Wonderful San Diego: Part 1

I’m back!
…And so ends travel season for 2018.

Before I get into the fun, I just want to say I’m relieved that my favorite show (take a guess, ha ha!) hasn’t aired Season 3 yet. With people live tweeting spoilers as they happen nowadays, I’d have had to do a complete withdraw from the Internet for the duration of my travels and then some! How did I survive the 80s and 90s? 😉 I fully admit that I’m addicted!

I don’t have to worry about missing out and avoiding the Internet for goodness knows how long anymore, and I am glad. Let us hope we get #HighCastle Season 3 before 2019!

Wonderful San Diego: Part 1

Exploring the USS Midway

This was a chance I was not going to pass up. I’m still researching my grandfather’s WWII journey, and what better way to discover what life was like on a Navy ship than to walk around on an aircraft carrier. Reading stories and books is one thing, but being in the actual thing (well, close enough) is another!

A special thank you to my mother (whom I haven’t seen in two years due to living on the opposite side of the coast) for coming with me.

It cost roughly $23 to get in (I’d look at my receipt, but that somehow ended up in my work binder on the way back and is now displayed on my bulletin board as a souvenir there). (✿◕‿◕)

The fare includes a self-guided audio tour, which you pick up after getting your photograph taken (you are led to a photographer and a backdrop before you can explore the ship. Purchasing the photo set is optional). Did I purchase it? YES, a loud resounding yes because it supports the museum, and it is a wonderful keepsake.

As we walked around the various areas of the ship including the flight deck, I took in as much as possible—the sights, smells, and the sheer vastness of it all.

I went inside the Flight Deck Control to get a feel for what the Aircraft handling officer [Info!] would have been seeing and doing on a day-to-day basis. There was a long, metallic model of the flight deck on display with markers representing important objects. In front of it was a chair and an old phone.

You bet I sat in it and looked out onto the flight deck!

The USS Midway museum is run by volunteers, most of whom are older veterans. As we were following everyone out, I ran over to the information desk to grab a map (yet another keepsake because spending a bunch of money in the gift shop wasn’t enough. 😉 ).

Two veterans manned the desk and smiled at us as we approached.

Now anyone who knows me in real life knows how utterly shy I am. I avoid talking to strangers as though the mere action will douse me in burning flames—just picture me running from a giant flame thrower, and there you go. That is what my brain normally does when presented with strangers.

I paused and went against my natural urge to quietly scurry away. I looked up and said hello because one of the veterans with his white hair and wizened face looked to be from the Greatest Generation.

They are passing away.

They are leaving us for the next life, and one day the last one will leave us forever, and their generation will be forever gone from this world.

It is up to us to listen to them and to make sure their stories live on. We must not forget them.

I didn’t ask for any accounts of the war (war is an ugly thing that I only bring up if they bring it up first). My mother proudly announced that I was a veteran, much to my embarrassment (mothers…;) ). We chatted about Turkey, for I was stationed there and he had visited it at one point. He made us laugh with a military rivalry joke (he was Army, and I was Air Force). Want to hear it?

What does a soldier call his bathroom?
The latrine
What does a sailor call his bathroom?
The head
What does an Airman call his bathroom?
The powder room

I chuckle as I type this because there is no humor like Service humor, especially the rivalry sort!
I am so glad I went against my instinct to be shy. It was a fun chat, and you learn a lot from moments like that. Just chatting with them (even if it isn’t about the war) opens up a window into their world, their humor, and their lives.

If you are ever in San Diego, visit the USS Midway. It is well worth the fare. And before I forget, if you’re a veteran, you’ll get a discount on the photo set.

Here are a few more pictures from the adventure:

Stay tuned for Wonderful San Diego: Part II (Disneyland!)