Public art now on display in Seaport Village aims to raise awareness about the impact of illegal bird trafficking.
Birds Without Paradise (Pajaros sin Paraiso) was created by Oaxacan artist Manuel Molina with the assistance of volunteers and school children in both the United States and Mexico. Many life-size birds made of corn husks and wood take flight overhead, reminding us of the harm caused by illegal bird trafficking.
The freedom themed art, which has been displayed at various locations in both nations, strengthens cross-border cultural connections and is a delightful bond between diverse people.
These colorful birds will be flocking above Seaport Village, just west of the central fountain, through April!
…
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!
San Diego’s own world-famous Murrugun the Mystic exhales a huge fireball during Seaport Village’s 2019 Busker Fest!
This is my fifth year blogging about Seaport Village’s annual busker festival. It’s so much fun, I try not to miss it!
This afternoon I randomly walked about Seaport Village, checking out the acts of great street performers from all around the United States and the world. I protected my camera from the wind and showers and took a whole bunch of photographs. Unfortunately, today’s attendance seemed reduced by the weather.
Tomorrow the sun is supposed to come out. Hopefully more people will then head to Seaport Village for this free weekend event!
The highlight for me was the two-act performance of San Diego’s own world-famous danger act and carnival sideshow performer Murrugun the Mystic! As I watched, I could plainly see he was enjoying himself!
Since I last blogged about Murrugun, he has appeared on even more TV shows. He has now been featured on AMC’s Freakshow, Cougar Town, CSI: New York, The Late Late Show with James Corden, and Ripley’s Believe It or Not! He also holds multiple Guinness World Records for sword swallowing!
I spoke to him briefly after his show, and I learned he’s devising a hollow tube contraption that he will insert into his throat. From that tube he will explosively shoot flaming arrows! Wow! I can’t wait to see that!
Here come fun photos! Enjoy!
Even with the drizzly, breezy winter weather, people came out to Seaport Village on Saturday to watch some of the best street performers in the world.Daniel Israel juggles while high atop a unicycle!Cate Flaherty is a professional circus acrobat with a big smile. Her juggling and balancing performance was great!George Gilbert entertains people by the water. For a grand finale, he magically made a pineapple appear under his hat!Nolan Webster included a lot of humor in his parlor magic show. That ball was actually attached to his nose! Cheater!The audiences at the Busker Fest were all smiles.Kids seemed to have the best time while the buskers performed. Many adults were very shy.Murrugun the Mystic calls an audience together near Seaport Village’s central fountain before beginning his amazing two-part act!Murrugun’s first act is a series of fantastic fire breathing and eating tricks, including shooting flames out of his mouth! He performed to one side, out of the wind.The second act was sword swallowing. Murrugun the Mystic is one of very few true sword swallowers in the world.That’s a genuine, long and very sharp sword poised on Murrugun’s tongue.Here we go!When all the way in, the sword has penetrated between his heart and lungs and ends at the bottom of his stomach, just below the belly button!Next comes a sword sandwich–six swords carefully aligned together. Over the decades, a scary number of performers have died doing this dangerous sword swallowing trick. Murrugun himself was once seriously injured.That’s a lot of sharp steel to swallow!In go six genuine swords!One of the most amazing human spectacles you’re likely to ever witness!Back near the water, Jonathan Strange was doing some mystifying ring linking magic with an assistant chosen from the audience.Molly Keczan includes lasso rope tricks in her fun The Farmer’s Daughter Show.The Farmer’s Daughter keeps balance as she walks along the top of glass milk bottles–with one good eye! A wildly successful show, in spite of her contact lens difficulty!While walking around I spotted Martika Daniels setting up for her act with a big smile.Martika’s amazing show included being stood upon while lying on a bed of nails!Ouch! Martika explained that stunts like this make some of life’s difficulties seem small by comparison. Her show was super positive and inspirational!Another awesome sword swallowing act!Buskers and audience members all seemed to have a great time, even if the San Diego weather didn’t cooperate today!
…
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!
Early this morning I walked from Cortez Hill down to San Diego Bay. I spent a few quiet minutes between the Maritime Museum of San Diego and the Grape Street Pier.
The sun was very bright. It wasn’t long before I noticed wavy reflections of ships on the water!
Without reading the photo captions, can you identify each ship by its mysterious reflection?
Reflection on the water of Steam Ferry Berkeley.Reflection on the water of HMS Surprise and Steam Ferry Berkeley.Reflection on the water near USS Dolphin of Steam Ferry Berkeley.Reflection on the water of Medea, Pilot, America, San Salvador, and Californian.Reflection on the water of Admiral Hornblower.Reflection on the water of Star of India.Reflection on the water of Star of India.Reflection on the water of Star of India.
…
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!
Side door to San Diego’s City Administration Building lies beyond a small garden containing cacti and succulents.
I was waiting for a trolley at the Civic Center station the other day when my eyes wandered over to the City Administration Building. A small desert garden caught my attention, and I remembered how a few years ago that semicircle of garden used to be a fountain.
The next Blue Line trolley was still five minutes away, so I walked over to look at a nearby plaque and a sign.
Bronze plaque near the small desert garden planted in the basin of The Phil Swing Memorial Fountain, which was dedicated on July 6, 1967.Sign explains the Phil Swing Memorial Fountain was re-purposed to a Desert Garden. In 1933, Mr. Swing introduced a bill to establish Anza-Borrego Desert State Park.Philip D. “Phil” Swing was appointed to the California State Water Resources Board in 1945. This beautiful garden honors his contributions to the conservation of desert lands and water resources.A trolley arrives at the Civic Center station near a small desert garden in downtown San Diego.
…
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!
During my long walk through Hillcrest today I spotted three cool murals by prolific local street artist Fizix!
The first mural is on the parking lot wall of Hillcrest Athletic Club and depicts various colorful, very fit people!
The second mural is on the west entrance of Cigar Cave. The black and white image has a noir feel to it, as if the pictured setting is a seedy bar in the 20s or 30s.
The third mural is in the narrow alley next to East Coast Pizza. The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles and their diabolical enemies all seem to have one thing in common: a love for pizza!
Fizix is actually Alex Julian, a San Diego artist whose murals can be seen all over the city. Many of his spray painted images have a sort of bold comic book style. You might remember his huge mural in Logan Heights that depicts lots of superheroes and other comic book characters.
You can see that awesome superhero mural and learn a bit more about Alex Julian here!
BE FEARLESS IN PURSUIT OF WHAT SETS YOUR SOUL ON FIRE
…
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!
Today I walked into the Exhibit Hall at the Japanese Friendship Garden in Balboa Park just in time to listen to a wonderful small concert.
I seemed to drift into a living dream as I listened to extraordinarily beautiful music played on the traditional Japanese koto and shakuhachi. The musicians, Kyoko Takeda and Jon Crick, talked about the pieces they performed, and the instruments they played.
I heard flowing streams, and the wind, and deer calling, and raindrops, and notes rising and falling, and echoing mysteries, and perhaps even a whisper of the essence of life.
After the concert, I walked about the Exhibit Hall and enjoyed looking at the current exhibition, which is titled Tradition and Beyond. Five talented San Diego potters have used traditional Japanese ceramic techniques to create organic pieces. I saw a flowing, easy, natural beauty, spun carefully from the human spirit, much like music.
…
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!
Star Wars cosplay and a sign welcomes visitors to a special Comic-Con Museum event!
Around noon today I headed to the Federal Building in Balboa Park for a bite to eat. And what did I see? A special event was being held inside the future home of the Comic-Con Museum!
I walked about and watched people playing Star Wars: Armada and other tabletop games published by Fantasy Flight Games.
Very cool!
Members of the Imperial Sands Garrison of the 501st Legion pose for a cool Star Wars pic at the future Comic-Con Museum!Players try out Star Wars: Destiny, a dueling dice and card game.Guys play Star Wars: Armada inside the Federal Building, future home of the Comic-Con Museum in Balboa Park.There seem to be a lot of Imperial Star Destroyers in this region of space!Perhaps players with a high midi-chlorian count can use the Force to their advantage when throwing these dice.Cards are used to keep track of Rebel and Imperial fleet ship status during play.A cool game mat depicts the Star Wars ice planet Hoth.I see LEGO Star Wars figurines of Fleet Admiral Gial Ackbar and Darth Vader.Star Wars: Legion miniatures game set depicts the planet Tatooine. I see a menacing Darth Vader following those stormtroopers!The Comic-Con Museum is coming to the Federal Building in Balboa Park!
…
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 Balboa Park Activity Center is filled with many elite international athletes, including past Olympic champions, during the 2019 Dave Freeman Classic Open badminton tournament.
Some of the best badminton players in the world are competing this weekend in Balboa Park!
Today I headed up to the Balboa Park Activity Center and was blown away by what I observed. At the 2019 Dave Freeman Classic Open, the badminton action is unbelievably fast and furious!
For several minutes I stood and watched some amazing players perform at a very high level. These elite athletes move so lightning fast their bodies and rackets appear as a blur in nearly all of my photos. The shuttlecocks zoomed and floated. I observed strategy, agility, strength and precision. It’s a sport that must be seen in person to be fully appreciated!
Here are a few photos that provide a small taste of this cool badminton tournament!
Looking at plaques with past champions. The 62nd Yonex Dave Freeman Open 2019 is a USA Badminton sanctioned Classic Series Tournament with cash prizes.
Bronze plaque inside Balboa Park Activity Center dedicated to Dr. David Guthrie Freeman, one of the world’s greatest natural athletes of all time, a badminton legend for whom the tournament is named.The San Diego Badminton Club is one of the sports groups that meets and plays regularly inside the Balboa Park Activity Center.
…
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!
This morning I walked beside poetry. I followed a bright stream of playful words that were written in 2008 by Quincy Troupe.
FOLLOWING THE WORDS is poetry inscribed along the top of a low concrete wall. The wall stretches between The New Children’s Museum and their garden and playground.
To learn a little more about Quincy Troupe, and to see more photos of this small, joyful refuge in downtown San Diego, click here.
WORDS WALK A PATHWAYINTO OUR MINDS, THEY JUMP QUICKBEHIND A HOPPINGFROG, GUIDING US LIKE A SCOUTINTO THE LANGUAGE WE BOP,WORDS POP BIG AS EYESOF FROGS, WHO HOP AND PLOP, BOPTHROUGH WORDS ZIG-ZAGGINGTHROUGH SENTENCES, HOT AND COOLAS FLIP-FLOPS KIDS ARE WEARING,THEY ARE COLORFUL,THESE WORDS THAT BLIP, BLOP AND PLOP,UP AND DOWN THEY GO,LIKE OUR SCOUT, THE HOPPING TOAD,THERE HE GOES, JUMPING LIKE WORDS,SOME HE TOTES INSIDEA SACK ON HIS BACK, BOUNCING,BROWN-GREEN AS HIS SKIN,THESE WORDS ARE HEAVYLOADS FOR TOADS SAME THING AS FROGSTO CARRY, THESE KNOTS, ZIG-ZAGGING, COOL, WORDS, BOPPING,SKIPPING ALONG, SKEEDADLINGALONG THIS PATHWAY,WE FOLLOW WORDS AS THEY HOPBEHIND OUR SCOUT-TOADOR FROG, IF YOU LIKE THAT WORD,FOLLOW THEM TO WHERE THEY ENDINSIDE THE MUSEUM,WHERE WORDS BECOME FREEDOM, ART,MUSIC AND KNOWLEDGE,POETRY, DANCING, BIG FUN,HIP AS FLIP-FLOPS KIDS HAVE ON
COOL RAP, FLIP-FLOPPING,WORDS THAT RATTAMATAT, JAZZZIG-ZAG THROUGH VOICES,CARRY CHOICES THROUGH TALKING,SENTENCES SKEEDADLING, WORDS,BRIGHT INSIDE KID’S MINDS,MADE NEWS, ABOVE THEIR FUTURE,A NEW SUN RISINGEACH MORNING NEW, AND WE CANTOUCH IT WHEN WE SPREAD OUR WINGSAND FLY LIKE A BIRDTHROUGH OUR OWN MINDS, THROUGH OUR OWNSKIES, INSIDE OUR MINDS,WE CAN TOUCH MAGIC INSIDEOUR OWN IMAGINATIONS,TOUCH IT, THE MAGIC,WATCH YOUR MIND GO FLYINGLIKE A BIRD, NOW, HIGHUP IN THE BLUE, WATCH YOURSELF,YOUR MIND SOAR, SKEEDADLING, NOW
SKEEDADLING VOICESSHIMMY SHIMMY SHANGLE, BOP,SASHAY, SKEEZOOZOOTHROUGH, HIP WORDS THEY HOP, POP,AS RAINBOW CHILDREN PLOP, SHINEIT’S PLAYTIME, SPARKLINGWITH LAUGHTER, SKEEDADLING LIKEOCEAN WAVES DRUMMING,A CHOIR OF BIRDS, SHOWERINGRAIN, SOFT AS CHILDREN’S FOOTSTEPSCHILDREN’S FACES BLOOMLIKE FLOWERS IN JUNE, DAZZLING,SPARKLE LIKE TINKLINGWATERFALLS, RINSING, PURE SOUNDS,BRIGHT ROSE PETALS ON THE GROUND,YOU ARE YOUR OWN SONGSINGING SWEET MUSIC, COLORS,NOTES INSIDE LAUGHTER,FREEDOM IS TIME, NOW,YOU ARE LIVING IN YOURSELFWHEN YOUR DREAMS COME TRUE,THEIR FACES AGAINSTWHITE WALLS, ARE FLOWER PETALSPOPPING INTO ROOMSOUT IN GREEN BUSHESFROGS SERENADE THE MOON, SKYAS CATS CHASE SHADOWSYOU CAN TOUCH IT, TOUCHIT, NOW, THROUGH YOUR POET’S PEN,YOUR PAINTER’S BRUSHSTROKE,THE SUN INSIDE YOUR MIND, TOO,REACH IN, TOUCH IT, TOUCH IT NOW
…
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!
Cool San Diego Sights! 