Day 6: California (Saturay February 14, 2015)

We awoke to another sunny day – perfect for traveling. It was an easy 5 1/2 hour drive from Tuscon to our home for the next week- El Cordova Hotel on Coronado Island. In western AZ and eastern CA, we were struck by the stark landscape. It reminded us a little of the Australian Outback except for the hills & mountains in the distance. There is slightly more vegetation here and no cactus in AU.

We stopped at the first rest area in CA for a pit stop (and it was truly a pit). Needless to say we didn’t stop for long, but while we were there, a car pulled up next to us – from northern Virginia too (actually from Herndon). What are the odds?

Driving through the eastern slopes of the Laguna Mountains is like driving on the moon. Just one gigantic pile of rocks with no sign of life anywhere. (Although, I’m sure that you could find plenty of life if you looked under the rocks.) But as we crossed over the summit the western slopes were the greenest emerald green you can imagine. Thanks to all the rain that had fallen earlier in the year. It was beautiful!

We arrived in Coronado, checked into our hotel and immediately left for our daughter Debbie’s place in University City where she had prepared a wonderful anniversary dinner. After stuffing ourselves and watching a cute romance movie, we headed back to the hotel for a long winter’s nap. A wonderful end to our first week of travel.