What A Ride!

Dates: Tuesday, June 3rd OR Thursday, June 5th

Location: online!

The end (of the semester) is near! It’s been 16 lovely weeks, so let’s take a short stroll down memory lane! Remember, questions this week come from class and the readings! 

• Hearst Castle (for Thursday folks - this was x2!)

We (well, more Hearst Castle) had some pretty tough weather at the start of our semester and we had to go with Hearst Castle videos two Thursdays in a row! Tuesday got to see the live show. But live or recorded, this is always one of our best tours, since we get to learn so much about this fascinating gem. Getting to see the guest house of the Hearsts was a great adventure this time around!

• San Diego History Center - Balboa Park

What a gorgeous day to stroll around Balboa Park! We talked about the women who helped establish and build up this San Diego gem. We stopped by the big tree, saw the new face lift on the botanical garden, and chatted around the Pan American plaza. 

• Smithsonian Anacostia Community Museum

This community museum tucked into a neighborhood in Washington, D.C. was a pleasant surprise for many of us! We talked about the changing face of the community and how the museum preserves the local voices and stories of its residents. 

• Southern Caregiver Resource Center

This is always a very informative class! We talked about directives and medical documentation, including how to complete the forms in a way that makes it easy to gather everything. It also helps caregivers down the road. 

• Lemon Grove Historical Society

Another community museum and a wonderful trip! We got to see the H. Lee House and the Parsonage museum. There were even letters from a local farm girl that detailed life in early Lemon Grove.

• National Postal Museum

So much history in the mail! We got to chat about how the Postal Museum collects and works to preserve postal related items. The information about the uniforms was particularly fun to learn about. 

• Timpanogos Cave National Monument

Not just a hole in the wall monument! We had a great virtual visit to learn about this cave location and the important bats, bugs, and plant life they track in the area. It sounds like a great place to visit, as a few students can attest, since they made it up the hill and back!

• NASA

What a trip! We got to talk to Gotthard Janson who has been working for NASA for decades. We got to learn about the challenges of living in zero gravity, including washing hair, brushing teeth, and even using the bathroom. It was fun to discuss the future of space exploration with someone who has been integral to so much of its history!

• CHP/Villa Montezuma

This was a bit of a wild week! Tuesday went with Tara to the Kroc Center to hear from the CHP and Thursday took a trip to Sherman Heights to tour a not-haunted house from the late 1800s. 

• SPAM Museum

We’re all SPAM-bassadors now! It is so fun to visit this museum to talk about how SPAM came about and how far reaching its appeal is. Cooked in a can, this shelf stable product has been especially popular during wartime, since it ships well, is a great source of protein, and tastes pretty good in a lot of dishes! Even cookies!

• Native Plant Society

A wonderful stroll in one of our largest East County parks. We got to see so many native plants (and some invasive species). It was so interesting to talk about how the plants and animals of Mission Trails interact with one another and our city. 

• Olaf Wieghorst Museum

What a gem in the middle of El Cajon! Despite some tight parking, we received a private tour of this western themed museum. The succulent garden and Olaf’s house were also fun additions to tour after looking at those amazing horse paintings.

• Ford’s Theater

This joint class with the National Mall ranger was such a fun look at Washington, D.C. in the 1860s. Seeing cows grazing on the mall and even a different waterway was so interesting. No fences in front of the White House and no security is certainly a world away from today.

• San Diego Zoo

The Zoo started with a roar and we had a wild time touring the Zoo! Congrats to all of you who completed the Bingo Card (I know I”ll remember Empress and Queenie for quite some time. And we got to see the orangutans (and no “orantgutangs”)! I’m sure we were one of the best behaved field trips that week!

I hope the review has helped! Remember, you can always visit www.rediscoveringsd.com to re-read the lessons.