We had days of relaxing and playing on the beach and hanging out with our friends checked off our "To Do On Vacation" list, so it was time to do some sight seeing. We talked about going to the World Famous San Diego Zoo, but the Daddy wasn't up for a day at the zoo. We chose the USS Midway and the Point Loma lighthouse instead. The Midway was too big to fit in one shot. So big. It boggles the mind that a machine like that floats.
We bought our tickets at the hotel, which was an excellent idea and I didn't even know it. We had a discount as guests of The Del, a privilege which comes with the $25/day resort chart. For $25/day, you get access to free internet, 800 and local calls and discount tickets to various local attractions. Amusing. Anyway, we got a discount and we got to skip the long line to buy tickets. Bonus! The museum provided (actual) free audio tours. Nicco loves audio tours. I think he feels Big and In Charge. He looked at the signs and punched in the numbers and asked if I heard that, and did I listen to Captain So-and-So. It was cute.
His interest in airplanes has decreased a bit since the obsessive days when he was 2-4 years old, but he still gets all wide eyed and excited when he sees planes up close. Fed Ex was a treat, as were the cockpits of different aircraft on the carrier.
The wings of the planes have to fold in half to fit on the boat. That was interesting to see.
My Nicco, probably telling his Daddy which buttons to push and who to listen to on the tour.
A view under one of the platforms. That boat was friggin' huge. Massive.
On the flight deck...I wished there weren't so many tourists in the way. Darn tourists.
This was the most interesting part of the tour to me. We got to hear from a bunch of vets on the audio tour talking about serving on, flying, landing, and taking off from the USS Midway. My guys are looking at the arresting hook they used to land the planes. There were danger signs all over everywhere. Danger Zone was a totally appropriate theme song for Top Gun. Captain So-and-So said that landing on an aircraft carrier goes contrary to all your instincts. Normally when you land, you want to slow down. You want to put on the brakes. But on the aircraft carrier, you have to have a precise angle, precise altitude, lined up exactly...the guys on deck "call the ball" if you're in the right spot and you keep going full speed ahead. The deck has to grab the plane with the arresting hook and if you missed, you had to be going full speed to take off and come around again. The pilot narrating that part of the tour said he had to chant in his head, "full speed ahead. Full speed ahead." to make sure he didn't slam on his brakes as he came in for a landing.
This was a communication center of some kind, I can't remember exactly. The guys on this platform sometimes had to dive (or got blown off) the side of the ship, so there was a padded netting for them to escape to safety if a plane came in too close or the blast was too powerful.
That's the safety net there.
In the cockpit of a Tomcat, I think. Nicco was so focused on his audio tour, he gave me a thumbs up but wouldn't look at me. Busy, mom.
Heading down from the flight deck to the captain's and admiral's quarters, ready rooms, conference rooms, and communication centers.
The Admiral's comparatively luxurious bedroom.
The captain gets his own kitchen and staff.
A briefing room...that's a long table!
Radar...
I know the sailors get familiar with their vessel pretty quickly, probably, but I would be lost and claustrophobic. The blocked off doors and halls and clearly marked "Tour Continues This Way" signs kept me from spiraling into a full on panic attack.
Old school communications...pneumatic tubes for sending messages around the ship.
So many knobs and dials and switches. They had to be on exact frequencies to hear messages...how they kept track is beyond me. One reason I'm not a sailor-soldier, I guess! Nicco got to practice sending his name in morse code. He did a pretty good job, but the veteran stationed at the communications said the machine is either too sensitive or not sensitive enough and never quite gets the letters exactly right, even when he uses it. And he's an expert. So Nicco didn't feel too bad about clicking out Ninnnno instead of Nicco.
The captain's bedroom. Luxurious compared to the soldiers, but a step down from the admiral's quarters.
We saw what there was to see below deck, but with the time on our meter and the energy of the small child both running out, we did not get to the engine rooms. We headed back up. There was some catered event going on up on the flight deck. The tables were all red, white, and blue, as were the flower arrangements. I thought that was cool.
We stopped in the gift shop and let Nicco choose a souvenir. He was debating between a Midway model and a small midway toy. He chose the model. And was disappointed that we couldn't open it until we get back to Arizona.
There's this big giant statue outside in the park by the Midway. It's fun.
As we were leaving, there were crowds of cars waiting for their turn to pull in to an open spot in the completely full parking lot. I was glad we came when we did, avoiding some crowds. It was a great experience for all of us. Nicco loved it and I think he learned something too. Now we just need to put the model together!
