Old Town, Neat Pipes, and Interesting Beer.

Yesterday we went to Old Town, San Diego. Kind of an "old west" feel, only cheapened by obvious props and choice merchandise advertising. It still had some pretty neat things to see. This was a fountain in a restaurant we stayed in. The goblets you see in the fountain are what they server margaritas in. 58oz I think? Dericious!

This is a shot from the courtyard of La Casa De Estudillo (Es-too-dee-yo), a house that started as probably 2 rooms and then added onto later. It was started in 1827 and built by Captain José Maria Estudillo, a military commandant of the San Diego Presidio. He died before it was completed and his son, Lieutenant José Antonio completed it.

                            

About 18 years after the Estudillos abandoned the house, John D. Spreckels of the San Diego Electric Railway Company bought and rebuilt the house to be a tourist attraction.

Here is a shot of a room for prayer. They tried to keep the old feel and authentic feel by keeping as much of the original furniture as they could. Donations help keep it kept.

The majority of old town were shops selling overpriced merchandise from Mexico. 1$ for a tiny plastic dinosaur. Please. Try a quarter. I might've considered the 40$ poncho if I wasn't so close to the boarder. My favorite shop was Racine & Lamarie, a tobacco and pipe shop.

Talking about overpriced, their clay pipes were 20$ and not the best quality. I could buy 4 or 5 for that price. Tourist traps, what can ya do? Even so, they had a magnificent display of 1800 pipes and knives.

The pipe below was my favorite. I didn't ask or look for a price, but imagine its 4 digits.

These were pretty cute. I'd feel like an asshole smoking one.

I ended up buying a cherry blend. Their tobacco was the only thing reasonably priced, 6$ for 2oz. I'll report on how it smokes later. I wish you could upload smells through the internet.

After Old Town, we stopped by the Coranado Brewing Company for drinks. They had a draft named Señor Jefe (He-fe) that was "infused" with jalapeño and sage. A smooth tang explodes in your mouth left by a light sting. If you find a beer similar, try it. Just watch your stomach the next morning and try to drink water before bed. It doesn't sit well over night.