Author: Richard Schulte

Downtown San Diego has been my home for many years. My online activities reflect my love for writing, blogging, walking and photography.

Cat in the Hat sculpture at Geisel Pavilion.

Cat in the Hat likes to walk with an umbrella in front of Scripps Clinic in La Jolla! At least, a large sculpture suggests that!

According to my online research, what was originally called the Anderson Outpatient Pavilion was renamed the Geisel Pavilion in early 2020, and this Cat in the Hat sculpture was installed in front by the entrance.

The Dr. Seuss Foundation website explains: “Audrey Geisel was a nurse by training and her support of mental and physical health led to the naming of the Geisel Pavilion at Scripps Green Hospital in La Jolla…” Audrey, widow of La Jolla resident and world-famous children’s author Theodor Seuss Geisel, was a generous philanthropist who touched countless lives around San Diego.

As I took these photos of the Cat in the Hat sculpture, I did my best to look for a plaque or any indication of the artist. I discovered nothing.

I believe a number of these sculptures were created, based on an original by artist Leo Rijn. If you know anything more, please leave a comment!

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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!

You can easily explore Cool San Diego Sights by using the search box on my blog’s sidebar. Or click a tag! There are thousands upon thousands of photos for you to enjoy!

Knowledge, Love, Understanding and a Little Free Library!

Knowledge is power.

I spotted this cool Little Free Library “Of The Sea” during my walk around Del Mar yesterday!

This small neighborhood library has three separate boxes. Fun, very colorful artwork painted on different sides includes words of wisdom!

Love wins.
Understanding is a virtue.

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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!

Uncle Sam wants your Grandpa!

I spotted these attention-grabbing recruitment ads pasted to a wall while walking in downtown San Diego. It appears that Uncle Sam Wants Your Grandpa!

I then read the fine print. Actually, the USS Midway Museum is looking for volunteers. And I don’t think you even need to be a grandpa, or a veteran!

Want to make the past come alive on a historic aircraft carrier? Want to be part of a team that includes tutors, docents, storytellers and ambassadors?

Funny that I spotted these during San Diego Fleet Week.

Check out the details here.

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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!

Five public sculptures debut in Del Mar!

Five eye-catching works of public art recently debuted in Del Mar! They are part of a City of Del Mar Temporary Outdoor Sculpture Exhibit.

These new pieces join a couple of other interesting sculptures along Camino Del Mar that I photographed previously here and here.

During a leisurely “art walk” through Del Mar Village yesterday I captured the following images…

Moonshadow, by artists Jeffery Laudenslager and Deanne Sabeck. Stainless steel, titanium and dichroic glass mosaic. At Camino Del Mar and 9th Street.
Terpsichore, by artist David Beck Brown. Monochrome steel, paint. At Camino Del Mar and 12th Street.
Bird’s Eye View of Torrey Pines Beach, by artists Robert Petrello and Drew Graham. Fused glass, copper and raw metal with rubbed bronze finish. At Camino Del Mar and 14th Street.
Hanging Out #3, by artist Maidy Morhous. Bronze on stainless steel pedestal. At 15th Street and Stratford Court.
Pasaje a lo Infinito, by artist Hugo Heredia. Fused glass, fabricated stainless steel and fabricated steel. Just west of Camino Del Mar on 15th Street.

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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!

You can easily explore Cool San Diego Sights by using the search box on my blog’s sidebar. Or click a tag! There are thousands upon thousands of photos for you to enjoy!

Three painted Breeders’ Cup horses in Del Mar!

The 2021 Breeders’ Cup World Championships was held yesterday and today at the Del Mar Racetrack. So I decided to enjoy a walk through Del Mar Village on this beautiful, sunny Saturday!

What did I see?

I spotted three colorfully painted horse sculptures that were created in 2017 when the Breeders’ Cup was last held in Del Mar! That past public art project was called Art of the Horse.

The three horses now on display stand near the intersection of Camino Del Mar and 15th Street.

Two of the three life-size horses I hadn’t seen previously. To view past photographs of several more painted horses, you can click here and here and here!

(Thank you to two friendly members of the Rotary Club of Del Mar for their kindness in helping me solve a mystery. They were stationed by the sidewalk at Del Mar Plaza, offering information to out-of-towners visiting Del Mar during the Breeders’ Cup.)

Sea Horse. Created by artist Wyland.
Hang On To Your Hats! Created by artist Daphne Gaylord.
Triton’s Steed. Created by artist Chase Martin.

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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!

You can easily explore Cool San Diego Sights by using the search box on my blog’s sidebar. Or click a tag! There are thousands upon thousands of photos for you to enjoy!

A story about one teacher’s strange lesson.

A mysterious reflection in the rippled water.

Readers who are new to Cool San Diego Sights probably don’t know that, when I’m not walking around the city taking photographs, I love to write fiction.

Well, I’ve completed another very short story. This one is about a school teacher and a very peculiar lesson taught to her students.

The lesson isn’t merely strange–it might be one of the most important lessons any person, young or old, could learn.

To read it, click here!

History and the Hearne Surgical Hospital Building.

I often walk past the old Hearne Surgical Hospital Building in downtown San Diego. It stands near the corner of Fourth Avenue and Ash Street.

A plaque by the door indicates the building is Historical Site No. 115, and that it was designed by the Quayle Brothers and built in 1906.

But until a few minutes ago that’s all I knew.

With the help of Google, I found some fascinating history concerning the building!

Part of a book titled Hearne History describes Dr. Joseph Carter Hearne’s medical practice in San Diego. The following information is transcribed here.

…The doctor located in San Diego, Cal., Dec., 1891, where he soon took his place at the head of the medical fraternity. Indeed it is not too much to say that he is well recognized as one of the leading, if not the leading, surgeon of Southern California. Soon after his arrival at San Diego he was appointed local surgeon to the Southern California railway…

…On March 8, 1906, the doctor completed and opened for the use of his own patients a Private Surgical Hospital, which in appointment and equipment is acknowledged to be equaled by none. Surgeons connected with the foreign battle ships visiting the harbor of San Diego are loud in its praise and say that there is no hospital abroad, public or private, that equals it. It has accommodations for twenty-five patients and is fully equipped.…

So, apparently, the building you see in my photographs was, in its day, one of the most impressive hospitals to be found anywhere!

It is now an apartment building.

The Quayle Brothers architects, who designed the Hearne Surgical Hospital Building, were responsible for other important structures in San Diego, including the 1928 North Park Theatre and the 1939 San Diego Police Department Headquarters. They are probably best remembered as the designers of San Diego’s original City Stadium, which was built for the 1915 Panama-California Exposition. Standing beside San Diego High School, it was later renamed Balboa Stadium.

If you’d like to see photos of the very handsome Alfred Haines House in Golden Hill, which the Quayle Brothers also designed, check out a past blog post here!

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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!

You can easily explore Cool San Diego Sights by using the search box on my blog’s sidebar. Or click a tag! There are thousands upon thousands of photos for you to enjoy!

Cool photo memories from November 2016.

Back in November 2016, San Diego experienced grief, renewed hope, and colorful festivals celebrating another holiday season. It’s time for Cool San Diego Sights to remember a few things that were happening five years ago!

Coming up are links to past blog posts full of memory. You’ll see images of a historic groundbreaking in Balboa Park, a last goodbye to Anthony’s on the waterfront, and even 2016 Christmas on the Prado, which was held in late November. You’ll enjoy a hike at Mission Trails and tour San Diego’s oldest building, too!

Click the following links for many photographs…

San Diego history comes alive at Fall Back Festival!

New Barrio Logan mural honors four lost lives.

The oldest building in San Diego is a golf Pro Shop!

A hike from Kumeyaay Lake to the Old Mission Dam.

Groundbreaking at Balboa Park’s International Cottages!

Last chance to enjoy Anthony’s at the waterfront.

Father Joe’s Villages Thanksgiving Day 5K helps homeless.

Photos from Christmas on the Prado!

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This blog now features thousands of photos around San Diego! Are you curious? There’s lots of cool stuff to check out!

Here’s the Cool San Diego Sights main page, where you can read the most current blog posts.  If you’re using a phone or small mobile device, click those three parallel lines up at the top–that opens up my website’s sidebar, where you’ll see the most popular posts, a search box, and more!

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County ceremony at Day of the Dead altar.

This morning I walked down to the San Diego County Administration Building to view their Day of the Dead altar. Like the one last year, this new altar on some outdoor steps remembers those who’ve died from COVID-19.

When I arrived a gentleman was setting up additional luminarias and flowers.

Baltazar Hernandez, who is also Vice President of the City Heights Día de los Muertos, was busy making the altar more beautiful and meaningful.

He informed me there would be a special ceremony in the evening, so I returned to the County Administration Building after work.

The ceremony began with a blessing of the altar by Baltazar, who wore Danza Azteca garb. A few short speeches followed.

The most powerful words were spoken by someone who had tragically lost a loved one. She told everyone: “That empty place that you have in your heart–fill it with love.”

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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!

Day of the Dead walk around Old Town.

Today many are celebrating Día de los Muertos–Mexico’s traditional Day of the Dead. It is a time when departed loved ones are remembered and honored.

Early this evening I took a short walk around Old Town San Diego to see what I might see.

Many are still cautious because of the COVID-19 pandemic, so there wasn’t the usual crowd and activities. But I did find music and colorful Catrinas at Fiesta de Reyes, and sugar skull face painting at a few spots in the State Park and along San Diego Avenue. I also came across a couple of Día de los Muertos altars.

These are my photos…

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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!

You can easily explore Cool San Diego Sights by using the search box on my blog’s sidebar. Or click a tag! There are thousands upon thousands of photos for you to enjoy!