hard-shelled marine turtles -- is unknown, it is believed that it takes an average of 25 years for them to reach sexual maturity.

Despite the fact the turtles are a threatened species, some see silver linings among the clouds.

"The Hawaiian green turtle is, right now, the luckiest marine turtle population in the world," said Peter Bennett. He and his wife, Ursula, created a Web site dedicated to sea turtles -- www.turtles.org. "It is protected, but, more importantly, the people of Hawaii respect and obey the laws of protection. This is not true for most marine turtle populations."

Also, the nesting grounds of the honu are remote, uninhabited and protected.

"Virtually all other marine turtles are heavily exploited on their nesting beaches, usually by the removal of their eggs, and often by the slaughter of nesting females," Bennett said.

(Some information for this story came from the sites www.turtles.org and www.earthtrust.org.)

(Bill Wagner also writes, as Babe Waxpack, the ASKBABE sports-collectibles feature that runs on Scripps Howard News Service.)