Day Trippin': Old Town Temecula

 
As much as I loved visiting Old Town Temecula in the middle of the week, I've learned to hate the protective screen on my smart phone. With its glare, I sometimes have difficulties taking good outdoor pictures so please bear with me. This is the entrance at the northern end of town, and yes there was plenty of parking to be had on a Thursday.

One of the biggest draws to this tourist trap is the architecture itself. There's all sorts of buildings that remind you of the Wild West such as this beauty.

On the southern end of town we have more Old West style buildings, including the Old Town Pub on the left. That is where I had lunch...

I didn't have the Jello shots or break open the counter for laundry money, but I had this glorious mojito to start things off.

I then had a blackened chicken sandwich that was really good, but the fries are to die for. I'm not kidding when I say they're right up there with Del Taco's crinkle cut fries for the best ones you can eat that aren't homemade. I literally could not give a damn if I gain a pound or two when I weigh myself on Saturday morning.

I wanted something to remember both trips, and this tile coaster is the perfect souvenir. I'll have one in the living room and another one at my writing desk.

I arrived in Old Town at noon, and even after I walked around to sober up -- I mean, see the sights -- I still had about 2.5 hours to kill before I could check into my business suite. 

I visited the local indoor mall in search of a second Victorinox FieldForce sports watch, but it seems every major tenant and jewelry store only spoke Bulova or Citizen. One had Seiko, another had Tag Heuer, and one tried to upsell me into a Rolex. Ara ara!

Macy's didn't have my watch, but they had Geoffrey chillin' at this famous pop up store within a store to more than make up for it.

An anime and comics store had a statue of Artoria Pendragon, but not the one from Fate Zero where she's wielding Excalibur while riding her motorcycle. Hey, I tried to spend $200 or more at the mall!

I still had time to burn before I could check in, so I headed to Barnes & Noble and acquired February's classic book to read. Ken Dryden's The Game is unquestionably the best hockey book ever written, and some may argue successfully it's one of the best sports books of all time. 

I read the first edition four decades ago via the public library, and I love how this newer edition has additional chapters that are brand new to me. This one will sate my appetite for old time hockey and make me gain a few IQ points just by having it on my shelf at home. Win win!

I checked into my room just after four o'clock and then headed to Wahoo's for dinner. You've already seen the food and the decor in previous posts, so instead I'll show off Artoria's British Flag tail lights to end this post. I'm not going anywhere else until I check out, so that's all I've got for this adventure. 

I'll be in Palm Desert/Palm Springs to meet Spo in roughly four weeks, but I wouldn't mind taking another day trip with an overnight stay somewhere else before then. The only question is, where would I go?