Old Town San Diego

I must start by saying this was my favourite part of San Diego.

Old Town San Diego is essentially several streets of the reconstructed and restored old town. It has the first mansion that was built in San Diego, some famous shops that have been doing business since the earliest days, and lots of Mexican shops, souvenirs and restaurants. No surprise, since San Diego is right next to the Mexican border along Baja California.

Everything in Old Town San Diego is colourful and quaint. The shops sell very interesting things - handmade soaps and candles, hats, Mexican dresses, jewellery, chocolates and candy (and yummy fudge) and to my greatest delight, specialty teas.

We found a shop (San Diego House) that sold some lovely blends of flavoured coffee and tea. They also served masala chai (chai latte, as it's called here), and you could pick the blend of tea you wanted. They had Bengal Chai (essential masala chai - lovely flavours), Masala Chai (a lighter version), Indian Mocha (very strong tea with a hint of chocolate), Coconut Chai (very interesting flavour - it had some coconut mixed into the tea leaves!), and a Kashmiri Masala (which had cardamom mixed with green tea, reminiscent of Kashmiri green tea which usually has saffron too and smells - and tastes - divine). We tried the Bengal Chai and the Masala Chai, and I loved the Bengal Chai. We also bought some green tea - lemon mint cooler - to replace our favourite peppermint tea.

I really have dwelt on teas for too long! So we explored the area over two afternoons and evenings. There was a lot of activity, a lot to just see. All the storekeepers and salespersons were dressed in either Western attire from the 19th century, or Mexican traditional attire. We tried Mexican coke (which is a lot like Thums Up), candy from one of the older stores, and bought a couple of cute pendants in another store. I also got myself a hat, primarily influenced by my heat stroke the previous day, but it was too little too late. In any case, next time, I will be prepared.

I also stopped by the courthouse, to make a brief appearance. :)

I'd been wanting to eat Mexican food in San Diego. I'd read that it tastes that much better, and more authentic, closer to the border. North California is apparently a distant cry from San Diego, as far as Mexican food goes. But my, my, the crowds! The oldest restaurants there proudly proclaiming their years of making authentic Mexican foods had such long queues! So we settled for a cafe which had some space, although (to my slight disappointment), they informed us they served "Tex-Mex" or Texas-Mexican food, rather than authentic Mexican food. In any case, we had a place to sit, and we were hungry. And so we ordered Nachos and a sizzling Fajita platter. The food was nice, especially the nachos!

I clicked this sign inside the cafe. I think I liked them just for this.

After this, we had chai at San Diego House, and were looking for our way back to the car...when we stumbled upon a live performance by a Mexican band, Los Rios Mariachi Fusion. They seem to be a big thing there. They were playing Hotel California when we stopped by, and then played a traditional Mexican dancing number. Quite a few people actually got up to dance. We enjoyed the music, and picked up a CD of their traditional Mexican music. And then headed back to our room.