Category: Uncategorized

Stickball tournament players in Little Italy.

stickball player prepares while lineup is written

A stickball tournament was held Sunday in San Diego’s Little Italy, one block from the Festa event! The playing field was a city street in front of the Firehouse Museum. Lots of people watched from the sidewalk, sitting on lawn chairs and the curb.

Here’s a team wearing spiffy uniforms, getting ready to begin a game. A player practices his swing while the lineup is written with chalk on the street.

stickball batter swings away in little italy

Here’s a player from the opposing team swinging. If I recall correctly, he hit the rubber ball into a treetop, and it dropped for a single. Another player hit the ball onto the porch of a condo down the street. That guy was called out.

When I departed, the team in the spiffy uniforms was losing badly.

UPDATE!

Here are a couple more photos from a different Saturday morning in late summer…

A player misses and is called out to the dismay of his team.
A player misses and is called out to the dismay of his team.
Lady swings and crushes the ball a long distance down Columbia Street!
Lady swings and crushes the ball a long distance down Columbia Street!

Festa fun in San Diego’s Little Italy!

a crowd enjoys festa in little italy

Okay, here come some pics from my stroll through Festa today. This popular festival featured food, entertainment and lots of art. It took place in Little Italy, a neighborhood in the north part of downtown San Diego, once populated largely by Italian fisherman who worked in the local tuna fleet. But that was decades ago. The streets today are lined mostly with condos, restaurants and shops.

checking out some italian stuff at festa

Thousands of San Diegans turned out for the celebration. There were plenty of tents filled with crafts, clothing, toys, jewelry–just about anything you could imagine. Almost all of it was Italian-themed.

musicians perform at festa in san diego

Musical performers could be heard everywhere, entertaining the crowd from several stages. There was much romantic Italian music–and I even heard a bit of opera!

festa artist sets up some paintings

This lady is setting up some paintings behind a Little Italy fountain.

festa artwork around little italy fountain

I saw this really cool sculpture (and a number of others) beside the same fountain. All sorts of interesting elements are in this photograph!

italian food galore at little italy's festa

Italian food could be found (and smelled) wherever one turned! I enjoyed a slice of pizza!

musician plays accordion at italian festa

Smilin’ Jack performed with his accordion! That’s just a small taste of Festa!

Gesso Italiano artwork on San Diego street.

a fantastic face of chalk at festa festival

Here are more photos of the Italian chalk art, properly called Gesso Italiano, at today’s 2013 Festa event in Little Italy. I’ve got so many great pics, it’s hard to choose which ones to show. Oh, well. I hope you like these! (Make sure you check out my previous post.)

artist creates chalk madonna and child

Three blocks of a city street in San Diego’s Little Italy became the canvas for chalk creations! Lots of classical images, as one might expect from a celebration of Italy . . .

disney chalk art jiminy cricket

I bet Walt Disney himself would’ve been delighted by this colorful chalk art Jiminy Cricket!

dogue italia colorful chalk art at festa

This humorous piece seems to be named Dogue Italia. That’s one elegantly dressed dog!

elegant lady rendered in chalk at festa

More beautiful artistry . . .

italian chalk face at san diego's festa

A striking portrait. You’d think this was an exquisite painting hung in a museum!

lots of people and little italy chalk art

I have even more photos coming . . . so check back soon!

Amazing chalk art at Little Italy’s Festa!

amazing little italy festa chalk art

Wow! I just finished a leisurely walk through Little Italy’s great 2013 Festa event, and by far the most amazing part of it was the chalk art competition! I learned that Italian chalk art is called Gesso Italiano. There were 62 colorful entries, taking up three full city blocks! I got so many great photos I’m going to break it all into several blog posts. Here comes the first batch!

awesome chalk art in little italy

All the artwork was fantastic!

colorful chalk face at little italy's festa

It was fascinating to watch the many artists at work. I wish I had such talent!

crazy colorful chalk art face in little italy

Lots of people converged on San Diego’s unique Italian Festival!

creating a chalk art masterpiece

Recreating a masterpiece with chalk.

girl touches finger of michelangelo chalk art god

I love this cool pic. One of the amazing chalk creations depicted another act of creation: that of God! The Sistine Chapel’s ceiling seemed to be transported to the asphalt street. Bystanders were invited to lie down and become part of Michelangelo’s divine masterpiece!

italian chalk art creation at festa

Stay tuned for more!

Ray Bradbury and crazy Horton Plaza.

This escalator goes up one level, but no escalator goes down right here!
This escalator goes up one level, but there’s no immediate way back down!

Horton Plaza, San Diego’s colorful downtown shopping mall, was inspired by a concept put forth by famous science fiction and fantasy writer Ray Bradbury. The crazy, jumbled design was based on Ray Bradbury’s essay “The Aesthetics of Lostness” which took joy in the notion of becoming safely lost on the side streets of Paris, London or New York.

While walking about Horton Plaza, you’ll see ramps, escalators, bridges and stairs that go every which way–up, down, across–leading you to new unexpected vistas. One mysterious escalator will take you up one level, but there’s no immediate way to return from where you came. You must let your eyes rove to discover another route. It’s really a fun idea!

I believe I took these pics on a Sunday morning, and few people had yet arrived.

Random ramps and bridges all over the shopping mall.
Random ramps and bridges all over the shopping mall.
Crazy, colorful Horton Plaza.
Crazy, colorful Horton Plaza.

Colorful samples of fun Horton Plaza.

Horton Plaza is a feast for the eyes everywhere you turn.
Horton Plaza is a feast for the eyes everywhere you turn.

Horton Plaza, located in downtown San Diego, is a fun and interesting place for shoppers to visit. The unique mall’s crazy, whimsical design makes an interesting contrast to the restored old buildings in the adjacent Gaslamp Quarter. Many bright colors and types of architecture have been cleverly integrated into a visual feast. Horton Plaza was designed so that people intentionally get a bit lost, to provide a feeling of adventure and the unexpected.

Here are some random pics for you to enjoy…

Elegant Jessop's clock in the midst of colorful whimsy.
Elegant Jessop’s clock in the midst of colorful whimsy.
Many bridges and walkways connect different areas.
Many bridges and walkways connect different areas.
Looking north along several shopping mall levels.
Looking north along several shopping mall levels.
Looks like someone yarn bombed this stair railing.
Looks like someone yarn bombed this stair railing.
Downtown buildings can be seen projecting into the sky.
Downtown buildings can be seen projecting into the sky.
Cool places to eat overlook the layered central area.
Cool places to eat overlook the layered central area.
Just another place to explore on an upper level.
Just another place to explore on an upper level.
Lots of great vistas near Horton Plaza's food court.
Lots of great vistas near Horton Plaza’s food court.
A small decorative touch adds fun flavor to the scene.
A small decorative touch adds fun flavor to the scene.
Many arches that shoppers can pass over or through.
Many arches that shoppers can pass over or through.
Go up or down in unexpected places.
Go up or down in unexpected places.
Banner welcomes visitors in many languages.
Banner welcomes San Diego visitors in many languages.
Just walking along and enjoying the many sights.
Just walking along and enjoying the many sights.

Playing with giant chess pieces at Horton Plaza.

Chess and checkers games can include a small workout!
Chess and checkers games can include a small workout!

Here are three fun photos! I stood for a moment on an upper level at Horton Plaza, watching two guys play a game with giant chess pieces.

San Diego’s downtown Horton Plaza shopping mall is more than just typical retail stores and a food court. It’s a wonderland of colorful, whimsical, unexpected architecture, with cool discoveries around almost every corner, including this shady nook where you’ll find giant-sized chessboards and checker boards.

The Horton Plaza shopping mall contains fun surprises around almost every corner.
The Horton Plaza shopping mall contains fun surprises around almost every corner.
People enjoy a leisurely game of chess with gigantic chessboard and pieces at Horton Plaza.
People enjoy a leisurely game of chess with gigantic chessboard and pieces at Horton Plaza.

Here are a couple more photos I took during another visit…

Horton Plaza visitor watches two people playing chess on an ordinary-size chessboard.
Horton Plaza visitor watches two people playing chess on an ordinary-size chessboard.
People congregate in a Horton Plaza nook where giant chess pieces beckon.
People congregate in a Horton Plaza nook where giant chess pieces beckon.

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Cabrillo’s galleon sails in Civic Center Plaza.

cabrillo's galleon san salvador sails in civic center plaza

Walking recently through San Diego’s Civic Center Plaza, I enjoyed a variety of historical images and colorful designs inlaid in the central courtyard.

Check out Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo’s galleon the San Salvador. In 1542, the Portuguese explorer discovered San Diego Bay on behalf of Spain while searching for a mythical water route across North America.

An actual working replica of the San Salvador is being built by the San Diego Maritime Museum. One of these days I’ll walk north along the bay to Spanish Landing in order to take some pics!

Wider view of Civic Center Plaza.
Wider view of Civic Center Plaza.

Signs point toward San Diego’s sister cities.

distance signs at san diego civic center plaza

Should you ever walk through Civic Center Plaza, you’ll probably see this unusual group of signs. These are a few of San Diego’s sister cities. Pointing in almost every direction, the signs indicate distances in miles and kilometers.

Another similar group of fun signs can be found directly across the plaza.

San Diego’s 16 sister cities are:

Alcala de Henares, Spain
Campinas, Brazil
Cavite, Philippines
Edinburgh, Scotland
Jalalabad, Afghanistan
Jeonju, South Korea
Leon, Mexico
Perth, Australia
Quanzhou, China
Taichung City, Taiwan
Tema, Ghana
Tijuana, Mexico
Vladivostok, Russia
Warsaw, Poland
Yantai, China
Yokohama, Japan

UPDATE! I walked through Civic Center Plaza about half a year later and I noticed brand new signs!

New sister city signs at the Civic Center!
New sister city signs at the Civic Center!
More San Diego sister cities around the world.
More San Diego sister cities around the world.

San Diego Trolley and Santa Fe Depot.

red san diego trolley and santa fe depot

This red trolley belongs to the blue line. Makes sense, right? It’s waiting for passengers at the America Plaza station, across the street from the Santa Fe Depot. The blue line stretches from downtown San Diego all the way down to the Mexican border.

In this photo you can see both domes of the historic train station.

Old black-and-white photos of the Santa Fe Depot pretty much show nothing around it. It just sits there in the middle of nowhere, seemingly. Today the city rises and surges all about it, and it can almost seem lost among the many bright tall buildings.

San Diego Trolley pulls into Santa Fe Depot from the south.
San Diego Trolley pulls into Santa Fe Depot from the south.