Why am I doing this?

I live in La Jolla and I'm a travel writer.

What that means is that, in addition to enjoying my home town's great weather, beautiful surroundings, and range of cultural and recreational options, I also see La Jolla - and the rest of San Diego - as a travel destination.

And what I see sometimes drives me batty. People flock to La Jolla, but don't take advantage of everything our community offers, so I decided to start this blog and provide a heads up for would-be visitors. The "inside scoop for out-of-towners," if you will.

Hey. I figure if I can write The Insider's Hong Kong (http://www.ranchandcoast.com/archives/february2006/travel.html) and The Insider's India (http://www.ranchandcoast.com/archives/october2007/travel.html), I ought to be able to lead readers off the beaten path that starts just outside my front door.

And in the process, I'm having fun revisiting my favorite places and discovering some new ones.

Travel writers are naturally snoopy, and this blog is my excuse to have a good ol' sticky beak around my home town. Stay tuned...