2023 January List | 一月清單

Happy New Year everyone! Beginning of the year was packed with so many things, definitely started out with a bang! We were able to celebrate the Lunar New Year with our family. Wishing everyone a healthy and prosperous 2023! My hope for this new year is that I will efficiently utilize every minute of my life. Even if it starts with a 5 minute workout during the day. What about you guys? What do you wish to accomplish this year?

各位,新年快樂!2023一開始,行程滿滿,開啟美好的一年。我們也和家人一起過農曆新年,祝大家萬事如意身體健康!今年希望我能善用每一分鐘,即使是五分鐘的簡短運動都算是完成件好事!你們呢?


Restaurants

Tom Ham’s Lighthouse

2150 Harbor Island Dr, San Diego, CA 92101
http://www.tomhamslighthouse.com

The scenery is unparalleled here. Vast ocean dotted with sailboats. The food selection is on-par with buffet restaurants of equal value, including fresh oysters, clams, and crab legs. My favorite was spaghetti, where you get to pick your own ingredients, and the cook will cook your spaghetti in front of you. Buffet is only available on Sunday.

超美風景,海上滿滿的帆船,絕對是這裡的一大賣點。食物種類大致上和許多這價位雷同的餐廳一樣,有生蠔、扇貝、螃蟹腳,熟食區絕對有小孩最愛的mac n cheese。我最愛的是義大利麵吧,自己挑自己想要的料,廚師現煮出來加上白醬或綠醬,應該是這餐廳我最愛的食物了。自助餐只在星期日提供。

The Plot

1733 S Coast Hwy, Oceanside, CA 92054, United States
http://www.theplotrestaurant.com/

One of my favorite plant-based restaurant! It markets itself as a zero-waste business, and doesn’t even have a trash can. However, I don’t get why plant-based restaurants always name their dishes with meat. For example, I ordered the Hot Chicken Sando, but there isn’t any chicken in it! The meat is created with tofu, I like the texture, and when paired with the house special sauce, it tastes really good. They have their own “ketchup”, the consistency of which is more like jam, worth the try!

我很愛的全植物性餐廳!全植物性餐廳,標榜不產垃圾,餐廳沒有垃圾桶。但我總是無法理解這類餐廳特別愛用動物肉類命名每道菜,像是我點的Hot Chicken Sando,明明沒有雞肉呀!肉質部分用豆腐製作而成,我很喜歡有點嚼勁的豆腐口感,配上店裡的特製醬料,特別有味道。店裡的自製蕃茄醬質地很像果醬,值得嘗試!

Gonzo!

300 Carlsbad Village Dr, Carlsbad, CA 92008, United States
https://www.gonzo-japan.com

This place makes us miss Japan so much! They sell authentic ramen and Okinawa Orion beer here! I want to go back to Japan now! The owner Mika-san is from Niigata, and we chatted her up about our Niigata trip. If you are a ramen head, you must come here. This is the most authentic ramen place in Northern San Diego. Fun fact from owner Jamie, there’s another Gonzo ramen, located coincidentally in Niigata, but completely unrelated to the one in Carlsbad.

讓我們太想念日本了啦!店裡賣著道地拉麵和沖繩Orion啤酒,真的好希望能回日本!老闆娘Mika San從新瀉來,我們大聊去新瀉玩的趣事。喜歡日本拉麵的人,一定要來這裡吃,絕對是我們回來後在北聖地牙哥這帶吃過最道地的拉麵。對了,老闆Jamie說新瀉也有一家Gonzo Ramen喔!(但沒有關係啦!)

Hai Di Lao (San Diego)

4545 La Jolla Village Dr F9, San Diego, CA 92122, United States
(Located in UTC)

We ordered tomato soup base and spicy soup base. Still very delicious but missing the noodle pulling performance, so didn’t really feel like the typical Hai Di Lao experience.

我們點了番茄湯底和麻辣湯底,還是一樣好吃!但少了變臉和拉麵表演,氣氛不太像印象中的海底撈。


Activities

Annie’s Canyon Trail

498-450 Solana Hills Dr, Solana Beach, CA 92075, United States
Hiking Level: Easy

Had planned to hike this trail last month, but changed our plan last minute to go eat dim sum in Irvine instead. We drive by this trail every week, on the side of the I-5 freeway. Google maps leads you straight to the parking lot of the trailhead. The trail starts off with a slight uphill, but overall is not too difficult, even my mom could keep a pretty good pace. You will get a great view of the I-5 freeway as well as the Pacific Ocean.

愛吃個性還是不變,上個月原本要來這裡健行,但臨時改成去吃港式飲茶。新年不頹廢,我們週末來這裡爬山。這裡就是在五號公路往南開的路上會看到的步道,照著Google Maps就能找到路邊停車和路口。一開始以上坡來嚇大家,但整體偏簡單的步道,連我媽都能飛速走完。沿路上的風景最吸引我的就是俯望五號公路和遠方的海景。

2022 December List | 十二月清單

2022 came quietly to an end, how was everyone’s year? From being pregnant in the beginning of the year to our babies being three months old now! Time really flew by. Looking back there were too many blessings to be counted!

2022悄悄的進入尾聲,不知道大家今年過得如何?從年初懷孕到現在寶寶們三個月大,時間快的不像話,但回顧這一整年真的是滿滿的感恩。

Izola

710 13th St Suite 300, San Diego, CA 92101

Known as the best croissant in America! (click here for UN and I’s review) Thanks to our cooperative babies for sleeping very well the night before, we were able to get up early and leave the house on time to make it down to San Diego for some croissants. On Christmas Eve, not many people were on the road, usually a parking spot in downtown is rare to find, but we found one right in front of Izola. When we got there, there was a sign out front that said “sold out”, and some customers in front of us left in disappointment. But we drove for almost an hour, I had to at least go in to check out the place for myself. There were two lines, one for online pre-order, and the other for walk-in order. I refused to believe all croissants were sold out, so I went to the guy at the cashier and asked. He told me they only have original croissants left, but in 15 minutes there would be more options coming out from the oven! Even my mom was happy for us hearing the good news!

Business Hour: Thursday to Sunday, 8 am to 1 pm

吃到傳說中全美第一名的可頌!(我和UN的吃後心得請點這裡)感謝寶寶們配合,前一晚睡超好,讓爸爸媽咪阿嬤能出發到San Diego吃可頌。可能是聖誕節前一天,市區沒有太多人,平時超難停車的downtown,我們竟然能找到門口的位置。Izola位在三樓,但轉角和門口都有放指示牌。當我們要進去時,在我們前面一組客人看到門口寫著Sold Out(售完)就轉身走人。但我這人,售完還是要進去看一下,太好奇了沒辦法!裡面有分預售隊伍和現場購買的隊伍,不死心的我向前問店員,店員說:我們只剩下原味可頌,但15分鐘後會有不同口味!我的天啊,連我媽只是來陪我們吃可頌都替我們開心!(原本我們想網上預訂,但餵完寶寶後一看,全賣光!)

營業時間:星期四至星期日,早上8點到下午1點

Capital Seafood Restaurant

770 Spectrum Center Dr Suite 770, Irvine, CA 92618

Have you heard of the saying that “after having kids, all your meals are eaten cold”? When the food came out, our babies started to get really fuzzy, so UN and I needed to take them out and leave my mom by herself at the restaurant. By the time we got back all the food was cold. But this is what made this restaurant’s food special: their cold dim sum dishes were still so delicious!

有聽過”生完小孩後吃飯都是冷的”這句話嗎?我們食物來時剛好寶寶們情緒起伏比較大,我和UN把我媽丟在餐廳裡去處理。回來後食物全冷掉了,但這就是這餐廳的厲害之處,連冷掉的港式點心都超好吃!那鹹水角是我們的最愛,外皮酥脆吃起來還特別香,第一口下去我和UN,我們一口同聲稱讚這家店。今天點的每份點心都超滿意,UN一直說我們下次回來要把沒點到的全點了。我們也很愛燒鴨皮蛋粥!

San Diego Botanical Garden Lightscape

Quail Gardens Drive and, Ecke Ranch Rd, Encinitas, CA 92024

Last day of 2022, we came to the San Diego Botanical Garden for the light show. Hmmm… how should I describe the light show? We all agreed that the light show in Japan made our expectations too high, but I’d like to come back during daytime.

2022年最後一天我們來這裡慶祝!以前在聖地牙哥住這麼久,我們第一次來這裡。日本燈展還是比較厲害(朋友也這樣認為),但下次我想白天來參觀植物園。

2022 November List | 十一月清單

October was confinement month. I stayed at home, fed the babies, and got fed (thanks to my mom and my in-laws). After confinement, life resumed as normal, and so did my monthly list!

十月是坐月子月,啥事都沒做(也沒有十月清單),天天在家餵寶寶和被餵食(感謝公婆和我媽)。月子出關後,生活開始正常運行,例行的每月清單當然不可少。

U. S. Marine Corps Birthday Ball | 美國海軍陸戰隊生日舞會

Another Marine Corps Birthday Ball! Happy 247th Birthday Marines! Every time I attend MC Birthday Ball, I am impressed by the Marines' dress uniform. After a two year hiatus, I’m excited to be able to celebrate MC Birthday again. We weren’t able to stay until the dance, but UN and I still had a blast!

又是一年一度的美國海軍陸戰隊的生日舞會,每次參加都會不停稱讚海軍陸戰隊的制服(每件都超好看!)因疫情關係,已經兩年停辦生日舞會,這次大家能聚再一起都非常興奮,雖然我們無法待到跳舞的部分,但我和UN都很開心能來這個活動。

OROBAE

14250 Culver Drive Suite #E, Irvine, CA 92604

I’m usually not a fan of boba, but I can sing OROABE’s praises all day long! UN calls himself a boba enthusiast, and he’s quite picky when it comes to boba. UN has confirmed that OROBAE is the best boba in business! We love OROBAE so much that we would bring our babies and stand in line when the craving is strong! If you have other recommendations for boba, please let us know!

首先聲明我對珍珠奶茶不太有興趣,但我對這家的珍奶讚不絕口。UN是珍奶愛好者,對珍奶特別挑,但這家是UN認證過(南加)最好喝的珍奶!我們好愛OROBAE,想喝時還是會不嫌麻煩的特別帶寶寶開車來這排隊買飲料!但如果有其他推薦的店,務必要告訴我們!

San Diego SeaWorld | 海洋公園

https://seaworld.com/san-diego
500 Sea World Dr., San Diego, CA 92109

When UN brought up the idea of bringing our babies to Sea World, my mom was in shock, but I was in favor! This mini trip is us testing the water to see how the babies will do and what we can do to prepare for longer trips in the future. Other than finding a place to feed the babies, everything else happened according to plan, definitely count as a success! We got pictures of the babies with dolphins, and they even got to watch orca show (they should be able to see the black and white orcas, lol!)

當UN提議我們帶寶寶們去Sea World時,我媽傻眼,而我一口答應。這次帶H和G出遊,完全是爸媽想試水溫,想知道以後出去玩有什麼需要改善。除了需要找地方餵食寶寶們以外,整體都在計畫之內,算是非常成功的小出遊。UN還讓寶寶們有機會和海豚照相、看殺人鯨表演(寶寶們應該可以看到黑白殺人鯨,哈哈哈哈!)

Wrench and Rodent

1815 S Coast Hwy, Oceanside, CA 92054
http://www.seabasstropub.com/

Grateful for grandparents watching over the babies, so that UN and I can go out for a date night. One of the top Japanese restaurants in O-side! Although their style is Americanized sushi, it's not your typical California roll, volcano roll type of sushi stuffed with avocado and cream cheese. Their chef creation rolls are delicious, and we also quite enjoyed their appetizers. Highly recommend hamachi kama (grilled yellowtail collar)!

感謝grandparents照顧寶寶,讓我和UN能一起出去吃飯。在Oside數一數二好吃的日料店!雖然風格走的是美式日本料理店,但絕不是一般的加州卷、火山卷這類滿滿酪梨和cream cheese的壽司店。創意壽司卷味道都很棒,小菜也很推,魚下巴也是我們很愛的一道。

Northside Shake

1255 Rosecrans St, San Diego, CA 92106
http://www.northsideshack.com/

Recommended by a friend, said they have the best açaí bowl in San Diego, I strongly agree! Overfilled with toppings, and taste spectacular! The storefront is small, so you’d have to eat in the car, but the quality of the ingredients used is well worth the drive!

朋友大推的,堪稱聖地牙哥最好吃的açaí bowl,我完全認同!料多到滿出來,味道不單調。雖然小小一間,只能在車子裡吃,但真材實料覺得開這麼遠來吃非常值得。