Orson's been to a few Symposiums like this before and always wanted me to join him, so he asked me if I would go with him this year; "It's at some fancy place in San Diego called the Hotel Del Coronado." Hello! Of course I'm going, I thought people only went to see that hotel as a Tourist Destination, I didn't know people actually stayed there! It ended up working out beautifully, it was the first week of summer break and Lance a Derek were going to be in Disneyland, so my parents took the youngest 3 and used that time as their "Grandma Days", they would have done anyway. They didn't miss us at all!
Here's our little room, it was very authentic, the structure is still in it's original form from the 1880's. They still use the original elevator, it looks just like the Hollywood Tower of Terror. The floors are often very sloped, form the warping of the original all wood structure.
I was able to meet Orson for every meal, which was always Over-the-Top extravagant. This first dinner was set up out on the beach for us. It included live music, a chocolate fondue bar, gourmet food we'd hardly even heard of like Black Truffle Potato Salad, and campfires to roast marshmallows.
There were 2 of these amazing sand castles someone had constructed and just left a little jar for donations next to them. The beach was incredible, although the weather was too chilly to actually get in the water, but we both enjoyed running on the beach. Orson would attend his conferences during the day, and I would hit the Hotel Del Fitness Center for some fun classes like Yoga, Zumba, Circuit Training, and Strength Training then for a jog along the beach. I also worked on sewing costumes and catching up on some blogging. I actually loved the quiet, "all by myself" time. I was worried I would be bored out of my mind, but it was so rejuvenating and contemplative.
The only meal they didn't provide for us, we went to this adorable indoor/ outdoor Mexican restaurant.
We had luch several times in the Crown Ballroom, which was my favorite with the incredible woodwork and domed ceiling. All of the food we had was incredible, and we ate a ton!
The final dinner was a 5 course formal dinner in the Grand Ballroom. We met so many interesting people form all over the world- Germany, Austrailia, England, South America, etc. I did have to sit through many long conversations about the Hydro-Flouric Alkalation process and all the valves, detection devices, and chemicals associated with it, but it was fun to see Orson in his element and learn a little more about what he does every day.
This was the incredible dessert served to us that night! UOP is the company that sponsored the conference.
Just before we had to leave for home, we rented this tandem bike and rode around the perimeter of Coronado island. It was so fun, although it took me the whole time to get used to not being able to control the bike and not being able to see directly in front of me with Orson on the front seat.
The beaches were all "landscaped" at the hotel! But this was a natural plant that just grew in the sand.
Sorry to backtrack, but on the first day, the Sponsors treated us to a guided tour of the USS Midway, a recently retired aircraft carrier. They hired a man who has written a whole book about the Midway to take us on a private tour including many places on the ship that are not accessible to the pulic. It was so interesting, and when we had to leave after 3 houurs, we still had not seen the whole ship.
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