San Diego

Welcome back! In today's blog I'll show you a little of San Diego, the eighth-largest city in the United States and second-largest city in California. We stopped here only once, during our repositioning cruise from Alaska down to the Panama Canal.


Above: The San Diego harbour

The city is located on the coast of the Pacific Ocean in Southern California, immediately adjacent to the Mexican border. The birthplace of California, San Diego is known for its mild year-round climate, its natural deep-water harbour, and its long association with the U.S. Navy. The population was 1,301,617 at the 2010 census.


Above: Helicopters parked up at a military base


Above: Fighter Jets


Above: Panorama of San Diego as the Zuiderdam departs

During our short time in San Diego I visited the world famous San Diego Zoo. The Zoo in Balboa Park, is one of the most progressive zoos in the world, with over 4,000 animals of more than 800 species. It is also one of the few zoos in the world that houses the giant panda.


Above: Red Panda


Above: Black Panda

San Diego is privately operated by the non-profit Zoological Society of San Diego on 100 acres of parkland leased from the City of San Diego, and ownership of all animals, equipment and other assets rests with the City of San Diego.









The Zoo does a lot of good work with conservation and education but I still felt a little sad walking round some of the exhibits. It also feels a bit like cheating taking pictures but I couldn't resist.


Above: A lonely Gorilla

Balboa Park is a large area full of gardens and stunning architecture as you can see in the two photos.





I hope you enjoyed this brief tour round some of San Diego. Next up I'll be showing you some more ports of call from our repositioning cruise. Stay tuned!