lake compounce: Hi! I'm hoping on moving to San Diego next year (pending my application to college) and am really excited since I love the city and it's miles of beautiful beaches, Balboa park, downtown and the weather. Any tips, cool places, restaurants, shops, culture or just random things you can give about the city? anything is game! thanks!|||I suggest you get a zoo pass so you can go to the zoo and Wild Animal Park as much you want. I use to work in Balboa Park and the zoo was pretty cool to go to in the winter when there's hardly anyone there during the weekdays. I'd go there with my zoo pass just to eat lunch; would be the only one at an exhibit. Another good thing to know is that on Tuesdays the museums take turns having free admission days; here's a link with the schedule http://www.balboapark.org/calendar/detai鈥?/a> The zoo has one free day every October, I think, called Founders Day but don't go as it's so crowded it's not much fun. Make sure you check the tide calendar before walking along the most beautiful stretch of beach in the county, the area from Torrey Pines State Park to Torrey Pines State Beach. Black's Beach is beautiful, but if you don't check the tide calendar first you could be trapped on a small beach when the tide rolls in and be unable to get your way back up. Be sure to catch the Christmas time boaters Parade of Lights where people decorate their boats with lights and motor along the harbor. Borrow or rent a kayak and take in a concert at Humphrey's Outdoor Summer Concert venue for free...or just pay the money for a regular seat. Don't forget to kayak to La Jolla Caves in the summer when the water's warm enough to go swimming and snorkling to see the garabaldi and sharks.|||My favorite thing in San Diego is definately the San Diego Zoo, you have to check that out and look at the Pandas! Ocean Beach is more of the college part, while Del Mar is the upscale part. There are tons of restaraunts downtown that you must check out. Also, check out "sea side villiage" next to the Hyatt hotel downtown San Diego, there is a great place to eat there that has the best pizza in the shape of a surfboard!|||One of my favorite things is to have a beach bonfire....roast marshmallows and make s'mores. For more info on beach bonfires visit http://www.sandiego-romantics.com/san-di鈥?/a>|||If you are just moving here, one thing I would recommend doing is taking the Old Town Trolley Tour. You go to Old Town and buy an all day ticket for the Trolley. The Trolleys do a constant loop through 20 different places in San Diego every 15 minutes. They go through everywhere from the Zoo to Horton Plaza to Coronado. You can get dropped off in one place and stay as long as you want. Then catch the next trolley. It's a great way to get to know the city. Good luck.|||The San Diego Zoo is the most famous zoo in the world. The conservation work they do at both the Zoo and the Wild Animal Park are amazing!! They have kept so many species from going extinct and at CRES at the Wild Animal Park they store DNA from current (and I believe extinct) species, so someday a Jurassic Park experience could be real!!! It's an awesome organization that does a lot of good things to help animals around the world. Oh, and the avocados are the best because they come from SD County, mostly in Fallbrook but some in San Marcos. They are bursting with flavor, unlike the crummy ones from Chile that are picked too soon.|||I alwas take my out of town visitors to the Mt. Soledad memorial. It is the best view of the city, and a wonderful breeze. There is also the wild animal park, zoo, La jolla shores, Hotel del Coronado, Pet-co park, and Sea World. You can always explore more beaches for diving, kayaking or other water sports. Your best shopping are downtown, fasion valley, and many small areas like La Jolla and Old town.|||Ok, I'm not going for best answer here, but honestly if you want really good mexican food, head to Juanitas, which is on the 101 in Encinitas. Fillibertos is down the street and is also really yummy. Also close by is Lou's Records, which I think is one of the best independent record stores in the nation (go buy CD's! stores like that need it!) Encinitas in general is onw of my favorite places in SD, because it has a really laid back surfer vibe, and lots of rad mom and pop shops everywhere.