Street mural by artist Amandalynn, painted in 2016 near Mission Boulevard in Pacific Beach.
On Saturday I walked down Mission Boulevard through both Pacific Beach and Mission Beach. I was blown away by some of the really cool street art that I found. As you’ll see, many of the colorful murals that I spied in Pacific Beach were painted just last year.
This batch of photos represents my walk south along Mission Boulevard, which is a block from the beach, from around Emerald Street to Pacific Beach Drive. In a coming blog post, I’ll share the fun and very unusual art I encountered as I continued south through Mission Beach.
A second photo of the eye-catching mural by Amandalynn, which shows beautiful ladies in a colorful underwater scene.The Pacific Beach Mermaid hangs out on a rock painted on a wall. Art by Jared Blake Lazar a.k.a Jared Black Lazer.A humorous sign on the sidewalk. Head into this barber shop and come out a completely different person!
I don’t know if some critics would classify the above as art–but it was undeniably funny!
Street art on a utility box. The curl of this coffee’s steam resembles the surf beyond the sand.Bunny Kitty carries a cigarette butt away as a fierce sea monster emerges from the deep. Pacific Beach art created in 2016 by Dave Persue for PangeaSeed.A cool mural near The Local Pacific Beach restaurant and bar, painted in 2016 by artists Sean Dietrich and Kai Martin. A blonde on roller skates, the PB boardwalk, surfboards, and a rather unusual car.A very funny utility box. This side shows a woman at the beach covering the eyes of a small boy.Another side shows Pacific Beach tourists who have spotted something that is both interesting and alarming.100 years of skating talent between us, but……nobody notices!Another utility box is covered with mermaids. This friendly purple mermaid watches humans driving down Mission Boulevard.Another long-haired mermaid on the same box.And a third happy mermaid!Two ladies walking along the edge of a parking lot toward the nearby beach. They pass someone snoozing in a hammock strung between palm trees.Street art on doors shows a surfer climbing toward a lifeguard tower at sunset.One additional look at the gorgeous art painted in 2016 by muralist Amandalynn in Pacific Beach.
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A shiny PT-22 military trainer aircraft from the World War II era is about to be towed from the San Diego Air and Space Museum to their annex at Gillespie Field!
Another unexpected cool sight! I was walking around the San Diego Air and Space Museum in Balboa Park this morning when I spied a mysterious airplane wing being carried into the rear of the museum’s historic Ford Building! What was it?
I spoke to a nice guy overseeing the movement of two museum aircraft and found out!
The museum’s Boeing P-26 “Peashooter” had just returned from a year-long stint in Seattle, where it was featured in the Boeing Centennial. And to make room, a vintage PT-22 military trainer was being sent to Gillespie Field. The San Diego Air and Space Museum has an annex at Gillespie Field, which I suppose I’ll have to visit someday. (Yes, it was a PT-22 that Harrison Ford was flying when he crashed a couple years ago at a golf course!)
As I walked through Balboa Park, I spied a wing vanishing into the San Diego Air and Space Museum. It belongs to a Boeing P-26 “Peashooter”, which was on loan for a year in Seattle for the Boeing Centennial.These yellow wings in the San Diego Air and Space Museum truck are heading to Gillespie Field in East County. In preparation for land transport, they have been detached from a PT-22 airplane.The PT-22 is almost ready to be towed. The plane was gleaming in the sunlight and I had to take a closer look.Photo of the cockpit of the San Diego Air and Space Museum’s PT-22.A cool, unexpected sight in the parking lot behind the San Diego Air and Space Museum!
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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!
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The jaw-dropping night scene of a gigantic model train layout in Old Town San Diego!
During my walk through Old Town San Diego today, I stepped through an ordinary door into a fantastic dream! Before me stretched a positively enormous model train layout!
The Old Town Model Railroad Depot is a truly amazing attraction that anyone would enjoy seeing. The gigantic layout features O-Scale model trains, and as you can see in these photos, just lots of fun buildings, landscapes, moving figures and special effects.
I must say, in my opinion this layout even beats the two awesome O-Scale layouts at the San Diego Model Railroad Museum in Balboa Park. Now that really took some doing!
And the two guys I spoke to at the Old Town Model Railroad Depot were really friendly! Next time I walk past, you can be sure I’ll venture inside again!
The Old Town Model Railroad Depot is a cool attraction featuring a gigantic room full of working model trains! It’s one of the largest O-Scale layouts in the country!Fun gifts, artwork and items for model train hobbyists can also be purchased at San Diego’s unique Old Town Model Railroad Depot.A locomotive for sale among other unique and fascinating stuff.Lots of nostalgic historical railway posters decorate one wall.The huge train layout has two halves–one represents daytime, the other night. Kids can stand on platforms to see–and hear–all of the exciting action.Many model buildings populate the O-Scale train layout. It’s the same scale used by classic Lionel Trains.Tiny human figures and vehicles can be spotted everywhere one looks on the realistic layout.I really enjoyed the night side of the layout. It seemed even more realistic and dynamic. Special lighting effects include fireworks bursting over a stadium and lightning stabbing down from clouds!A tiny mechanic works in a tiny garage at night on a tiny truck.A detailed scene recreates firemen fighting a fire at night. I see miniature police, an ambulance, reporters and a small crowd of evacuated people!Your kids will go crazy. You have to see it to believe it. And it’s free! But leave a donation!
UPDATE!
I stepped into the Old Town Model Railroad Depot a second time! And I loved it even more than my first visit!
I met Gary Hickok, the creator of this stupendous layout, and learned he has been collecting the various pieces you see for 15 years. There are hundreds of tiny unique human figures, and they all seem to tell a story. Their unique poses are all part of a huge, bustling scene. The stories are often humorous!
Here are some more random photos that came out okay. These were all taken on the “day side” of the O-Scale model train layout. I hope you enjoy them!
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Day of the Dead (Día de los Muertos) art rendition of Justice League heroes, including Superman and Batman.
A good number of pop culture fans follow Cool San Diego Sights, because every year I cover San Diego Comic-Con and post tons of cosplay photos. So here’s something I saw today during my walk through Old Town that DC Comics readers might really enjoy!
In the window of a shop called Cielito Lindo were all sorts of Day of the Dead ornaments and gifts. And among all the colorful artwork were Batman, Wonder Woman, Superman, and his super-dog Krypto!
Day of the Dead is a beloved Mexican holiday that is very popular here in San Diego. In Spanish it’s called Día de los Muertos. Skulls and skeletons, which abound during the Day of the Dead, traditionally represent deceased loved ones.
As you can see, Day of the Dead inspires all sort of creative, unexpected art! No subject matter escapes its decorative influence! Even the mighty Justice League!
Day of the Dead (Día de los Muertos) art depicts popular DC Comics super-heroine Wonder Woman.A skeletal Superman flying through skulls.Fun skeleton artwork celebrating Day of the Dead (Día de los Muertos). The figures are Superman, his dog Krypto, and Batman!
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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–including many of Comic-Con and all sorts of cosplay–for you to share and enjoy!
Cool map made of colorful words shows different neighborhoods, lakes, beaches and parks in San Diego.
I was walking through the Horton Plaza shopping mall this morning when I spotted this awesome map of San Diego decorating one side of a vendor’s cart. It shows our city’s neighborhoods using their colorful names! It’s so cool I had to take a picture!
I’m not sure whether this graphic is available for purchase, however. The vendor hadn’t opened yet. If I recall, they were on the ground level not far from the Jessop’s Clock.
A mushroom fair was held this weekend in Balboa Park inside the Casa del Prado. The event was put on by the San Diego Mycological Society.
There’s a fungus among us! I’m not kidding! (Groan.)
All sorts of mushrooms were on display inside Balboa Park’s Casa del Prado today during a special show by the San Diego Mycological Society.
I wandered through this cool “mushroom fair” and took a good look around. And I learned quite a lot!
Check out a few fun photos and some informative captions…
Mushroom enthusiasts check out all sorts of displays at the mushroom show. Mushroom facts, art, and food products like jerky were plentiful.Several tables exhibited different types of mushrooms one might encounter in nature. The San Diego Mycological Society puts the fun in fungus!These mushrooms are all edible. Some are said to taste better than others.A basket full of Bolbitius vitellinus. Labelled edible but mediocre. According to Wikipedia, it’s inedible. I’m no expert, so don’t ask me.Cooking with Wild Mushrooms. (Click image to enlarge the sign for easy reading.)Okay, these are definitely poisonous! Children were advised not to touch. I steered well clear!Here’s a monster yeast fungus so villainous that Captain Marvel had a tough time coping with it.I do know that much of the art displayed at the mushroom show was tasty!Check out this fascinating poster and the following photo. Spore prints show how spores are ejected from the mushroom gills.These spore prints strangely remind me of human thumbprints.An inventive artist created some spore print cards, hand made from mushrooms found in San Diego! Cool!Volunteers from the San Diego Mycological Society are collecting mushroom specimens found throughout the county. Tiny tissue samples will be scientifically barcoded for species identification.All sorts of arts and crafts, books and fascinating stuff was for sale at the mushroom fair.Colorful mushroom ornaments!
UPDATE!
I swung by the annual event again in 2018. I saw many of the same interesting exhibits, and snapped a couple more fun pics…
Spore print cards and a fun fungus pillow!Cool mushroom artwork for sale.
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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 fun photos for you to enjoy!
These folks were drumming their hearts out as I neared. Unfortunately, I arrived too late. Their musical performance ended a few moments later.
Okay, I was just walking along through Balboa Park this afternoon when I stumbled upon something really cool. Members of the Super Sonic Samba School were drumming like crazy in Pepper Grove!
I didn’t bother these folks, but their sign on the grass is probably seen by relatively few people–so I thought I might help and post a photo!
Read the sign to learn more about the Super Sonic Samba School. If you want to dance or drum in San Diego, this looks like great fun! And you can’t beat creating music outdoors on soft green grass, in fresh air and sunshine. And in beautiful Balboa Park!
The Super Sonic Samba School welcomes dancers and drummers at the World Beat Center and Pepper Grove in Balboa Park.If you drum in Pepper Grove, you get to create music near some cool art. This huge mural is on the Centro Cultural de la Raza.Another Sunday drumming session of the Super Sonic Samba School wraps up. Looks like a whole lot of fun!
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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!
Something cool has sprung up at the center of Balboa Park’s theater complex.
Look what I spied today during my walk through Balboa Park! Some people were milling around an interesting work of interactive art in front of the Old Globe, and I had to check it out. Turns out I had stumbled upon The Journey, some fun outdoor artwork created by Dan Reeves. The Journey is inspired by the Old Globe Theatre’s production of Steve Martin’s play Picasso at the Lapin Agile.
I learned this is a section of a larger torus that will appear at the next Burning Man. The Journey is a mortise and tenon structure made of wood, which produces a unique lighting and audio experience best seen at night. Illuminated with colorful LED lights, people can pose for photographs!
Better check it out soon. The Journey will be on display at the Old Globe until this Sunday, January 19!
The Journey is a small section of a larger torus that will be a brilliant, spectacular work of art at Burning Man.The Journey is on view at the Old Globe Theatre’s Copley Plaza through this Sunday, February 19. A cool experience inspired by the Steve Martin play Picasso at the Lapin Agile.Pose in this uniquely colorful work of art after dark and you can have a spectacular photo taken!
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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!
Baseball fans check out cool historical exhibits inside the San Diego Padres Hall of Fame at Petco Park.
Lovers of baseball history and fans of the San Diego Padres would definitely enjoy visiting the new Padres Hall of Fame at Petco Park. Inside, one can see many great exhibits concerning baseball in San Diego.
I checked out the Padres Hall of Fame last weekend during the Celebrate San Diego event. Here’s just a small preview of what you’ll see…
Historical photo shows first recorded game of baseball in San Diego. It took place on May 6, 1871.The first box score in the San Diego Union in 1874, and a 1907 photo showing local team posing in front of the Pickwick Theatre in downtown San Diego.Old photo of baseball game being played in 1910 at Athletic Park near the shipyards.Babe Ruth poses with a bat during an exhibition tour at Balboa Stadium in 1927.Padres fans check out lots of photos and cool artifacts which recall the history of baseball in San Diego. On the left are photos of the first Padres team in 1936, and Lane Field.Photo of young Ted Williams, who joined the Padres after graduating from Hoover High School. He helped the Padres win the Pacific Coast League title in 1937.Souvenir program for the opening game of the 1939 season in the Pacific Coast League. San Diego Padres versus Oakland Oaks.1954 photo of big celebration parade along Broadway in downtown San Diego. The Padres finished first that year in the Pacific Coast League.Autographed Padres team ball from 1954, and the home run ball smashed by Bill Elliot in the one game playoff to win the PCL championship.Old baseball program from the 1959 Pacific Coast League All Star Game.Photos of legendary radio broadcaster Jerry Coleman, who began a 42-year career in 1972, and Nate Colbert who that year hit five home runs in a Padres baseball double header.The National League Cy Young Award, presented to Padres pitcher Randy Jones in 1976.Souvenir program for the 1978 All-Star Game played in San Diego Stadium.It’s the world famous mascot, the San Diego Chicken!1981 photo shows future superstar Tony Gwynn signing with the San Diego Padres.Memories from the 1984 season. I was a young man, who was very excited watching the Padres defeat the Chicago Cubs to win the National League pennant.Tony Gwynn baseball jersey that honored Ray Krok, beloved Padres owner, who passed away in 1984.1987 Rawlings Gold Glove Award, presented to Tony Gwynn, The Finest in the Field.In 1994 Tony Gwynn won the Silver Slugger Award. He batted .394 in a season cut short by a player strike.In 1996 Ken Caminiti was voted National League MVP and Gwynn hit .353 to win a seventh batting title.Legendary reliever Trevor Hoffman’s jersey on display in the Padres Hall of Fame at Petco Park. He helped the Padres win the 1998 National League pennant.Trevor Hoffman becomes the all-time Major League Baseball saves leader in 2006.Photo of Ted Williams, member of the PCL San Diego Padres.Photos of two Padres legends. Dave Winfield and Jerry Coleman.A display board inside the Padres Hall of Fame shows the team’s all-time leaders in various categories.The San Diego Padres Hall of Fame at Petco Park will rekindle warm memories for dedicated hometown baseball fans.
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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 fun photos for you to share and enjoy!
A huge postcard has appeared on Dewey Road in Point Loma, at the southwest end of Liberty Station’s Arts District!
I walked around Liberty Station today before sitting down by the boat channel to write another short story. And look what I discovered! It’s the first time I’ve seen this cool mural!
This new public art resembles a gigantic postcard, which reads: Greetings from U.S. Naval Training Station. It was created by the two artists who painted the postcard-like Greetings from San Diego mural, which I photographed a month ago in North Park. Victor Ving and Lisa Beggs are travelling around the country in an RV and creating a whole bunch of these huge colorful postcard murals!
Painted inside the letters I see scenes from Ingram Plaza, the Barracks Arcade, Liberty Public Market and the USS Recruit!
As you might know, the U.S. Naval Training Station, or Naval Training Center San Diego, was a military base where thousands of sailor recruits learned the ropes upon enlisting in the U.S. Navy. It closed in 1997 and has been redeveloped into a mixed cultural, recreational, shopping, business and residential complex in Point Loma. It’s like a spacious park with lots of grass, arched walkways and fountains–a perfect place to relax!
During my stroll today though Liberty Station, I discovered even more public art, which I’ll blog about shortly. And please watch for my new work of fiction at Short Stories by Richard. I think it’s almost done!
Greetings from U.S. Naval Training Center. A cool new mural at Liberty Station by artists Victor Ving and Lisa Beggs.
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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!
Cool San Diego Sights! 