Sometime last Monday, ‘Twilight” fans started lining up just to see that franchise’s panel today. And while some would argue that the movie isn’t a comic and their fans don’t belong everyone does agree it was tragic that one such fan, 53-year-old Gisela Gagliardi, was killed wall crossing the street in front of the convention center Tuesday morning. While I personally believe that is more about traffic and pedestrians in Downtown San Diego than the convention itself, one has to ask if it is really necessary to line up that early for a panel. In fact, on Monday the line forming was actually just a line to get in line for the official line which hadn’t been formed yet by the convention organizers. Are you confused yet? If so, no worries, confusion tends to occur naturally at Comic-Con. Regardless, our condolences go out to Gagliardi family.

Now back to convention itself. For me, I am exited about the Hobbit. Certainly, this isn’t a do or die movement that will ultimately determine the success of the movie but as Peter Jackson noted in an article in the Los Angeles Times earlier this week, “negative bloggers are the ones the mainstream press runs with and quotes from” and as such they have chosen to screen the Hobbit in 2D at 24 frames per second to hopefully avoid some of the criticism they received from 3D screenings earlier in the year.

Beyond that there is really too much going on to so I’ll leave it to you and just report back on what I find as the convention progresses. Here are some quick links to the schedules if you don’t already have them:

My favorite aspects of these two-day restful retreats were the spa treatments included in the Be Well at The Del as well as the excellent culinary offerings. The Spa at The Del has been voted a Travel + Leisures Top 20 Hotel Spas in the World. Few hotels can match the staff and accouterments of this spa. The private vanishing edge pool that skims within sight of the entire Pacific Ocean was my favorite. The palm-tree lined grounds are immaculately kept, featuring an organic herb garden. Guests on the retreat can select from ocean-inspired seaweeds facials or a 50-minute massage. My massage was impeccable, as usual (this was my 3rd visit to the Spa at The Del). I loved lingering under the shade of a white umbrella afterwards, gazing at the ocean while tucked in an oversized, fluffy robe.

In terms of dining, The Del and I seem to have a similar philosophyIf Im going to indulge my body with yoga and a massage, why not treat my tummy to the finest cuisine as well? The Be Well at the Del package starts with an opening reception at ENO Wine Room, a handsome concept-bar devoted to what I call the taste trinity, cheese, wine, and chocolate. Five hundred wines, 50 cheeses, and dozens of chocolates are artfully kept within the unpretentious walls of the quaint ENO bar. Equally elegant and pristinely modern is Ocean 1500, where Be Well at the Del guests can enjoy a dinner at a group table.

The following morning, after the final yoga class, was the dining crescendo for guests, which concluded with a brunch in the Crown Room. The brunch, which has won top votes for at least the past 20 years I have lived in the city, is a visually overwhelming, feasting fantasy. Every week, Executive Chef John Shelton unveils cities of cuisine under the soaring, dark wood awnings of the Crown Room. These cities include themed areas including, Farm to Table, composed of a dozen gourmet salads and fresh vegetable juices, and Nothing But Chocolate, showcasing chocolate infused soups.

Feasting in the Crown Room and frolicking in the spa, however, is not the main focus of Be Well at the Del, as Luciana LoPresto, an international yoga instructor with two decades of experience, will remind you. One thing I enjoyed during the retreat was Lucianas consistent participation. She offered yoga tips at the dinner table and during brunch, making the Be Well at the Del an intimate experience. Two 90-minute yoga classes on the beach are included in the package as well as a few fitness courses. Classes are tailored to participants levels, so theres no angst.

My mom, a yoga novice, loved Lucianas morning course, and I, a causal yogi of just a few years, found the instruction inviting and relaxing. The Be Well at The Del two-night package is $735 per person, a remarkable deal, based on double occupancy. Weekend retreats scheduled for later this year include June 1-3 and October 19-21, 2012.

For reservations visit HotelDel.com or call 800-HOTEL DEL.

Less than a year after Comic-Con International announced that the 41-year-old ?entertainment convention would be staying here through at least 2015, the Con has taken over San Diego once again, and all is right in our pop-culture universe.

Having Comic-Con in San Diego is a tradition, 20-year-old Con volunteer Jazzeel Millena said Wednesday as he waited in a registration line. And moving it would mess with tradition.

While Anaheim and Los Angeles put up a fierce fight to take over the Comic-Con contract when it expired in 2012, the Con opted to stay here. And as the five-day fan confab kicked off at the San Diego Convention Center on Wednesday, superhero posters appeared on the walls of downtowns most high-profile buildings, cartoon characters popped up in the weirdest places, and the people who make their spiritual home at Comic-Con expressed great relief that Comic-Con is still making its home in San Diego.

There are a bunch of us here who are always at the front of the line for preview night. Its like family, said 61-year-old Con veteran Leannah Shank ?of Carlsbad, who snagged a spot near the front of the entrance line by arriving at the Convention Center just before 3 a.m. Wednesday morning. There is a sense of community here that is so profound. It would hurt if it were to go somewhere else.

There are millions of reasons why San Diego wanted to keep Comic-Con to itself. There is the estimated $163 million the convention delivers to the local coffers. There are the many big stars Justin Timberlake! The Glee kids! That Spielberg guy! who make appearances here, not to mention the many more journalists who come to write about them.

Then there is the estimated impact of the 130,000-plus attendees tweeting all their friends about the hot celebrities, the cool breezes and overall awesomeness of spending the weekend at the center of the entertainment universe.

We tell people that San Diego is a unique destination, said Joe Terzi, president and CEO of San Diegos Convention & Visitors Bureau. And Comic-Con certainly reinforces that.

Inside the convention center, the line of attendees waiting to pick up their badges stretched down the long hall of the Sails Pavilion. It would be the first of many lines in their near future, which could be why some people brought lawn chairs and others curled up on the carpet for a quick nap.

But whether they were hipster girls in furry hats pecking at their iPads or antsy kids in Crocs sipping at their juice boxes, the fans had turned the Convention Center into the best little clubhouse ever.

There is an intimacy to San Diego, and its such a great place where its hosted, said Lisa Gregorian, the chief marketing officer for the Warner Bros. television group, and the woman behind the giant freebie bags that have become the must-have Comic-Con accessory.

There is something special about that place. It feels intimate, even though there are thousands of people there.

And in the middle of that first-day crowd, Andy Martinez of Las Vegas was contemplating the idea of Comic-Con without San Diego, and he didnt like it.

I have been coming here since 1993, and that would be very disappointing, said Martinez, who was attending with his wife and three sons. We would probably still make it, but we wouldnt be happy about it.

San Diego, extend a warm welcome to Hollywood, which is expected to pump millions of dollars into the local economy during this weeks Comic-Con, when movie and television studios, gaming companies, the entertainment press and, of course, celebrities roll into town to promote their projects and brands in a big way.

That means cocktail parties galore (with open bars), poolside soirees with red carpet arrivals, entire restaurants recast as a movie set or television show, and highrise hotels wrapped in mammoth advertisements for newly released films. Party guests will sup on such light fare as gourmet pizza, Kobe beef sliders and liquid nitrogen ice cream and imbibe exotic drinks like blackberry- and lychee-infused cocktails.

The Hard Rock Hotel alone will play host to 20 mostly private gatherings during the convention and has rented out all 17 of its rock star suites, including its two-bedroom, 12th-floor retreat with private Jacuzzi on the balcony.

The Stingaree nightclub and Searsucker restaurant, both Gaslamp Quarter venues that already draw crowds on a weekend, will likely net $200,000 more in revenues during Comic-Con than they normally would, predicts owner James Brennan.

Likewise, Quality Social, an East Village bar and eatery, can expect to reap more than double its sales thanks to a three-day booking of the urban space by Adult Swim, Turner Broadcasting Systems network geared to young adults. Late-night parties with DJs will be among the activities planned for the 10,000-square-foot venue.

Theyre willing to pay us an ungodly amount to shut us down, said Chris Dexter, a co-owner of Quality Social. Part of what we get is accounting for the ramifications of the locals being frustrated they cant get in. Ill be perfectly frank, events like this are the reason why we opened this.

The Con’s overall economic impact

Comic-Con Internationals yearly pop culture extravaganza has come to be a cash cow for San Diego each July, filling hotel rooms throughout the county and delivering nearly $68 million in direct spending for lodging, dining, transportation and related expenses racked up by the 125,000 conventioneers. While its hard to quantify the totality of spending attributable to Hollywood, the industry packs a powerful economic wallop through high-end hotel stays, lavish parties and extensive marketing, be it building and elevator wraps or locals hired to circulate fliers and swag.

Although the various studios, networks and production companies acknowledge they have budgets they need to adhere to, the money theyre spending is by no means inconsequential.

Last year, for example, HBO spent $18,000 to paper the San Diego Bayfront Hotels nine elevators with advertisements for its vampire series True Blood, while Universal Pictures doled out $70,000 to envelope the facade of the Hilton San Diego Bayfront with a monolithic graphic advertising its film, Scott Pilgrim vs. The World. This year, it will be spending a like amount to promote Cowboys & Aliens, which will premier at Comic-Con on Saturday night, and other hotels, including the Hard Rock and San Diego Marriott Marquis and Marina, are being dressed as well with costly wraps to advertise upcoming films.

Comic-Con, without question, is our Super Bowl at Entertainment Weekly, said publisher Jason Wagenheim, whose publication will fete more than 300 Saturday night at the Hard Rock Hotels rooftop lounge where the pool will be filled with EW-branded beach balls and guests can wander into a cabana area in which the latest Batman video game will be featured. Were the major source for fans to learn about whats happening in popular culture, so we have to be where the fans are. They have incredible influence and spending power across a lot of categories of business.

Entertainment Weekly, he said, is making a healthy six-figure investment during the convention, which includes its expenses for travel, entertaining and lodging for a few dozen staffers.

Djani Ivanov, owner of the Hopping Pig, said he was a bit taken aback when Universal came calling a week ago and asked to remake his Gaslamp Quarter gastropub as a “Cowboy and Aliens” saloon. He’s being compensated between $15,000 and $25,000, he said.

Dueling parties

With all eyes on San Diego as Comic-Con plays out on an international stage this week, party planners are trying to outdo one another in hopes of attracting A-list celebrities and Hollywood heavyweights that will raise their clients profile among advertisers, agents, stars — and convention-goers. Name-dropping by party hosts is a favorite Comic-Con pasttime, with fan favorites such as the Twilight film stars and cast members of Glee, True Blood and Vampire Diaries are bandied about, along with ever-greens like Chevy Chase Danny DeVito.

The SyFy cable television channel, which last year partnered with Entertainment Weekly on its shindig, is now working with E! Network and expects to spend as much as $350,000 while in town on its Saturday night party, a restaurant makeover at the Hard Rock and travel.

We joke that its our Vanity Fair Oscar party, said Blake Callaway, a senior vice president with SyFy. Comic-Con is SyFys economic stimulus plan for San Diego. We have 80, 90 rooms blocked out and 500 guests were entertaining. We want to have the biggest, best, flashiest party…with the best and brightest talent walking the carpet into this exclusive event, which demonstrates were a leader in popular culture and entertainment.

Hotel Solamar, site of the SyFy/E! party Saturday night, said the press coverage alone helps generates future business.

The best two benefits are the lift in the average rate we get and the food and beverage revenue from the parties, said General Manager Mark Dibella. And we also get great press from Comic-Con. After the parties last year, we were in People magazine, and this year E! is filming. Our phone will ring for a while. People want to go where they see celebrities.

However, just like in Sin City itself, the quality of Indian Casinos varies dramatically.

With literally hundreds of Indian Casinos spread out across the United States, to give you an idea of the level of quality gaming emerging on reservations countrywide, let’s focus in on a few of the top Indian Casinos leading the way.

A good place to start is from an area often considered the Indian Casino capital of California and the location of an extremely competitive Indian Casino market, San Diego, California.

Heres a quick snapshot of 6 Top Indian Casinos in San Diego:

1) Barona Valley Ranch Resort and Casino

Barona offers visitors Vegas style gaming action, combined with unique dining experiences, a luxurious hotel, and world-class golf. This spectacular highly acclaimed ranch-themed resort and casino has earned various awards for its casino and games, as well as for its restaurants and golf club.

2) Viejas Casino

Viejas is a well-established and popular Indian casino. Beyond its top notch gaming, Viejas Entertainment puts on high caliber concerts and the Viejas Outlet shopping center is known for its upscale outlet shopping. The casino also caters to the trend setting crowd with their new V Lounge bar.

3) Harrahs Rincon Casino

Harrahs Rincon Casino follows in the footsteps of the Harrahs gaming brand. A new 21-story hotel tower adds to the resort feel and recently was voted as having the Best Rooms, Best Suites, Best Hotel Service and more in 2005 by Casino Player magazine. Amenities include a luxurious spa and a state-of-the-art fitness center. Harrahs Rincon routinely attracts famous acts to its entertainment complex.

4) Pala Casino

Pala Casino offers award winning gaming, has eight restaurants, a 10,000 square foot day spa, a four-diamond resort with 507 deluxe hotel rooms, including 82 suites, four entertainment venues and an Olympic size pool with 12 cabanas. Pala routinely attracts big name entertainment concerts as well.

5) Pechanga Resort and Casino

As one of the countrys newest resort destinations, Pechanga Resort & Casino, an AAA four-diamond property, offers the best of hotel luxury, Vegas style gaming, entertainment, meeting facilities and seven fine dining choices. A-list performers scheduled regularly in the 1,200- seat Pechanga Theater

6) Sycuan Resort and Casino

In addition to great gaming, dining and entertainment, Sycuan Resort offers 54 holes of Southern Californias best golf, championship tennis courts, great overnight accommodations and a relaxing atmosphere to enjoy cocktails and fine dining. The Showcase Theatre features great shows and concerts.

If you are getting the itch to visit Vegas but dont want to make the trek, you might not have to look much further than your local Indian Casino.

You definitely wont be let down by any of the Top 6 San Diego Indian Casinos.