MAJOR TRADITIONS: We all know some of the usual celebrations for a 16th birthday, and a 21st birthday, and for a 50th birthday, too. But how to properly mark a quasquicentennial? That's 125 years, as we are sure you surely know, and a rather famous place is marking that memorable anniversary in 2013. It's large, had many rooms, a famous ghost, and a famous movie that's much associated with it. It's one of our state's most well-known ocean-close hotels. Well, for that matter, it's one of our state's most well-known hotels, ocean-close or not. It's the Hotel del Coronado or just the Hotel del, if you prefer, or even just The Del (there's another testament to its fame: It has a pretty famous, pretty catchy nickname or two, too.) The Coronado Island hotel is set to celebrate its big birthday in myriad ways, including packages, some "citywide historic exhibits," and several special happenings through 2013.
CATCHING OUR EYE... A giant bow is set to decorate the hotel's iconic turret come February. Other notices of the anniversary will dot the property. Oh, a Facebook contest is set to launch around then, too, but this one has a twist: Hotel fans will be challenged to "recreate their favorite historic photo and reminisce." And there is a tie-in guest package, too.
GHOST TIME: The hotel has been around long enough to have a very well-known ghost. That's Miss Kate Morgan, of course, who appears on the web site and is much the talk of the fancy Halloween bash thrown each October. And the aforementioned movie? "Some Like It Hot," of course. Marilyn Monroe played at The Del, famously.
ANOTHER QUASQUICENTENNIAL: If you're scratching your chin and wondering if another California classic is celebrating its 125th this year, stop the scratch and check this out: The Rose Parade is also turning -- or perhaps "tournamenting" is the better word -- 125.
