It seems that I'm finally getting back into my car and driving around a bit. Something that I used to do quite often before Covid, inflation, and crazy gas prices. In those days it wouldn't be unusual for me to get into the vehicle, then head on off without a destination in mind. Ah, those were the days. But now, finally, it seems that I'm sort of getting back into the groove. Though these days it seems like I do have an objective. Having a Tuesday off, I got into the car and went for a cold brew. After getting my coffee, bolstered by a few sips, I suddenly had a plan for the morning!
There are things that stick in my mind over the years; like this, which we saw outside the Guggenheim in Bilbao way back in 2015.
This work is called The Three Graces, aka "Dancing Nanas" by French Artist Niki de Saint Phalle. It brought a smile to my face.
Over the years, we'd come across her work in places like the Stravinsky Fountain in Paris. Located at Place Stravinsky, next to the Centre Pompidou.
Which we've walked pass innumerable during our visits to the city. Though I can only recall only posting a photo once.
One of the interesting things I noted way back in my post on Bilbao was that Niki de Saint Phalle was a resident of La Jolla from 1994 until her death in 2002. In fact, many of her works can be found around San Diego. In fact, several decades back, I recalled seeing one of her works on the Campus of UCSD. It's called Sun God and was the first work added to the collection. I gotta get back there one of these days.
Back in the summer of last year, I came across this article on the KPBS site, which mentioned the artist's final work, completed posthumously, is located in Escondido; Queen Califia's Magical Circle. This large work tells the story of the namesake of California, Calafia, Queen of the "Island of California". The sculpture garden is only open on Tuesdays and Thursday from 9 to noon and one two Saturdays a month. I didn't want to deal with any crowds so I decided to head on over to Kit Carson Park. I easily found parking near the Escondido Sports Center and walked to the entrance "gate".
Right where Eagle Scout Lake is.
I must say, the squirrels here are fearless. They'll saunter right on over to you!
From here you just follow the signs….
And you'll come to the sculpture garden; which was fenced off due to incidents of vandalism and damage over the years. The limited hours are partially due to having the place staffed by volunteer docents.
It's something to see.
All the mirrors, totems, and symbols inspired by Native American and Pre-Colombian art. Instead of droning on, I'll just post some photos.
All under the watchful "eyes" of Queen Califia.
I had a wonderful chat with the Docent. And for more info on Queen Califia's Magical Circle, you can read the Wikipedia page or this post in Hidden San Diego.
Queen Califia's Magical Circle
Located in the Iris Sankey Arboretum
Kit Carson Park
3333 Bear Valley Parkway
Escondido, CA 92025
After visiting, I took the loop back to the easy walking trail and made my way back to the car.
There's a large picnic area and even an area where folks were playing frisbee golf!
It was a fun time, but now I was getting hungry. It was only 945 and I didn't want a whole lot to eat before heading home. And then it came to me; back in January 2022, in the comments of my Chicago Fire Grill post, "FOY" DavidG recommended his favorite hot dog spot, Duff's Doggz. So, I brought up my Google Maps app, plugged in the name and off I went. Down the I-15 exited on Camino Norte, ending up in the parking lot of Home Depot? Hmmm…… I then spotted the little shack on the East side of the parking lot.
For some reason this little stand brought back memories of Woodies/Waldo's. There were two guty in front of me in line already. The young Asian kid ordered three hot dogs (which he devoured!) and the other guy got a Lobster Roll, which whew…was like $25.
When it was my turn in line.
I simply went with a Chicago Dog ($8.95).
Soon my dog was ready. There was only one young lady working and she did a great job!
The poppy seed bun was adequately fluffy, the sport peppers spicy, of course there was the radioactive green relish. The dog had a nice snap, I'd expect no less from a Vienna Beef wiener, though for some reason it seemed a bit thinner than what I'm used too? Everything else was in line; pickle wedge, check, tomato slices, check. A bit too heavy handed with the celery salt, but this was a decent Chicago Dog.
Duff's Doggz
12047 Carmel Mountain Rd.
San Diego, CA 92128
Current Hours:
Mon, Tues, Thurs, Sat, Sun 10am – 6pm
Wed, Fri 10am – 630pm
I know, it may seem a bit odd, a fantastic wonderous sculpture garden, followed by a Chicago Dog? But, for some reason, on this beautiful, sunny spring day, it just seemed right!
Thanks for the recommendation DavidG!
Soon enough the steaming bowl of pho arrived. It was chock full of cilantro and scallion. Hot but not overly so. I had a taste of the broth; which had been decently defatted, looking perhaps too clear. It had hints of anise and beefiness, though it did go in the direction of being "San Diego sweet" in flavor. Still, it was not bad.
Best of all, the noodles weren't overcooked, something that I've been running into recently.
Loved how the broth had a nice, even fat content, but it was too salty and had me chugging water for the rest of the day.
This was a nice bowl. The highlights were the wonderful soft poached egg, which added a wonderful creaminess to things. And the noodles, slippery, springy, with a nice chewiness. This was much better than expected. The broth didn't seem hot enough for me, though I did like how the soy sauce, and light sweetness balanced out the dashi in the "BK" (I remember when they called this, ahem bukakke) sauce.
The scallions are a must as they add a bit of "sharpness" to things, though the agedama really helps with textural contrast initially, it'll get soggy quick, though it does add another range of textures to things. As for the beef, which is like beef teriyaki, they call it "sweet beef" on the menu and they weren't kidding. It was chewy and overly sweet for my taste.
For now, we're in need of more escargot and boudin blanc. I like the folks here, they are friendly, and are always ready with some tips and recommendations on using the products they sell.
All sandwiches come with a pickle wedge. This was a straight forward, no-nonsense 3 meat (Salami-Mortadella-Cappicola) on a French Roll. There provolone, with Italian Dressing and mayo. I enjoyed that the sandwich wasn't over-dressed. It was a bit too much bread to "stuffs" ratio. I prefer the almost same version of the sandwich is better at 
Not sure about the how or why the name of the sandwich was earned. But this was a turkey and mortadella on sourdough. I enjoyed the heat brought on by the jalapenos, but it was over-dressed, with too much "chipotle" (only in spirit) aioli. Again, the amount of protein was decent in proportion, though folks wanting a super stuffed sandwich would not be satisfied….but really, would you get one for under ten bucks these days?
So, the rye bread was nicely toasted which held up to the generous amount of Thousand Island dressing. In keeping with the previous sandwiches; this was quite simple. Corned Beef, mild Sauerkraut, Swiss on Rye. It's a sandwich that one might think is on the smallish side, but it was enough for me. The proportion of savory, salty, earthy, worked fine. The toasty bread held up fine and this did the trick as a light lunch. 
