I'd waited until the sky began to brighten before I left my warm bed, but I could hear that there were lots of people already there-- and with good reason: delicious warm soup and drinks and a toasty bonfire.
As the dawn neared, conversations quieted and the seawall filled with perhaps several thousand people along the several kilometers of the beach.
Just off the tip of the Isu peninsula, the first sunrise of 2009 rises out of the Pacific.
Moments later, everyone was in motion. The top of the seawall was filled with families strolling and every few meters someone was taking a portrait-- a lot of them of their dogs.
In front of the Discovery Park Planetarium and Science Center a traditional dance competition began.
A last bit of warmth from the food, drink and dying fire and we're off on our bikes to explore the harbor.
