On Tuesday, May 11, 2004, Lorri and I were lucky enough to be invited by our good friends Mike and Debbie Butcher to see the Padres play Cincinnati at the Padres new venue in downtown San Diego. We took public transportation to and from the game since we can catch the Coaster, the commuter train that shuttles passengers from North County back and forth to Downtown, at the station a couple blocks from where we live. This was our first venture to Petco Park, so it was pretty exciting.

We decided to take the early train from Encinitas so we strolled over to the station at around 3:45 and waited. This is what the tracks look like looking north:

 While we were waiting the AMTRAK "Surfliner" whizzed by (it doesn't stop in Encinitas) and this is what that looked like: . We bought our tickets at this cool kiosk at only $8.50 each for a round trip. Here is Lorri casually leaning on the Encinitas Station sign just passing the time away: . The Coaster finally chugged into view , and we were off! Here is Lorri sitting on the Coaster as the scenery flies by: . Finally we arrived at Santa Fe Depot where we transferred to the trolley for the 12 block ride Petco Park and the "Gaslamp Quarter" of San Diego. Here we are on the trolley: This next one was taken through the trolley window (hence the smudginess) as we approached the Park:

After a quick stop at Rockin' Baja Lobster for a margarita and an order of chicken nachos, we headed into Petco to do a little exploring. Deb and Mike were driving from Scripps Ranch and wouldn't arrive until a little later. We peeked out from the viewing area adjacent to the Padre Store to see the Reds warming up . This was more than an hour before game time so the stands were still empty. We continued around the left field stands and took this photo looking toward home plate: Here is a view looking across the outfield: Beyond the center field fence is an area they call "the park at the park" , a grassy area where people can bring their kids and picnic and pretend they can see the game. Part of the character-building plan for Petco was to incorporate the old Western Metal Supply building into the architecture, so they did and here is what it looks like with me in the left field stand foreground: Here is a shot of Lorri and I in the same area:   Overall, as a frustrated architect and avid Padres fan, I was impressed with the park. From the outside it looks like a "retro" style stadium. Once inside, that impression lessens and gives way to a more modern open feel. From what I've heard and read, I expected a "coziness" that just wasn't there. It's a big place but it's a nice venue and has a lot of character and quirkiness. It seemed sort of like a new car, nice and neat and shiny and clean, but let's see how it performs in the long run. My feeling is that if the Padres can put some winning teams on the field, everything will be fine (duh!).

There are many open areas around the lower levels. This one overlooks the bay and this is a little further around looking toward the Coronado Bridge .

Back inside, welcome to Petco !!! We met Deb and Mike at the Omni Lounge , one of the many eating and drinking places at the Park. This one though is on the field level along the third base line and requires a special pass (which Mikes tickets include!) to get in. You can sit right there  and have a waitress keep you supplied with martinis and hot dogs (martinis go with everything) and watch the entire game. Here is a photo taken from that spot of Davis Wells delivering a strike. But with such great seats (directly behind home plate) we decided to use them. These seats also include waitress service! It sure is nice ordering a beer and dog and having them delivered right to you seat a few minutes later. Is that what baseball is all about? You betcha! Here are Deb and Mike and a view from our seats . This photo of the state of the art scoreboard and video display does not do it justice. The video replays are in high definition, just like on TV!

Well, that's about it. No more photos. The Padres lost 6-3. Dang. We took the trolley and then the Coaster and got back to our home in Encinitas  at about 11:30.