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.

Trolley Dances returns to San Diego this weekend!

Trolley Dances, an annual San Diego cultural event, is returning this weekend!

For the past 23 years, the San Diego Dance Theater has worked with the Metropolitan Transit System (MTS) to put on outdoor performances at or near different trolley stations around the city. Now that the COVID-19 pandemic is subsiding, a scaled-back version of the event is returning for this weekend only!

The audience will board at the 70th Street trolley station and follow guides on a unique adventure full of unexpected dances!

To learn more about this very cool event, check out the San Diego Dance Theater website here.

I’ve viewed some of the dances in past years, and the following photos provide a taste of the very creative contemporary dancing you might see…

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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!

Butterflies, art and inspiration in National City!

Yesterday, as I waited for the Memorial Day ceremony to begin in National City, I wandered a short distance down 12th Street from the Veteran’s Wall of Honor. I was surprised to encounter colorful butterflies along the median, and lots of art at a bright building on the north side of Kimball Park. The building, I learned, is home to ARTS, which stands for A Reason To Survive.

ARTS is a special community center where youth are inspired to live positive, hopeful, creative lives free from destructive influences and the violence that might attract their peers.

According to their website, the mission of ARTS is “to heal, inspire, and empower youth facing life challenges through therapeutic arts, formal arts education, and college and career preparation…In 2012, ARTS moved to National City and opened a 20,000-sq. ft. ARTS Center in one of San Diego County’s most health-challenged and economically depressed communities…”

I urge you to visit the above link and read about how the ARTS program has gained national fame, and how you might personally contribute, volunteer or become involved.

Here come photographs of murals and other artwork I happened to see outside the building. Painted words encourage non-violence and provide A Reason To Survive.

The nearby butterflies at intervals along 12th Street represent a transformation into something beautiful.

Each butterfly is unique.

UPDATE!

I received a great comment concerning the butterflies and their origin. Please read the comments after the upcoming 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!

Memorial Day at National City’s Wall of Honor.

Late this afternoon I attended a Memorial Day ceremony at National City’s Wall of Honor.

It was a special event for the South Bay community. Those who served in the United States Armed Services and have passed on were remembered.

The Wall of Honor extends on either side of the National City War Memorial, which stands overlooking a corner of Kimball Park. Plaques on the wall are dedicated to loved Veterans. Through the memorial’s arch children could be seen playing on the park’s wide green grass, and looking through that arch during the ceremony was like peering through the window of Freedom.

National City’s mayor and various dignitaries were in attendance and spoke. The Navy was represented as well. Retired vets who had served their country received handshakes from all.

I took these photographs of the beautiful and very meaningful ceremony. Memorial Day is a time to recognize sacrifices, and to seriously reflect.

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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!

Celebration of Memorial Day by the USS Midway.

Around noon today there was a unique outdoor celebration of Memorial Day in downtown San Diego. The spectacle could be viewed in San Diego Bay and the sky above the USS Midway Museum!

A small crowd that had gathered by the iconic “Kiss” statue saw a Harbor Police patrol boat water cannon salute and a parade of personal watercraft arriving from across the bay bearing large American flags.

Then, after the patriotic parade had gathered in the water between the USS Midway and The Greatest Generation Walk, four vintage World War II aircraft belonging to Air Group One of the Commemorative Air Force flew twice overhead, and departed with the missing man formation.

Much of the event was at a distance from where I stood, but my small camera managed to get a few good photographs…

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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!

Color flows from building across mural fingers!

I love this new mural in Normal Heights! It was painted several months ago by Southern California artist Lourans Mikhail, on the west side of the Konrad King building on Adams Avenue.

Many colors now appear to be leaking from holes in the building wall!

The colors are streaming through the fingers of a smiling woman!

I always enjoy seeing the work of muralists who incorporate the architectural features of their canvas. This is a very creative example!

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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!

New mural on Seacoast in Imperial Beach.

Last year a colorful new mural was painted in Imperial Beach on Seacoast Drive, several blocks north of the pier, just south of Daisy Avenue. It decorates a stone wall next to three small eateries.

The female face and mandala-like designs around it were created by San Diego artists Gloria Muriel and Beth Emmerich.

I saw this mural for the first time during my Saturday walk near the beach. It seems our local muralists have been busy creating new outdoor art during the long COVID-19 pandemic. (Just yesterday I posted images of a new LOVE mural in San Ysidro here.)

I have many more new street art photos from around San Diego coming up. Stay tuned!

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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!

Memorial Day flowers in Balboa Park.

After my visit to La Mesa today, I found myself in Balboa Park for another Sunday afternoon walk.

I kept looking right and left for an indication that this is Memorial Day weekend. I had to go to the Veterans Museum and Memorial Center to find it.

Even though the museum was closed when I walked past, I noticed fresh flowers and a wreath had been placed at its outdoor San Diego Vietnam Veterans Peace Memorial.

Those who fought and died in that terrible war are still remembered.

If you’d like to see photos of an emotional Memorial Day ceremony that was held at the San Diego Peace Memorial four years ago, click 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!

A sidewalk Memorial Day thank you.

It’s Memorial Day weekend. I saw this on the sidewalk today while walking through downtown La Mesa. Somebody created a small tribute with chalk, fresh flowers and green leaves. Spelled inside a heart is Thank You. All gave some and some gave all.

I thought I’d share the photo. And add my own Thank You to all those who’ve sacrificed defending the freedoms we might sometimes take for granted.

(Why was I in La Mesa? To climb the Secret Stairs! I’ll blog about that experience sometime later this week!)

Take care everybody.

Clowns spotted all around San Diego!

During my walk around San Ysidro yesterday I spotted some fun new street art on a utility box. The colorful clowns were painted by local artist Gerardo Meza. His works of imagination are encountered almost everywhere you go in San Ysidro.

After taking the above photo, it occurred to me I’ve probably collected a bunch of clown images over the years. So I searched Cool San Diego Sights and found the following photographs!

Some of the clowns are happy, some are silly, some are creepy. Many were seen during parades. I’ve also spotted various clown characters during Comic-Con, including Pennywise and Baskets. Other clowns appear in public artwork.

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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 big LOVE mural in San Ysidro!

In late 2020 artists Carly Ealey and Christopher Konecki painted this huge LOVE mural in San Ysidro. You can see it on a wall as you exit southbound I-805 at East San Ysidro Boulevard, a short distance before you reach the Mexican border. The mural is a Border Public Art Committee project.

If you think this spray paint art is amazing, you might enjoy checking out another cool mural this artist team created in San Diego’s East Village a few years ago here!

You gotta love it!

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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!

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