Youth helps paint a public mural along the San Diego River Estuary.
This morning, after I checked out the St. Patrick’s Day Parade, I headed out to the San Diego River Estuary and enjoyed a long, leisurely walk. I’d read that kids would be painting a cool mural next to the river, directly south of SeaWorld and east of the Sports Arena Boulevard/West Mission Bay Drive bridge.
When I arrived, the mural was nearly completed. The project was hosted by The San Diego River Park Foundation. Young artists also had an opportunity to do a little birdwatching!
Bicyclists heading down Old Sea World Drive spy a line of colorful artwork.The San Diego River Park Foundation is working to preserve the life-filled estuary.Lots of paint cans contain the colors of wildlife and river scenery.San Diego River Park Foundation banner is positioned near mural painted by kids.Most of the painting was completed when I walked by in the late morning.Adults were putting some finishing touches on the cool public art.A project of River Kids Discovery Days on March 14, 2015.Two great egrets in San Diego River Estuary not far from the mural project!San Diego Park Rangers were also painting. This panel depicts a snowy egret.Mural artists put their names on sign beside the San Diego River Trail.Lots of kids turned out to add life and color to a fence bordering nature’s beauty.
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Saint Patrick was seen in downtown San Diego banishing snakes and frowns.
A long, warm, wonderful walk today filled my trusty old camera with lots of photos! First up: some fun images from San Diego’s annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade!
Last year I took pics up and down Sixth Avenue (just west of Balboa Park) where the parade was staged, and this morning I did exactly the same thing. Predictably, cool sights were everywhere my eyes turned!
This smiling gentleman is dressed in the uniform of the Knights of Columbus.Crowd gathers early before the big St. Patrick’s Day parade kicks off.Lots of dogs were wearing the green this morning.Green hats and fun festive stuff on the grass by the sidewalk.Shriner mini cars are always a popular part of the St. Patrick’s Day Parade.These clowns are relaxing in the shade as a sunny San Diego day heats up.This cool old Ambulance and Patrol vehicle awaits start of parade.The distinctive Shriners float doesn’t look Irish to me, except for a bit of green!The Best-Rate Repair Company float is making its first appearance this year.This guy in a traditional kilt will be playing the bagpipes for everyone to enjoy.Marching band instruments lie on the grass before start of the St. Paddy’s parade.The Academy of Irish Dance gets their elaborate float ready.These super nice San Diego Roller Derby ladies posed for my camera!Motorcyclist in green heads down Sixth Avenue where the parade is staging.These cool old-fashioned penny-farthing bicycles will take part in the parade.Everybody was busy getting ready as the 10:30 morning start approached.Serviceman helps affix some Irish green to the front bumper of a car.The Young Marines were carefully folding a large American flag as I walked down Sixth Avenue.A smiling Irish clown perfectly captures the spirit of this wonderful annual event.
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View of the Quince Street Trestle from a spot on Fourth Avenue.
Many nature hikes can be enjoyed in Balboa Park. But there’s another beautiful, quiet hike through date palms and eucalyptus trees and bright spring flowers that anyone can enjoy just a few blocks north of downtown San Diego.
The Maple Canyon Trail stretches from a trailhead near Quince Street and Third Avenue on Bankers Hill to a second trailhead at Maple Street and Dove Street in Middletown. It often seems that the only people who use the trail are dog walkers and joggers who live nearby. Those who haven’t hiked this easy trail are missing out on a unique experience. The Maple Canyon Trail passes under two cool historic bridges!
The Quince Street Trestle is a visually interesting wooden footbridge that was built in 1905. Back then streetcars ran up Fourth Avenue, and the trestle allowed pedestrians to cross the steep canyon from the west. A quarter century ago the bridge, weakened by termites and rot, was closed and almost demolished. Local residents took up the cause of saving the bridge, which was finally declared a historic site.
The Maple Canyon Trail also passes beneath the impressive First Avenue Bridge. The arched steel bridge was built in 1931 and was originally known as the Peoples Bridge. Its astonishing height above the trail is a reminder of San Diego’s unique geology. Southern California’s coastal region is crisscrossed in many places by deep, narrow canyons, which often serve as undeveloped habitat for native species of plant and animal life.
Small cabinet at end of footbridge contains books that people can freely borrow!Walking across the very cool historic trestle on Bankers Hill.Looking down from trestle at dogs and walker passing through the canyon below.This super cool condo is located near the Third Avenue trailhead.Maple Canyon Open Space sign near trailhead on Bankers Hill.Looking up at the wooden footbridge from the quiet footpath on a sunny day.Wood beams compose the high trestle.Grass and spring flowers line the Maple Canyon Trail.Some interesting houses can be seen up on the hillsides.Here comes the First Avenue Bridge beyond a eucalyptus tree.This elegant old steel bridge has very limited motor traffic.
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Two seagulls carry bits of something while navigating the Children’s Park fountain.
You might enjoy these fun photos.
Occasionally I walk past the Children’s Park fountain in the early morning, on my way to catch a downtown trolley for work. Even though the fountain is usually off (because of our long drought), birds like to hang out in the fountain’s man-made pond. It’s a sanctuary in the city where birds can easily scavenge human food.
The Martin Luther King Jr. Promenade, which runs parallel to Harbor Drive, passes right over the pond, and when I pause on the path camera in hand, I’m usually rewarded.
These shots were taken shortly after sunrise…
The Children’s Park was the city of San Diego’s gift to kids in 1995.The gently sprinkling fountain was off this morning, and birds were enjoying the early sun.There are many places for birds to perch at the center of the man-made pond.A gull floats over to see if I have food. I’m standing on the Martin Luther King Jr. Promenade, where it passes as a walkway over the blue water.These three ducks are just cruising around the Children’s Park fountain.Off to the side of the fountain, pigeons congregate on the San Diego trolley’s electrical wires.Pigeons swirl in broad circles directly overhead.A graceful seagull patrols the park as day breaks.Photo near the fountain of sunrise and a bird with outstretched wings.
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Celebrating the 100th Anniversary of San Diego’s Santa Fe train depot!
I was walking around today when I noticed a large banner hanging above the entrance of downtown’s Santa Fe Depot. This year the historic train station and San Diego landmark turns one hundred years old!
A friendly gentleman inside the waiting room at the information booth gave me a flyer about a special event tomorrow. The public is invited to attend a celebration of the historic depot’s centennial! The festivities take place between 11 am and 1 pm. The address of the Santa Fe Depot Union Station is 1050 Kettner Boulevard, just north of Broadway in downtown San Diego. I will be working, so I’ll probably miss it.
In the past I’d thought about posting cool old photos of the depot, but now seems the appropriate time! Check out the following photographs that I found on Wikimedia Commons.
First, a little background on the depot, with a few details taken from an informative handout…
A fine example of the classic Spanish Mission-Colonial Revival style of architecture, including Moorish influences, the Santa Fe Depot is on the National Register of Historic Places. Today it lies at the southern terminus of the nation’s second-busiest Amtrak rail corridor. In addition to the Pacific Surfliner trains, it also serves as an important station for Coaster commuter trains and the San Diego Trolley.
Built by the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railway, it opened on March 7, 1915. It replaced the California Southern Railway’s smaller 1887 Victorian depot. The beautiful new depot was designed to welcome rail travelers visiting the 1915 Panama-California International Exposition, which was staged in expansive Balboa Park, just northeast of downtown. You can see dozens of fantastic photos of Balboa Park from a century ago here.
The huge Santa Fe Depot waiting room is 170 feet long and 55 feet wide. The varnished oak benches are lit by 16 bronze and glass chandeliers. You can see pics of today’s interior here.
Old photo on today’s information booth shows large waiting room as it was once configured, with ticket counters, checkroom and shops in wooden structures on the west side.Historical photograph of Santa Fe Depot’s steel construction, dated August 17, 1914.Santa Fe Railroad Station under construction beside the old 1887 Victorian depot, which stood on the other side of the tracks. Photo dated September 3, 1914.Photo of the Victorian depot tower being demolished in 1915. A locomotive pulled the old tower over to great public fanfare.Color postcard circa 1920 features inviting image of San Diego Union Depot.The handsome Santa Fe Depot as it appears today, with modern high-rise buildings nearby.
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Check out this fun street art! A humorous image was recently painted on a shop window in San Diego. The truth has been revealed!
The San Diego Padres will subdue their baseball enemies this year by using powerful Jedi powers. I might even go to the dark side and root for Darth Vader if that’s what it takes to win a World Series.
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Derek McAlister prepares to open his amazing act with some fire juggling at Seaport Village beside the Marriott Marina.
Rubber chickens were flying this afternoon. There seemed to be a whole flock of them at the Seaport Village Spring Busker Festival! The event continues into this evening, and then more acts follow tomorrow. If you’re in San Diego, check it out!
My favorite performer was Murrugun the Mystic. This is why.
All of the buskers were fantastic! Many of these pics were taken from a bit of a distance, but they provide a taste of the fun…
Derek McAlister climbs a 20-foot Chinese pole and performs fantastic aerial acrobatics at the Spring Busker Festival.Street performers had exciting shows all day at two plazas in Seaport Village. Tomorrow, too!Alex Clark, with training from Cirque Du Soleil, balances atop ladder while juggling knives.Girl throws rubber chicken up to plunger-headed, unicycle-riding “Groovy” Guy Collins, who has starred on the Travel Channel.The Frisbee Show featured juggler and comedian Greg Frisbee.Boy volunteer balances two spinning balls atop two rubber chickens!CREW is a San Diego-based percussion group that creates super cool music with everyday objects.Unusual instruments produce fun beats as busker festival visitors sit in sunshine by San Diego Bay.Some important tools of the busker trade.The Checkerboard Guy David Aiken had everyone laughing with his funny antics!
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Murrugun the Mystic from AMC television hit Freakshow begins his busker festival danger act with fire eating.
Today I witnessed the grittiest performance I’ve ever seen. And I’ve seen a few.
I went to the Seaport Village Spring Busker Festival today and enjoyed a number of excellent, very entertaining acts. But the one that really stood out was performed by Murrugun the Mystic. He’s one of the stars of the AMC television reality show Freakshow.
While in a great deal of pain, Murrugun was first in the world to shoot a flaming arrow out of his throat! Let me describe his entire act…
Unfortunately, I filled up my camera’s memory card midway through his fire eating, just before he got to the really big stuff. At the end of some more conventional (but great) fire eating tricks, he really wowed the crowd. He filled his throat with a large quantity of kerosene combined with light gasoline, then produced two MASSIVE fireballs from his mouth. You had to see it to believe it! These balls of flame must’ve measured 6 feet in diameter. Oh, man! It was a bummer my camera ran out of memory! Afterward, he promptly rinsed his throat out with mouthwash and then water, because the flammable mixture is highly carcinogenic.
Next Murrugun balanced his entire body weight on a demonstrably sharp samurai sword. He leaned over the horizontal blade and supported himself on his stomach, lifting arms and legs from the ground.
Next came the bed of nails. I was volunteered, along with five other guys in the crowd, to help Murrugun wow the gathered audience. Each of us tested the nails, and while they weren’t sharp as pins, they were definitely pointed. Murrugun lay on the bed of nails, placed a board over his torso, and four of the guys, weighing a total of about 910 pounds, stepped up onto the board! I and another fellow helped to balance the four. Ouch! While this sort of thing has been performed for thousands of years, and the many nails effectively support a whole lot of weight, I wouldn’t want to be sandwiched between them and the combined mass of four guys!
Now the show got interesting in an alarming way. Murrugun used a very long pole to support “The Knives of Death”. I believe that’s what he called them. These five long knives faced downward from a ring, and should they topple down from the top of the pole, they’d probably impale poor Murrugun. I’m not sure how his act was supposed to proceed. The knives were balanced atop the pole. Suddenly down came the knives from on high and Murrugun lay flat on his back. The knives mostly missed him. But one sliced his leg. A good three inch gash was visible, and blood. He seemed stunned. He very gingerly hobbled to the back of the stage area, checked himself, and it looked to me like he then decided to tough it out. The audience didn’t seem to know how to react. Like them I just watched, astonished.
He was obviously hesitant and in pain. He told us he’d now perform a world’s first. He’d shoot a flaming arrow from his throat.
I could see his hands visibly trembling while he tried for a few seconds to piece two slender hollow rods together, which formed the shaft of the arrow. He gradually composed himself. He lubricated the long shaft, which was possibly two to three feet long, lit the pointed end, then proceeded to swallow the unique arrow. He bent over, and after attaching the arrow end to a slingshot-like device, shot the arrow out of his throat and through the air! He missed the balloon in the bullseye, perhaps 10 or 15 feet away, but not by much!
I know that street performers–and circus and carnival sideshow performers–have a difficult profession and can endure a lot of hardship. But what I witnessed this afternoon was truly heart-rending and impressive. It seemed no amount of pain could slow down Murrugun’s showmanship and passion for his art.
Murrugun the Mystic noted that because Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus have decided to eliminate elephants from their show (the news just out), perhaps there’s a chance the circus sideshow will make a comeback. That is Murrugun’s wish and personal mission. Can you help make that happen? Here’s his Facebook page.
Thanks, Murrugun, for privileging me to be a tiny part of busker history! Good luck!
Murrugun the Mystic makes his grand entrance near Seaport Village’s gazebo in the Plaza East.Fire eating preceded balancing on a sword, being crushed on a bed of nails, enduring knives of death, and shooting a flaming arrow from his throat!
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A friendly chef carries a huge frying pan outside on a downtown San Diego sidewalk.
Chefs have taken to the streets of downtown San Diego! They can be seen almost everywhere! Cooks on every corner–but where’s my breakfast?
Chef at restaurant window happily stirs the sauce and flings some pizza dough into the air.Culinary artist on Sixth Avenue proudly made a chalkboard menu.Chef tosses a mosaic pizza at base of the artistic Little Italy Landmark Sign.Another smiling chef has prepared a tasty slice of pizza!This Kansas City Barbeque pig is a Top Gun chef. I bet he likes to ham it up.
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At the corner of Ash and Front Street, a San Diego firefighter volunteers to collect donations to assist burn victims.
If you’re driving about San Diego County today and you see a fireman standing at an intersection holding up a boot, throw lots of money in!
Today a small army of San Diego firefighters are volunteering to collect donations for the Burn Institute. The Burn Institute’s mission is to help the victims of severe burns recover from a devastating and very difficult situation. The organization has a strong focus on children. Be generous!
Television reporter and firemen spread the word about today’s Fill the Boot campaign throughout San Diego.Fill the Boot generously to help the Burn Institute help children who’ve suffered from critical burns.
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Cool San Diego Sights! 