Spring Time Fun - in San Diego!

Now that Spring is here, we are lovin life!  The days are longer and you can definitely feel a shift in everyone's mood.  Take for instance this past weekend.  We ran another one of our fun Downtown public Scavenger Hunts on Saturday and it was beautiful. I tend to get cold so I'm always wearing some sort of jacket but not this time.  It was in the high 60's... maybe even low 70's and the sun was strong.

Marc's "pretty in pink" team was everything you could want in a team. They were competitive, full of energy and just a blast to hang out with.  My team was just as fun. The team was made up of 3 couples and although they didn't know each other at first, they all  hit it off and became fast friends. That's probably one of the greatest things about our job.  We get to see friendships form right in front of us. It's very cool.

After the hunt wrapped, we had the rest of the night to ourselves so we decided to head to South Park's Walkabout.  Since the night was warm, it was the perfect activity.  If you've never been to this event, check it out.  It's worth it!  South Park is an eclectic neighborhood, filled with funky coffeehouses, unique shops and restaurants. All the businesses stay open for this event and many offer free desserts, appetizers and wine.  It's a wonderful way to check out the neighborhood! I even ran into a former Channel 8 friend I hadn't seen in years. Talk about a small world.

Sunday was just as fun.  After we finished our work day, there was still plenty of time to enjoy the day so we drove over to Point Loma's Rock Church. We've been going to the Rock for over three years and it always amazes us.  From the awesome Christian Rock Choir to its countless volunteers and "Do Something" campaign, it's truly inspiring.  Following Church, we grabbed lunch at Panera Bread (love their Fuji Apple Chicken Salad) and then headed to Seaport Village for the "Busker Festival."  

If you're like us and appreciate the art of street performing, you'll enjoy this event.  Every year, Seaport Village features a handful of street performers and over the course of 2 days, they perform and the public gets to vote on who they feel is the "best of the best."  It's always a wonderful way to enjoy the outdoors and be entertained, all for free!  Afterwards, we ended the day at El Indio (a very POPULAR Mexican restaurant) and chowed down on a tasty Fish Burrito.  As we talked about the great weekend we had, we were sad to see it end but then we looked up and caught a glimpse of the weather forecast for the week ahead - nice, dry and in the 60's all week.  Considering that some parts of the country are still experiencing winter snow storms, we'll take the 60 degree weather.

Make it a great week - wherever you are!

Happy Travels everyone,
Marc & Darlynne Menkin
Where You Want To Be Tours, Inc.
www.wheretours.com

Introducing our NEW Encinitas Scavenger Hunt!

Over the years, we've created a number of fun North County tours. One of our favorite adventures is our Coast Highway 101 bike tour.  Now that is FUN. Since it's a customized tour that we often do for large groups, it changes every time but whenever we do it, we can't help but thank God and wonder how did we get so lucky. The views of the ocean are breath taking and riding through the eclectic neighborhoods is always a treat. 

Remember when you were a kid and your favorite thing to do was ride your bike all day with your best friend?  Well that's exactly how we feel whenever we're on one of these bike tours. On a recent bike adventure, our group was having so much fun, they suggested we create an Encinitas Scavenger Hunt. "If you create it, we will definitely come back," they told us. Then out of the blue, another group made the same suggestion. That's when we thought "Hmm, maybe there's something to this" so we put on our creative thinking caps and Walla, there you have it - a brand new Downtown Encinitas Scavenger Hunt! 

The end result? It's a BLAST!  Downtown Encinitas is full of quirky, colorful art galleries and unique shops... not to mention wonderful, award winning restaurants.  It's a perfect playground for our Scavenger Hunt. We also love the fact that it's just steps away from the beach so it's a good mix of beautiful ocean views and one-of-a-kind shops and eateries.

As many people know, we offer public Downtown San Diego Scavenger Hunts on most Saturdays and on selected Sundays, we offer public Pacific Beach and La Jolla Scavenger Hunts.  But for all you North County fans, keep your eyes open because we will be offering our Encinitas Scavenger Hunt to the public this Spring!  Of course if you can't wait that long and would rather do it as a private event, give us a call. We're game!

For a complete rundown on ALL our Scavenger Hunt locations and tours, check out our website at www.wheretours.com

In the meantime, keep on having fun!

Happy Travels,
Marc & Darlynne Menkin
Where You Want To Be Tours, Inc.

Christmas in San Diego!

This is such a great time of the year.  Almost everywhere you go, there's beautiful holiday decor.  As someone on a recent bike tour said to us, "it's hard NOT to get into the spirit." How true. The other day we were in Coronado when we decided to stop in at Hotel Del. If you've never been to the Del during the holidays, do yourself a favor and take the time to visit this beautiful resort.

 Not only is their tree worth seeing, the whole resort is all decked out so it's quite festive. We especially get a kick out of their outdoor ice skating rink that overlooks the ocean.  The other day it was in the high 60's and practically everyone skating had on either shorts or tank tops.  Nice.

La Valencia Hotel in La Jolla is another favorite.  We went to their Christmas Tree Lighting and it was just gorgeous.  Our tip? Sit inside near their large Christmas tree while sipping hot chocolate or better yet, venture outside on the patio for some lunch.  The view is amazing!

Of course, not to be forgotten is the Grand Del Mar which has its own unique flavor.  Talk about grand!

If neighborhoods are more your thing, there's plenty to see.  But Garrison Street in Point Loma is a must and the neighbors know how to do it right!  

Over the years, this particular street has grown in popularity - even tour buses drive by so beware, it can get a little crowded. Our suggestion? Go early and go on an "off night." (not a weekend) But it's  definitely worth  it... especially if you go at sunset. Not only will you see the Christmas lights, you'll get to check out the killer views from above. 

Merry Christmas everyone! 

Happy Travels,

Marc & Darlynne 

What's for Dinner Mom?

As any of our close friends will tell you, we LOVE to eat.  Breakfast. Lunch. Dinner. It doesn't matter.  If there's food, we're there.  And as travel writers, the media is always inviting us to check out some new restaurant. We're like two big kids in a candy store. We love it because it's fun and it keeps us "in the know" since our tour clients are constantly asking us for restaurant recommendations.  Just the other day, someone on our Coronado bike tour asked us where they could find good,quality ice cream.  Immediately, our eyes lit up and we blurted out "Moo Time Creamery!"  As my husband Marc likes to say, "their ice cream is the finest in all the land."  Our recommendation? The James Brownie Sundae of course.  Word of warning:  Come hungry and bring an equally hungry friend cause it is HUGE.  To make things even sweeter... go to the Moo Time Creamery at the Hotel Del and eat your ice cream treat on the sundeck while grooving to a live band and staring out at the ocean.  Suhweet!  

So what are some of our other favorite hang outs? Well, we do love our Happy Hours.  Cafe Sevilla in the Gaslamp Quarter has a killer Happy Hour menu every day from 4-7 p.m. but our favorite items include the $1.98 sliders (yup, we said $1.98) and $4.00 Sangria. The braised short rib is another tasty treat.

 
Funky Garcia (formerly the Sun Cafe) is another favorite haunt. We often go there with our staff after one of our big Downtown Scavenger Hunts.  We don't know what it is about our Hunts but they always leave us hungry and thirsty.  Our favorite items? The Carne Asada Fries and $4 well drinks. And let's not forget about their $1 tacos.

Speaking of $1 items... the Bareback Grille in Downtown San Diego has the ultimate Friday Happy Hour. They serve $1 well drinks from 3-9 p.m. We were there on Friday afternoon with our good friends Ron Donoho and Heather Back. The place was relatively quiet for most of the afternoon and really didn't pick up until after 6pm so we pretty much had the waitress all to ourselves.  Not a bad way to kick off the weekend.

Tomorrow, we're off and that means we'll probably be going out to breakfast.  It'll be a toss up between KONO's in Pacific Beach (we do love their Big Breakfast with Banana Pancakes), the Fig Tree Cafe in North Pacific Beach (their Eggs Benedict and thick French Toast is out of this world!) or who knows, it could be something super simple like a breakfast burrito at Taco Surf.   Either way, it's all good.

BON APPETIT!

Happy Travels everyone,

Marc & Darlynne Menkin
Where You Want To Be Tours, Inc.
www.wheretours.com

A Picture is worth a Thousand Words!

As a former TV News Reporter, I love video.  I also love still pictures. When I was reporter, TV News photographers were my favorite people to work with. They're a creative bunch and they always had a wicked sense of humor. Not to mention, a killer appetite which I liked. Ask any one of them where the best taco was... or the best hamburger... and you'd get all sorts of fun answers. Given my appreciation and respect for "pictures," it's no surprise that photography and video play a major role in our tours and team building Scavenger Hunts.  Of course, it's not just me who appreciates fun pictures.  My husband Marc is the real shutter bug - he creates some awesome photo albums for our clients and our entire team gets into it as well. As a matter of fact, some folks on our staff are award winning photographers!

This past week, we were blessed with many wonderful jobs so as you can imagine, there was plenty of picture taking along the way!  Although our specialty is "hidden San Diego," our tours have also become well known for producing awesome photos. As Marc says, we don't like to do the typical boring corporate poses (Ha!)... we like to show people having a really good time!   The end result?  Photos that are downright HILARIOUS.  Obviously, it's all in fun and nothing is embarrassing but wow, we have captured some amazing moments over the years.

For us, it's always a treat when a group (say a corporate group) starts off their team building adventure a little shy and quiet but by the time the 1st task is over... the game is ON and they're totally into taking crazy pictures.  Earlier this week, I had the boss on one of my Scavenger Hunt teams and he was a BLAST. He wasn't afraid to let go and take silly photos and as a result, he put his entire team at ease and they got some great photos.

Our video division Where You Want To be TV, has also been successful capturing some really beautiful video over the years. It really is a gift to be able to experience these moments first hand and then capture it on film.  Whoever came up with the saying "A picture is worth a thousand words,"  knew exactly what they were talking about. Pictures do say it all!

Happy Travels everyone!
Mahalo,
Marc & Darlynne Menkin
Where You Want To Be Tours, Inc.
619.917.6037
www.wheretours.com

Bali Hai, Billy Joel & Hoodoo Love!

As any business owner knows, there is no typical work week. Forget about those Monday through Friday, 9-5 work days. When you run a company like us, anything is game. Sometimes, weekends (especially during the summer) are the busiest times for us.  That's why we don't feel guilty if the mood hits us and we decide to party on a week NIGHT.  Yup, I said week NIGHT.  What can I say?  We're wild and crazy kids.

Last night, was one of those nights.  After putting in a long day at Where You Want To Be Tours,  we headed over to one of our favorite places to eat - Bali Hai Restaurant on Shelter Island.  Jean Walcher who handles the restaurant's publicity invited us to their Media Dinner. Their new Executive Chef, Ben Lieberman,  recently revamped Bali Hai's menu and this was his chance to introduce some of his favorites dishes to the media.  

When we arrived shortly after six, we were immediately greeted by two big Mai Tai's.  If you've never had their Mai Tai... be forewarned, it's not for wimps.  Within minutes, delicious tray-passed appetizers like Coconut Shrimp and Spicy Albacore Sashimi were making its way through the room.  To top it off, it was a beautiful, warm night and a Hawaiian looking guy playing the ukulele serenaded us. What a nice way to kick off the night.   As the night progressed, we sampled Chef Liberman's Crispy Ahi Tuna Tower, Char Siu Pork Tenderloin and his specialty ribs which were out of this world. The ribs were actually given just to us. Earlier that night, we mentioned to Andy (owners Larry & Susie Baumann's son) that we LOVE their ribs. Being the gracious host that he is, he surprised us with a small plate of ribs.  (It's nice having friends in high places)

Dessert was a decadent Chocolate Coconut Creme & micro cake...wow.  And that's not all. At the end of the night, they held a fun writing competition and our table won!!  I'm thinking our line about "dolphins applauding our swagger, and then we spotted the incredibly talented Mick Jagger" was probably what swayed the judges.  

After all the excitement, you would think we'd call it a night.  Not us. Our good friend John Bowe was performing right across the street at Humphrey's so we decided to drop by.  His band "52nd Street" is a Billy Joel tribute band and it's always a fun time whenever we see them play.  July 31st is the next time "52nd Street" will play at Humphrey's but if you can't wait until then, you can also catch John Bowe this Friday, June 29th at the San Diego County Fair. 

Tonight, we're seeing "Hoodoo Love," the current production by Mo'olelo Performing Arts Company. Artistic Director Seema Sueko always puts together fantastic shows and this one has received rave reviews (no surprise there) so we're looking forward to supporting our friend AND having another fun night out on the town! 

Happy Travels everyone!

Marc & Darlynne 

Darlynne & Marc Menkin are travel writers living their dream in sunny San Diego!  They write and produce travel programming for several media outlets including TripFilms, Lonely Planet TV, Downtown News and La Jolla Village News. Check out their work by clicking here.

 

TGIF - It's time to kick it San Diego!

Oh my goodness.  Is it just us or are the weeks flying by? Guess that's what happens when you're enjoying life, right? Of course living in San Diego, how can you NOT have fun?  We kicked off our weekend fun a little early.  Thursday night, we had a double treat. First, we checked out the El Cordova Hotel in beautiful Coronado.  For those of you who haven't been to this hotel, it's very charming but it's easy to miss. Do yourselves a favor, stop missing it. It's a true hidden gem.  The hotel just finished renovating its upstairs suite and boy, is it sweet! The rates are pretty reasonable and if you got a small group of friends together or maybe your family... that would be even better. It overlooks their courtyard which is very tranquil.
El Cordova is also unique in that it's right smack in the middle of some quaint shops, Miguel's Mexican Restaurant (one of our favorite hangouts!) and a brand new spa called Spa La Mer.  Check it out the next time you're on the island.

After we left Coronado, we headed Downtown to the San Diego Civic Theater to see Wicked.  Believe it or not, it was our first time seeing this show so we were super excited. All our friends kept telling us how much we would love it. They were right - it was amazing. And, very funny. Totally worth seeing!   Wicked runs through July 15th and you can bet tickets will go fast. For theater goers on a budget, you might want to check out the show's lottery rush. Here's how it works - head to the box office two-and-a-half hours prior to the performance and place your name in a lottery drum. Thirty minutes later, the names will be drawn for the limited number of $25 seats.The seats are available for purchase with cash only, and there's a limit of two tickets per person.  Yes, it does require more time but hey, if you're able to get $25 seats... why not?

While last night was a dream day, today was even better.  The weather was gorgeous and we met the nicest people on our Coronado Bike Tour.  They were a family from Philly (our hometown!) and this was their first time in San Diego.  Like all first timers, they were in total awe of Coronado.  We stopped off at the Hotel Del, rode along our favorite neighborhood streets and eventually rode underneath the Coronado Bridge and then onto the Ferry Landing.  Life couldn't be better!

We're looking forward to tomorrow as we get to do another one of our fun public Downtown Scavenger Hunts.  Should be a blast.  We're also gearing up to launch our newest Scavenger Hunt location in...drum roll please... fabulous Hillcrest! Our friends over at the Hillcrest Business Association are sponsoring this event and we can't wait. The event is this Thursday, June 28th starting at 4pm.  It's still not too late to sign up so we hope you can join us, as there will be plenty of fun & surprises. Thanks in advance for helping us spread the word.   Fabulous Hillcrest Scavenger Hunt

Whatever you decide to do this weekend... get out and make it a great one!

Happy Travels,
Marc & Darlynne Menkin
Where You Want To Be Tours, Inc.
www.wheretours.com