Tag: education

300+ FREE online courses with library card!

If you have a library card with the San Diego Public Library, you can take almost 375 free online courses that further your professional and personal development!

I knew nothing about this amazing opportunity until the above gentleman who works for the library told me about it!

With a library card and access to a computer, anyone can enroll in free Gale Courses that provide 6-week online classes with real instructors. Subjects include everything from Accounting and Finance to Business to Computer Applications to Healthcare and Medical to Law and Legal to Teaching and Education and much more! I was told that completion of certain courses even provides certification.

To see all that is available, check out this webpage.

These free Gale Courses are available through the San Diego Library’s online eLibrary, which you can visit by clicking here.

The eLibrary offers many additional services. Users have access to eBooks, audiobooks, digital magazines, streaming videos, research databases, manuals, and a whole lot more.

Create a free account using your library card and you have access to a huge universe of free online resources!

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Community gathers for Green Corridor Holiday!

A special event was held today in National City, near that city’s border with Southeast San Diego. The Green Corridor Holiday brought together local families to celebrate the holidays and to connect with community organizations.

The Green Corridor is a name for the area north of Division Street and east of Palm Avenue/47th Street. Transforming the bare space, near a tangle of Interstate 805 and ramps, has been the subject of much discussion. Many in the community have advocated making this Green Corridor into a proud cultural center and green space.

I was told many would also love to have the freeway pillars painted with beautiful murals–a sort of smaller Chicano Park. I’m no expert concerning the project, or where it stands, but it all sounds great to me! The place does seem ideally located for a native garden and park.

The Green Corridor Holiday event brought families together for music, tasty food, arts and crafts, a toy distribution, a tree giveaway, fun with Santa Claus and the Grinch, and Azteca dancing (which I unfortunately missed). I did notice an artist was painting one of the freeway pillars.

Organizations working to improve the neighborhood were present, including Mundo Gardens, the Urban Collaborative Project, Caltrans, the San Diego Library, and others. They were happy to connect with one and all, listen to community members, and provide empowering information.

If you’d like to get involved, check out the two links above!

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If you’d like to see San Diego through my lens, find the “Follow” box in the sidebar to receive new posts in your email, or bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

(If you’re viewing Cool San Diego Sights on a phone, you can open my website’s sidebar by tapping those three parallel lines at the top of the page.)

Explore emerging ocean technology in San Diego!

A special event is coming up next Saturday, November 15, 2025. Visitors to the Maritime Museum of San Diego will have the opportunity to explore how emerging technologies are transforming how we use and protect ocean resources.

The event is free with General Admission and is perfect for families, students and anyone interesting in learning about blue technology. Hours are 10 am to 4 pm.

What is Blue Tech? It’s a category of advanced technologies focused on the sustainable development of the world’s oceans and coasts, also known as the Blue Economy.

According to one sign in the Maritime Museum, there will be hands-on exploration and interactive experiences concerning underwater robots, engineering, data tools and more. Student marine clubs will be there with their own innovations, too!

Super cool!

Some high tech equipment I spotted today near the sign…

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I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or X.

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Photos from past Fleet Week events in San Diego.

Many public Fleet Week events have been cancelled in San Diego for 2025 because of the ongoing federal government shutdown. Fleet Week activities were scheduled to begin in earnest this weekend.

Unfortunately, the usual, very popular events at the Broadway Pier have been cancelled, including U.S. Navy demonstrations, STEM exhibits and public tours of ships.

Over the years, I’ve taken photographs at a variety of public Fleet Week events. I thought I share a few of them. Those events have included the Sea and Air Parade, a Veterans Art Exhibit, the Fleet Week Innovation Zone in the Port Pavilion, and a Military & Veteran Appreciation Concert in Balboa Park. That first photo above, taken near the USS Midway, is of cool cars promoting the Fleet Week Coronado Speed Festival at Naval Air Station North Island.

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I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or X.

Feel free to share!

Día de los Muertos student art in Old Town!

In time for Día de los Muertos, visitors to Old Town San Diego State Historic Park can now enjoy an extensive student art exhibit titled Remembrance & Resilience.

Students from schools throughout the San Diego Unified School District have created artworks based on Día de los Muertos imagery. The divided exhibit is located in two different Old Town buildings: the recently vacant Captain Fitch Store and the historic U.S. House.

If you find yourself walking through the State Park, look for the signs. The exhibit will continue through November 2, 2026.

My first few photos come from inside the spacious old Captain Fitch Store. Dozens of displays were created by kids of all ages, from elementary school to high school. They honor memory, identity and tradition.

The next few photos are from the U.S. House. Students from Crawford High School, Logan Memorial, Zamorano Elementary, and Lincoln High School partnered with Sew Loka to create wearable art using reclaimed fabric.

In one room, art glows in the dark when exposed to ultraviolet light!

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I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or X.

Feel free to share!

Exploring genealogy at San Diego History Center!

October is Family History Month, and yesterday was Genealogy Day at the San Diego History Center. I stumbled upon the event and met a bunch of great people!

Various organizations were present that can help anyone investigate their own family tree.

Are you curious about your ancestors?

Following are organizations might be able to help you research the history of your family going back generations. To investigate the possibilities, click these links:

Chula Vista Genealogical Society

San Diego Genealogical Society

San Diego African American Genealogy Research Group

FamilySearch

San Diego Jewish Genealogical Society

Daughters of the American Revolution

Sons of the American Revolution

Descendants of Early San Diego

The San Diego History Center also maintains historical archives that can be accessed by the public for research purposes. Diverse materials cover hundreds of years of San Diego history. You can learn more by clicking here!

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I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or X.

Feel free to share!

House of Taiwan hosts exhibit in Balboa Park!

Did you know the House of Taiwan is one of the newest members of the International Cottages in Balboa Park? I learned today that they joined the House of Pacific Relations International Cottages in August!

Today they hosted an exhibit in the Hall of Nations for their very first time, and wow, what great displays! The history and culture of Taiwan was celebrated with all sorts of information, traditional crafts and art objects, a film, and even treats! (I sampled an imported pastry-like buttery fènglí sū (鳳梨酥), or pineapple cake, for which Taiwan is famous. Yum!)

I met some super nice people and took a few photographs of the event.

I see the House of Taiwan has a website and they are already very active in the community. Check out their site here!

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I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or X.

Feel free to share!

Native American Heritage Festival in Escondido!

The First Annual Native American Heritage Festival was held this afternoon in Escondido’s Grape Day Park.

The free community event was hosted by the Native Youth Foundation and featured Native American culture, education, crafts, food, music and fun for the entire family.

The festival brought together tribes from around the Southern California region to honor Indigenous Peoples’ Day. It was a celebration of Native voices shaping the future.

I came by in the late afternoon as the festival was kicking off. When I departed about an hour later, a good crowd had gathered for this inaugural event.

I enjoyed listening to the Campo Bird Singers, visiting various booths and eating crispy tacos.

What are some of the things I learned?

I learned the people in the next photo represent Volunteer Escondido. They’re neighbors who come together to help build a stronger community and enhance the quality of life for all!

You can visit their website here! Check out their event calendar and perhaps you can participate as a volunteer in their good work!

I was interested to learn from the next group of smiling people that there is a National Native American Hall of Fame!

The organization, with its headquarters in Oklahoma City, honors Native American achievements in contemporary society, from the 1860s to present day!

Visit their website here! There are various ways that you can support them!

Look! More friendly people at the next booth!

They represent the La Jolla Generations Program, a tribal youth program of the La Jolla Band of Luiseño Indians.

They would be demonstrating basketmaking later during the festival!

In the late morning, the Campo Bird Singers were on stage performing traditional, sacred Bird Songs.

Lots of tasty food, including carne asada and Kumeyaay frybread!

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I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or X.

Feel free to share!

Free help to repair your bike in San Diego!

Does your bicycle need repair? Do you live anywhere near City Heights in San Diego? Check out this free, very cool community resource!

Bikes del Pueblo operates on Sundays near the corner of El Cajon Boulevard and 40th Street. You can see them in action in these photographs.

The collective is a bunch of volunteers and neighbors who get together to maintain bicycles and help each other. They provide free educational workshops, and access to tools and bicycle parts. Some of the regular participants have a lot of experience repairing bikes and are happy to help. Bikes del Pueblo welcomes donations–bicycles, parts, and money–to help keep a good thing going.

When I walked by a few weekends ago, they were really busy! Some people were even hanging out at the picnic benches and enjoying the sunny day. What a great resource for a community that can be underserved.

Got a bike? Does it need some work? Check out their website for more info by clicking here!

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I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or X.

Feel free to share!

Words of San Diego Poet Laureate at Civic Center.

In San Diego’s Civic Center Plaza, near the Civic Theatre Ticket Office, you’ll find these words:

Blooming is the wild body unmarred by the limits of this world

Its petals temporary but you’d never know it

The two lines were written by Paola Capó-García, San Diego Poet Laureate 2025-2027. A special City of San Diego webpage provides her biography.

Paola Capó-García lives in North Park. Her accomplishments and accolades as educator, author and journalist are numerous.

The thought-provoking words in Civic Center Plaza are actually the conclusion of her poem Wild, which you can read here. Her poem explains the difference between blooming and blossoming.

Are you blooming?

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I post new blogs pretty often. If you like discovering new things, bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and swing on by occasionally!

I live in downtown San Diego and love to walk around with my camera! You can follow Cool San Diego Sights via Facebook or X.

Feel free to share!