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neighborhoods. The heart of the action is the historic Gaslamp Quarter packed with classy nightclubs and restaurants of every description housed in restored 19th-century Victorian, Baroque and Frontier buildings. Petco Park, downtown's exceptional baseball park (and occasional concert venue), has been the impetus for the burgeoning East Village neighborhood filled with trendy condo complexes, boutiques, cafés and a longawaited new Central Library opening in 2013. The Embarcadero sidewalk beside San Diego Bay runs past a fleet of vessels including cruise ships, aircraft carriers, ferries, historic paddleboats and handsome yachts. Little Italy, a few blocks north of downtown's core, has undergone a nearly complete transformation from a simple Italian community to a desirable urban neighborhood. Fortunately, several venerable pizza parlors, bakeries and bars remain amid modernist condo complexes, gourmet restaurants and trendy shops. The whole downtown region throbs with excitement day and night, and is now the center of San Diego's nightlife scene. There's talk of a new football stadium downtown, along with additional waterview hotels. The urban core continues through established neighborhoods including Bankers Hill and Hillcrest, the always-hopping heart of the gay, lesbian and transgender community. The Great Outdoors The Pacific Ocean casts its spell over San Diego. Surfers, swimmers, boaters and anglers all find room to play in and on the water. Mission Beach has a boardwalk and Belmont Park's roller coaster. La Jolla Shores offers a mile-long beach with areas for kayakers, divers, surfers and swimmers. Bright orange Garibaldi and other exotic fish draw snorkelers to La Jolla Cove, while harbor seals have taken charge of the nearby Children's Pool. Mission Bay Park is a 4,235-acre panorama of blue water and green lawns with manmade channels lined with hotels, marinas, several playgrounds and miles of bike paths. East and north of the center city, the landscape changes dramatically. Lakes 114 2 013 travel guide to c al ifo r n i a and reservoirs offer freshwater fishing and serene areas for putting about in motorboats. Pine trees shelter campgrounds in the Cuyamaca Mountains and Cleveland National Forest. Julian, a classic mountain town, is a popular spot for lilacs in spring and apple pie in autumn. Beyond the mountains, the Anza-Borrego Desert State Park provides hiking trails through palm canyons and fields of cacti. It's possible to see all these wonders during a long day's drive, but golf resorts and B&Bs throughout the region offer shelter if you care to commune with nature. Heritage & Culture Portuguese explorer Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo discovered San Diego Bay in 1542 but sailed on north, leaving the Kumeyaay Indians alone in their warm, food-rich home. Today, members of the region's several tribes are reaping the riches of their heritage at casinos in San Diego's East and North counties. Cabrillo's arrival is now commemorated at Cabrillo National Monument atop the tip of Point Loma overlooking the bay. European settlers returned in 1769, building a fort and mission church at Presidio Hill, a gorgeous swath of lawns above Old Town State Historic Park, which contains many of San Diego's oldest buildings. Today's downtown evolved in a burst of development in 1867, leaving behind the collection of historic homes in the vibrant Gaslamp Quarter. San Diego's most impressive Spanish-Colonial buildings were constructed in Balboa Park for the 19151916 Panama-California Exposition; its tiled California Tower has become a treasured landmark and several of the exposition's ornate buildings house the park's museums. Family Fun With the San Diego Zoo, Safari Park, Legoland and SeaWorld at hand, families find plenty of excitement. Downtown's New Children's Museum is an eco-friendly playground for all family members. Its multicultural, bilingual exhibits make learning fun, and the adjacent one-acre park gives kids a place to burn energy. Teens enjoy exploring fighter planes and flight simulators at the USS Midway Museum, a 1,001-foot-long aircraft carrier berthed at downtown's Embarcadero. For inexpensive entertainment, try bicycling at Mission Bay and Coronado, fishing off piers in Imperial Beach and Ocean Beach, stargazing from Mount Palomar and spotting cactus flowers in the Anza-Borrego Desert. CA SPECIAL EVENTS 2013 GASLAMP QUARTER MARDI GRAS Said to be the country's second largest. Feb. 12, Downtown San Diego gaslamp.org ROCK 'N' ROLL MARATHON June 2, Central San Diego runrocknroll.competitor. com/san-diego SAN DIEGO COUNTY FAIR June 8-July 4, Del Mar Fairgrounds sdfair.com SAN DIEGO LGBT PRIDE PARADE, RALLY AND FESTIVAL July 12-14, Hillcrest and Balboa Park sdpride.org THOROUGHBRED HORSERACING July 17-Sep. 4, Del Mar dmtc.com COMIC-CON July 18-21, Downtown San Diego comic-con.org MCAS MIRAMAR AIR SHOW Oct. 12-14, Miramar miramarairshow.com BALBOA PARK DECEMBER NIGHTS Holiday celebrations. Dec. 6-7 balboapark.org