Colorful bull and mural in Solana Beach!

Travelers who stand outside the Solana Beach train station and look east are likely to be surprised. A very colorful bull and mural beckon from across Cedros Avenue!

I spotted this fun artwork the other day while walking around.

The “crazy quilt” bull sculpture and the mural featuring many faces can be found between Pirch North County San Diego and DRIVE AutoCare. I observed that the mural, which appears to be titled Da Kiss, was created by Sandra R. Escobar.

I immediately recognized the mural’s distinctive style. During the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Colombia-born artist painted this mural in City Heights!

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Signs of the Holiday Season in Encinitas!

I headed back to North County today. During my walk through Encinitas, along Coast Highway 101, I noticed many signs of the Holiday Season!

Not only did I spy workers hanging holiday lights on the Golden Lotus Tower of the Self-Realization Fellowship ashram, I saw the marquee of La Paloma Theatre features Elf and Die Hard XMAS.

Along the sidewalks and in shop windows I noticed poinsettias, wreaths, Christmas trees, and even ugly sweaters!

Enjoy a few fun photos!

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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!

I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

It’s easy to explore Cool San Diego Sights by using the search box on this website’s sidebar. Or click a tag. There’s a lot of stuff to share and enjoy!

I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!

Pelicans on a bench at Del Mar lifeguard station.

I love this public art at the 17th Street Lifeguard Tower in Del Mar!

A tile mural depicting pelicans in flight decorates a concrete bench in front of the lifeguard station. The artwork was created by Betsy Schulz, whose fantastic, very beautiful mosaics can be seen all over San Diego County. I’ve photographed many.

Poetic words beneath the mural provide a wish: May your joys be as deep as the ocean, your sorrows as light as its foam. -Anonymous

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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!

I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

It’s easy to explore Cool San Diego Sights by using the search box on this website’s sidebar. Or click a tag. There’s a lot of stuff to share and enjoy!

I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!

Beautiful views at Sea Cliff Park in Del Mar.

A small pocket park by the ocean in Del Mar provides visitors with very beautiful views.

Sea Cliff Park is located immediately south of Powerhouse Park, and west of Seagrove Park, which is situated on the bluffs above it.

The unmarked entrance to Sea Cliff Park is a swinging gate. It leads from Powerhouse Park to a dirt path and a small, easy walking loop. The gate is just south of what Google Maps calls the Powerhouse Playground.

The drought tolerant vegetation of Sea Cliff Park is native to our coastal region. I discovered several plaques as I walked about, taking in the scenery. Two plaques were dedicated to loved ones.

I walked the short distance south to where the main path ascends to the railroad tracks. Then I turned back.

Surfers were out on the cloudy late November day. Looking down at the beach from the bluffs, I saw tide pools! I’ll have to explore them some day…

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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!

I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

It’s easy to explore Cool San Diego Sights by using the search box on this website’s sidebar. Or click a tag. There’s a lot of stuff to share and enjoy!

I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!

Trains and Rails at Del Mar’s Powerhouse Park.

Visitors to Del Mar’s beachside Powerhouse Park might easily miss this very interesting sign.

The sign is unobtrusive and badly weathered and stands across the walking path from the “Tot Lot” playground. When you lean in close to read the sign, you discover it concerns the nearby railroad tracks.

If you’re lucky, while you’re standing there, an Amtrak or Coaster train, or even a freight train, might rumble by.

I had to add contrast to these photographs, to make reading the sign a little easier.

Amtrak’s Pacific Surfliner roars by, heading out onto Del Mar’s coastal bluffs. (I took this photo as I walked south of the sign through Sea Cliff Park, which is immediately adjacent to Powerhouse Park.)

Trains and Rails. Ribbons of steel that link our country.

The origins of the San Diego Northern Railway date back to the late 1880s, when Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway (AT&SF) built tracks along the Pacific coast from Orange County to San Diego…

…Several different train operators use this railroad. The NCTD carries more than 1.1 million passengers on a total of nearly 5,000 Coaster commuter trains annually. Amtrak carries more than 1.5 million passengers on more than 8,000 Surfliner trains annually. The Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway also runs approximately 2,500 freight trains along this coastal railroad every year…

The sign contains fun facts concerning local train history, including:

On July 7, 1881, the first ship arrived in San Diego with iron rails from Europe.

On November 17, 1885, the last spike was driven in San Bernardino connecting San Diego to the national line.

The last steam train left San Diego for Los Angeles on August 23, 1953.

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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!

I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

It’s easy to explore Cool San Diego Sights by using the search box on this website’s sidebar. Or click a tag. There’s a lot of stuff to share and enjoy!

I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!

The mysterious Christmas tree at Cardiff State Beach!

A mysterious Christmas tree appears every year on the sand at South Cardiff State Beach. Nobody knows who places this Tree by the Sea.

The annual appearance of the Christmas tree has become a magical holiday tradition in Cardiff-by-the-Sea. The Tree by the Sea has delighted beachgoers for about three decades. You can read more about its history here.

Enjoy these photographs that I took today.

It was a cloudy late November weekday. Very few people were on the beach. The contrast of sand and ocean, and the decorated tree, makes these images strange and interesting.

Anybody can add their own ornaments. I noticed many have a surfing theme!

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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!

I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

It’s easy to explore Cool San Diego Sights by using the search box on this website’s sidebar. Or click a tag. There’s a lot of stuff to share and enjoy!

I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!

Jewels of the Season shine in Balboa Park!

Some of the most amazing and beautiful Christmas ornaments are now on display in Balboa Park. Step through the entrance of the Timken Museum of Art and you can’t possibly miss them!

Jewels of the Season is a special exhibition of fine, hand-crafted Christmas tree ornaments. The elaborate jewel-like creations are the work of two artists: Florence Hord and Elizabeth Schlappi.

If the name of the first artist seems familiar, perhaps that’s because she was married to renowned sculptor Donal Hord. Florence began making these unique ornaments as a hobby in the 1930s. Each one is a small work of art.

Elizabeth Schlappi met Florence when her mother started taking sculpture lessons from Donal Hord. The two began to make ornaments together.

If you see ornaments in the museum that seem more contemporary (such as one celebrating the Padres), they’re probably the work of Elizabeth. She also included fabric patches in many of her designs. You can see an example in one upcoming photograph: a lunar landing patch!

In 1995 Florence passed away, but a unique craft that she originated lives on through a network of creative friends.

If you’re going to December Nights this year, make absolutely sure you wander into the Timken Museum of Art. You’re eyes will open wide with delight!

By the way, on Monday, December 5, at 10:30 am and 2:30 pm, the museum will host an ornament-making workshop! Learn more and register here!

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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!

I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

It’s easy to explore Cool San Diego Sights by using the search box on this website’s sidebar. Or click a tag. There’s a lot of stuff to share and enjoy!

I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!

International Cottages prepare for December Nights!

December Nights is almost here! The huge holiday event, which attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors from all around San Diego, will take place this Friday and Saturday in Balboa Park.

During my walk through Balboa Park’s International Cottages today, I noticed preparation for the event is already underway. Several of the cottages have put up Christmas trees and holiday decorations, and most of the other cottages, I was assured, will be joining them shortly.

Please enjoy a few photos!

This will be the first in-person December Nights since the closures caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. I bet the crowds will be huge.

The first two photographs (above and below) were taken in the House of Mexico’s cottage.

At the House of Finland, traditional paper woven baskets called sydänkori were being created. They are used to decorate Christmas trees. Small presents such as gift cards fit neatly inside them!

Over at the House of Germany, I spotted a nutcracker, and a poster concerning a fall and winter Children’s Choir program!

At the House of USA cottage, I saw these Christmas decorations, including a bright, festive tree…

Look at all the Santa Clauses inside the House of Sweden cottage! I learned they’ll be for sale during December Nights.

Lastly, I discovered another beautiful Christmas tree inside the House of Denmark’s cottage…

If you head to Balboa Park during December Nights, make sure to visit the International Cottages. As usual, a wide variety of holiday food from all around the world will be a highlight!

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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!

I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

It’s easy to explore Cool San Diego Sights by using the search box on this website’s sidebar. Or click a tag. There’s a lot of stuff to share and enjoy!

I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!

Saturday morning at Tuna Harbor Dockside Market.

Look at all the activity today at Tuna Harbor Dockside Market!

Every Saturday morning, local fishermen bring their fresh catches to the pier between Seaport Village and Tuna Harbor, and lovers of seafood line up to buy fish and crabs and sea urchins and other edibles found in the ocean off San Diego.

I walked out on the pier this morning, marveling at how this outdoor fish market has grown. Can you believe it? Eight years have already passed since Tuna Harbor Dockside Market’s grand opening.

Anyone into photography would love strolling through this market with camera in hand.

There’s the whirl of life all around: diverse people from every walk of life rubbing elbows; families at tables devouring fish and chips; the picturesque commercial fishing boats; the human ebb and flow of commerce; circling gulls; playful sea lions barking down in the bay (I observed none today); and all those different species of fish, some of which can appear quite strange…

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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!

I post fresh blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

It’s easy to explore Cool San Diego Sights by using the search box on this website’s sidebar. Or click a tag. There’s a lot of stuff to share and enjoy!

I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!

USA battles England at the Rady Shell!

An epic battle was observed in San Diego today! A huge crowd gathered at the Rady Shell to watch USA battle England during the 2022 World Cup!

The free outdoor event, made possible by the San Diego Symphony and San Diego Loyal SC, was called Pride and Glory!

The soccer game (okay, football if you insist) had many exciting, nail-biting moments and near goals, but ended in a 0-0 draw. That didn’t keep the crowd from cheering, chanting USA USA and waving flags to the very end.

The family-friendly, festival-like event also included several of San Diego’s other professional sports teams, including the hockey Gulls, women’s soccer San Diego Wave FC and the rugby Legion. Kids were having a blast!

Enjoy these photographs that I took before and during the event.

Tomorrow Pride and Glory at the Rady Shell will continue as Mexico takes on Argentina at 11 am. Simply show up. It’s free!

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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!

I post fresh blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

It’s easy to explore Cool San Diego Sights by using the search box on this website’s sidebar. Or click a tag. There’s a lot of stuff to share and enjoy!

I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or Twitter!