Winter can be a dreary time. It’s cold, wet, and grey. The birds are gone. Snow blankets the ground and muffles the sound of leafless branches scraping together as the piercing north wind blows. Life is suspended in torpor, waiting. It waits for the sun to shine for more than just a few hours a day. It waits for the snow to melt and reveal the first buds of spring. It waits for the world to rediscover its vibrant rhythm before plunging headlong into summer. Winter can feel never-ending, but it doesn’t have to.
After spending the past two winters in Vermont and New Mexico, I was ready for a winterless winter. Several places immediately spring to mind when you think of snowbirds escaping the cold — Orlando, Miami, Phoenix, Charleston. But for me, it’s always been San Diego. I’d been here a couple of times before. In fact, San Diego is the first place I ever visited as a child, leaving Texas to experience the wonders of the San Diego Zoo. The last time I was here was in 2016, at the tail end of two years living in Orange County.
A normal winter day in San Diego…
I’ve always had a love-hate relationship with Southern California. On the one hand, it can feel like an overpriced, overdeveloped hellscape of never-ending suburbia, threaded by clogged arteries of eternal traffic and dismay. But there’s a reason for the traffic, for the sprawl, for all of those people to be living here. The weather is perfect, the coastline is breathtaking, the beaches are idyllic, and you’re never too far away from the mountains. In my opinion, San Diego has the best of both worlds.
While it has grown a lot in recent years, San Diego still feels like a small city, separated from the congealed megalopolis of LA/OC by Camp Pendleton, the enormous Marine Corps base preserving 20 miles of coastline from ruthless development. Although there is rush-hour traffic, it’s not apocalyptic. Although there is urban sprawl, it’s not overwhelming. It’s greener, cooler, sunnier, and more relaxed than its big brother further north. And it’s overflowing with natural beauty. If I had to assign the label of paradise to any city in the USA, I would give it to San Diego.
The California Tower - an incredible example of San Diego’s Spanish Colonial Revival Style buildings
Torrey Pines State Beach - a gem nestled along the coastline with beautiful hiking trails and views
I’ve been here for two months now and can’t get enough. I do my best to balance work and play, trying to get some writing done each day before the siren call of sun and beach comes. Where else can you sunbathe at the beach in the middle of February? And why would you resist it? With March being my final month here, I’ve been soaking up as much of this beautiful city as I can. I’ve been visiting the parks, exploring the coastline, going on hikes, and making videos about everything along the way. There’s just so much to see and do here. San Diego is worth adding to your bucket list.
Love always,
Ben