Tag: entertainment

Community celebrated at Santee Street Fair!

The big 2025 Santee Street Fair was held today! Thousands of happy people came together at Santee Town Center to celebrate the start of summer! It’s Memorial Day weekend!

From entertainment on the main stage . . . to plenty of food . . . to carnival rides for the kids . . . to community organizations and vendors . . . there was plenty to see and do!

I walked around taking in the atmosphere while meeting some friendly people.

As I arrived, cheerleaders from Santana High School were performing for the gathered crowd…

As the next photograph suggests, this is one of the most popular street festivals in San Diego County!

Some of the cool rides in the fun zone…

I learned about animal sanctuary Lions Tigers and Bears in Alpine. I often see them on the TV news. It’s a place I have yet to visit.

Viola makes yummy cookies and other treats. She once was interviewed on CBS News 8!

The City of Santee was well represented at the street fair.

Santee offers many public activities for residents, including families and seniors. The Santee Summer Concerts are coming up!

Learn more about what’s going on in Santee by checking out the Parks and Recreation website.

Somebody spun a prize wheel and won!

The San Diego County Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) trains you to protect yourself, your family, your neighbors and neighborhood in an emergency situation.

I got an emergency kit that includes a Safety Lightstick, which I’ve placed within easy reach in case my power goes out.

These smiling folks were full of information about Santee Lakes Recreation Preserve. If you like freshwater fishing, that would be a great place!

Food galore at the Santee Street Fair!

Mr. Fun smiled for my camera, and probably wondered who the heck I was.

Grama Rose hosts a radio show, which always includes heart, wisdom and a recipe!

American Legion Riders had some wheels near their canopy.

I coaxed a smile out of this VFW gent!

An honest-to-goodness chimney sweep! Did he fly in to Santee from London?

A brilliant karate demonstration receives oohs and aahs from a large audience!

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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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Super fun Lucha Libre exhibit opens in San Diego!

A super fun exhibition opened in San Diego today at the Comic-Con Museum in Balboa Park. It’s all about Mexican lucha libre wrestling!

Sangre, Sudor, y Mito: The Art and Tradition of Mexican Lucha Libre features so much cool stuff, I hardly know how to describe it all!

Young and old, lucha libre fans and those who are merely curious–all will enjoy seeing actual masks and costumes worn by wrestling stars, not to mention artwork, posters, comic books, championship belts, collectibles and more.

Fans of Chula Vista’s own legendary Rey Mysterio, popular favorite and many-time international champion who continues to work for WWE, will love seeing how he is generously represented in the exhibit, too!

I was fortunate to get a sneak preview this morning. The exhibition is substantial, taking up the entire second level of the Comic-Con Museum. It has been assembled with the help of Museo de Lucha Libre Tijuana Mexicana.

Topics explored in the exhibition include lucha libre’s origin in Mexico; its impact on the popular culture through many generations; its mythic qualities; the varieties of male luchador and female luchadora characters; luchadora pioneers and their ongoing struggle for recognition and equality; how lucha libre has become increasingly influencial around the world . . .

Yes, anything and everything concerning lucha libre is celebrated!

In essence, lucha libre performers are living, breathing superheroes (or villains). Certain legendary luchadores are revered by millions of fans throughout Mexico. How formidable are these masked wrestlers? Movie posters have them battling gangsters and even vampires!

Lots of fun! Bring the kids!

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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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Seniors have fun dancing in San Diego!

Seniors in San Diego have a great opportunity to get out, make new friends and have fun dancing!

The City of San Diego’s AgeWell Services offers themed dances twice each month in Balboa Park. The dances (including lessons) are held in the Balboa Park Club building’s huge ballroom.

I happened to stumble upon today’s dance while walking around the park. Inside the ballroom a big, happy gathering of seniors was enjoying the day’s Western theme. Refreshments, prizes, decorations in the ballroom and a sprinkling of cowboy hats added to the festive atmosphere!

To see which dances are coming up, check out the information above. Better yet, read the very informative online newsletter published by AgeWell Services! You can do that from their webpage by clicking here.

If doing stuff on the internet isn’t your thing, you can also call Skyler at 619-525-8247. He’s a great guy and will be pleased to help you out!

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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!

Lucha Fest kicks off Comic-Con Museum exhibit!

The Comic-Con Museum will be opening an exhibit celebrating Mexican lucha libre wrestling on May 22, 2025. The exhibition is titled Sangre, Sudor y Mito and will feature masks and costumes worn by legendary luchadores, collectibles, original art, video and much more.

To kick things off, Lucha Fest is being held in San Diego at the Soap Factory this afternoon.

The free, family-friendly event features food, music, art, lowriders and live lucha libre wrestling! Lucha Fest is supported by the Comic-Con Museum, Museo de Lucha Libre Tijuana Mexicana, and the Office of the Consulate General of Mexico in San Diego.

I arrived as it opened, which turned out to be much too early. The wrestling, I learned wouldn’t begin for a couple hours, so I walked around checking things out for a short while.

A highlight of Lucha Fest is the official unveiling of a huge mural across the street, which features legendary luchadores, including Chula Vista’s own Rey Mysterio. It was created by prolific local artist Dentlok. I had photographed the mural in early April, not knowing anything about it. See those photographs here.

The Soap Factory is a mostly outdoor venue east of downtown San Diego. It has many cool murals. I’ve focused my few photos today on the fun event as it barely got started. (Yes, I neglected to photograph the ring–there was nothing going on at the time.)

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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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Shotgun Tom and train fun in Balboa Park!

Can you believe it? Today I met legendary radio personality “Shotgun Tom” Kelly at the San Diego Model Railroad Museum in Balboa Park!

Shotgun Tom was running trains as he often does on Wednesday afternoons. His pleasant greeting brought me back to my younger days, when his distinctive radio voice was a part of my life.

Shotgun Tom is a model train enthusiast. He has his own elaborate layout at home. A display at the museum concerns his love for the hobby and how it developed. I blogged about this not too long ago–you can see what I posted by clicking here.

I asked whether he was still on the radio, and the answer was YES! You can catch his 60s Gold program on SiriusXM Channel 73 on week nights 4 -9 pm Pacific Time. He has also written a book titled All I Wanna Do is Play the Hits, which you can check out on Amazon here. The book’s cover shows him with his Hollywood Walk of Fame star.

I went to the San Diego Model Railroad Museum today because they are participating in the San Diego Museum Council’s “Big Exchange,” which allows members of one museum to visit others for free from May 1 to May 18. See which museums are participating by scrolling down this page.

If you’ve never been to the San Diego Model Railroad Museum, you’re missing out on a ton of fun! I took a few random photos, some behind glass.

One of the museum’s five amazing layouts (six if you include the outdoor Garden Railroad) is undergoing construction as it expands, as you might notice…

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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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Lucha libre surprise for Cinco de Mayo!

A huge lucha libre audience looked on with amazement as the unforeseen happened in San Diego’s Gaslamp Quarter during today’s Cinco de Mayo celebration!

The first high-flying match was amazing, as exciting as anything you’ll see on television or in a big arena. The luchadores of World Power Wrestling (WPW) entertained everyone with their moves, and the good guy (despite having his mask removed and eyes viciously raked when the official wasn’t looking) was victorious!

That wasn’t the big surprise, however. That came in the second match.

Miguel Lopez, General Manager of Margaritaville Hotel San Diego Gaslamp Quarter, took to the ring with two other wrestlers, promoting his establishment. As the two wrestlers (one appearing like an evil clown) began to grapple, Miguel suddenly removed his outer clothing and revealed his lucha libre costume! Like a sudden flash of lightning he decimated the evil clown!

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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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Fun photos of 2025 East Village Block Party!

This morning, before the East Village Block Party officially began, I walked down J Street just north of Petco Park and checked out a bunch of very cool lowrider cars. You can see those photographs by clicking here.

I returned to the block party in the mid-afternoon as it was in full swing!

The huge crowd wasn’t surprising. The San Diego Padres seem more popular than ever. The East Village Block Party celebrates the beginning of a promising 2025 baseball season.

Enjoy some fun photos!

Mariachi Internacional was performing on the stage at the east end of the block party. As you’ll see, they’d later walk down J Street playing their instruments with big smiles.

The pitching game must be tough. I didn’t see a single person succeed.

Lots of Padres fans had their pets along…

Cody Carter and Quartet were performing country music live on another block party stage.

A fun street performer makes passersby smile…

People (mostly kids) were trying their hand at climbing…

A street artist who said his name is James created this cool graffiti East Village art. A dog with a swag chain gets ready for a photo in front of it!

A sign explains how fans helped to replace a vandalized Padres mural in North Park. (You can see the mural that was replaced here.)

Here come the mariachis!

Will the Padres make the MLB Postseason again in 2025? We hope so!

Firefighters at San Diego Fire Station No. 4 give my camera a thumbs up!

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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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Cool lowriders at the East Village Block Party!

Very cool lowriders are a big attraction at today’s East Village Block Party in downtown San Diego. As I walked along J Street between Sixth and Tenth Avenues, a few minutes before the event officially began, I took these photos. I was surprised at the number of cars participating this year. Check them out!

The 2025 East Village Block Party is being held one block north of Petco Park and celebrates the opening of the new baseball season. (The San Diego Padres are 2-0 and looking good so far!) The event is today, March 29, 2025, from 10:00 am to 4:30 pm.

When I walked through the outdoor party, several late arriving vendors were still setting up tables and the entertainment hadn’t begun. I’ve thrown in a few miscellaneous photos, as well, so you get the general vibe!

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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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Persian dance and culture in Balboa Park!

The House of Iran had their lawn program today at the International Cottages in Balboa Park. Their cultural program is held every year on the Sunday following the Persian New Year, which is called Nowruz. Nowruz occurs on the day of the vernal equinox, which is the first day of Spring.

Speeches and introductions during the event were largely in Farsi, which made it difficult for an English speaker like myself to understand all that was going on. I did understand that the program celebrated thousands of years of Persian history and culture.

There was the awarding of scholarships to young people and a thank you to the San Diego Police Department. There was Afsoon Johnston, a world champion wrestling medalist whose family fled Iran. There was a tent serving tasty, freshly made kabab, and a big crowd clapping to lots of happy dancing and music!

You can see some of traditional costumes. You can also see how members of the audience took to the stage to dance!

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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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Rhythms of Madagascar coming to San Diego!

Have you ever listened to music from Madagascar? I can’t say that I have.

A live performance by BeMaeva, an independent band rooted in the soul-stirring rhythms of Madagascar, is coming to San Diego on March 14th, 2025. This sounds like a great event at a very cool venue that is located a little east of downtown: The Soap Factory!

(I once visited the Soap Factory during an architectural open house event. See that blog post here.)

You can get tickets for BeMaeva LIVE in San Diego and learn more about the concert at this webpage.

The description includes: Led by the dynamic duo of Dina Maeva, a powerhouse Baltimore-born vocalist with Malagasy heritage now based in San Diego, and Rade Bema, a multi-instrumental maestro from New York, BeMaeva brings an unforgettable fusion of world music, storytelling, and cultural celebration.

More than a concert—this is a cultural journey you don’t want to miss!

Awesome!

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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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