Tag: downtown

Love and peace in an East Village mural!

Check out this fantastic mural which was painted earlier this year on a wall in East Village!

I’ve been able to ascertain it was created by artist John Bukaty, whose website is here, but I don’t know the mural’s title–if indeed it has any. The symmetric design features bright psychedelic splashes of color including a heart, two birds, a peace sign and the phrase: Run to the rescue with love…and peace will follow.

I’d say this mural certainly qualifies as cool!

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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!

Bright, fantastic patterns in the city sky.

As an amateur photographer, I’m always looking for interesting photo opportunities as I walk about.

In downtown San Diego some fantastic images can be captured simply by turning my little camera skyward.

Bright reflection, shadow, and the grid-like windows of tall buildings produce strangely appealing patterns. The photographs that result can make what is familiar mysterious.

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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!

Handmade face masks for sale downtown!

If you need face coverings during the present coronavirus pandemic, today I discovered that handmade face masks are for sale downtown! They are being produced at Sante’s Tailoring located at 1150 7th Avenue, #1.

As I walked up Seventh Avenue, I saw a table covered with all sorts of colorful face coverings for sale, and met Luzney, who works in another of the building’s suites. Luzney’s Flowers and Gifts at 1150 7th Avenue, #2 has seen a sharp downturn in flower sales, as hotels are empty and weddings are put off during the COVID-19 crisis, so she’s helping to sew these cloth masks, too!

I learned from Luzney that the cotton, washable face masks will be for sale at this location Mondays through Fridays, from 9 am to 2 pm. If you live or work downtown, or just need some cool face masks once the countywide May 1 public face covering rules come into effect, either swing on by, or you can call their phone at 619-231-9898.

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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!

Mural on roof of old Family Court Building.

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Because I live nearby on Cortez Hill, I frequently see the colorful mural in the above photograph. It was painted last year at one end of the rooftop of the old, now vacant San Diego Superior Court Family Court Building. (Years ago the Family Court moved to another downtown location.)

For a while last year, during a larger than average influx of refugees, the unused building was turned into a temporary shelter for asylum-seeking families. At the time I often saw kids playing outdoors on the roof, to one side of the parking area.

One day the mural appeared. Some cheerful color to brighten the lives of children, who were experiencing a very stressful moment in their lives through no fault of their own.

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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 bronze topiary sphere cast from live flora.

An amazing bronze sculpture can be found in downtown San Diego, on Ash Street beside the new Carte Hotel. It’s titled Global Proportion.

Created by artist Beverly Penn in 2019, the bronze “topiary sphere” is described as “a journey and destination created from individual bronze leaves cast from live flora at Balboa Park.”

The diverse leaves seem to represent many beautiful lives, joined together in one organic Earth-like object.

Below the amazing bronze topiary sphere, inlaid plaza tiles represent fallen leaves, scattered by the wind.

Whenever I walk by this very unique sculpture I like to pause for a moment and look up. It’s like a small, perfectly beautiful planet that hovers almost within reach.

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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!

Essential supplies at cost for elderly, vulnerable.

If you live in San Diego, here’s an exceptional offer you might want to check out!

I frequently walk past the Flamin’ Phó and Sushi Bar in downtown San Diego, located on Sixth Avenue at the base of Cortez Hill. Recently, during the current coronavirus pandemic, I’ve noticed a large sign in their window.

They are selling at cost essential supplies for the elderly and people with pre-existing conditions, and delivery is available! Their Facebook page is here. According to the sign, they are providing this service with the help of our local Office Depot.

If you think this might help you, please read the info in my photograph and contact Flamin’ Phó and Sushi Bar to make sure the offer is still good and whether you qualify.

(I must say that over the years I’ve dropped by the restaurant from time to time for take out food, and it’s great!)

What an awesome way to help during the coronavirus pandemic! Neighbors coming together will help us all get through this difficult period.

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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!

Yoda spotted in East Village!

During my afternoon walk through East Village I had to do a double take. Had I stepped into a galaxy far, far away?

Across the wide Space 4 Art parking lot I spotted Yoda!

I took the above photo from a distant sidewalk, then greatly enlarged the image and sharpened it. Hopefully you can see how cool this mural appears in person!

Yoda is spray painted on a nondescript building whose other sides are home to a variety of murals. Check out an awesome Mechanical Shark here, and other works of super creative street art 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!

Walking through a strange downtown dream.

The ongoing coronavirus pandemic is like a strange and terrible nightmare.

This afternoon I walked randomly around downtown San Diego, looking with new eyes at ordinary things. And I wondered if every day in this world is a dream.

Dreamlike visions and surprises await around every corner.

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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!

Scenes of normalcy in abnormal times.

A commercial fishing boat unloads their catch in Tuna Harbor.
A commercial fishing boat unloads their catch in Tuna Harbor.

We live in abnormal times.

The coronavirus pandemic has forced many businesses to temporarily shut down. There is little traffic on roads and freeways. Citizens stay safely home, or wear face coverings and keep six feet apart. It’s like an eerie scene from a science fiction movie.

But there are increasing signs that the pandemic has peaked, and hopefully our lives can eventually return to a semblance of normalcy.

Today I got some exercise by walking in a loop through downtown San Diego, including a stretch along the sunny Embarcadero. For a weekday, the usually bustling city was much, much quieter than usual.

But there were signs of activity.

I captured a few images of seeming normalcy in these very abnormal times.

The Coronado Ferry crosses quiet San Diego Bay.
The Coronado Ferry crosses quiet San Diego Bay.
Renovation work is underway at Seaport Village.
Renovation work is underway at Seaport Village.
Algae must still be removed from the hulls of boats in the Marriott Marina.
Algae must still be removed from the hulls of boats in the Marriott Marina.
An athlete trains by running up and down the steps of the San Diego Convention Center.
An athlete trains by running up and down the steps of the San Diego Convention Center.
The San Diego Symphony's new waterfront venue "The Shell" is still under construction.
Construction of the San Diego Symphony’s new waterfront venue “The Shell” continues.
One must still check the phone and grab some carry out food.
One must still check the phone and grab some carry out food.
A lot of work is being down on the streets of San Diego while traffic is light.
A lot of work is being down on the streets of San Diego while traffic is unusually light.
The good old Post Office is still delivering.
The United States Post Office is still delivering.
The Downtown San Diego Partnership is still keeping us Clean and Safe.
The Downtown San Diego Partnership is still keeping my neighborhood Clean and Safe.

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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!

Two wise MLK quotes for challenging times.

Peace as the world commonly understands it comes when the summer sky is clear and the sun shines in scintillating beauty, when the pocketbook is full, when the mind and body are free of ache and pain..but...true peace...is a calmness of soul amid terrors of trouble, inner tranquility amid the howl and rage of outer storm...
Peace as the world commonly understands it comes when the summer sky is clear and the sun shines in scintillating beauty, when the pocketbook is full, when the mind and body are free of ache and pain..but…true peace…is a calmness of soul amid terrors of trouble, inner tranquility amid the howl and rage of outer storm…

The worldwide coronavirus pandemic has suddenly made all of our lives very challenging. There is disruption, isolation, uncertainty, fear, and for too many, grieving.

As I took my exercise in downtown San Diego, careful to maintain social distance as other walkers neared, I noticed a couple of wise quotes by Martin Luther King Jr. enshrined along the MLK Promenade. They are perfect for this difficult time we live in.

The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.
The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.

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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.