Tag: la jolla

Love’s dance at La Jolla Playhouse’s WOW!

Stunning. Powerful. I’m not sure how I can adequately describe one performance today at the La Jolla Playhouse WOW Festival.

Two acrobatic dancers from the Taiwanese circus troupe 0471 Acro Physical Theatre in their performance of Duo acted out the passion and turmoil of love. The crowd watching in UCSD’s Revelle Plaza was completely mesmerized.

Not only was the performing couple incredibly athletic, but they convincingly displayed the many emotions of troubled but enduring love. There was reluctance, passion, the pushing away, the pulling together. There were moments of sky reaching ecstasy.

There was interesting symbolism, too. It seemed to me the clothing they carried and displayed at times was symbolic of an ideal partner as lovers might see it. But the hesitation, indecision, conflict, resentment and other emotions made the actors, whirling about without that fancy clothing, more human, more true. Through the motion of their bodies, they transmitted their inner impulses and desires.

How the two acrobats could expressively move and fly about for half an hour nonstop was jaw-dropping. I thought their acting was even more impressive. It expressed what love is.

I saw people in the audience with hands over their heart.

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Sheep attacked by wolf in La Jolla!

A pen full of vulnerable sheep was attacked today in La Jolla. A wolf somehow infiltrated the UC San Diego campus and made its way to the small sheep pen at Revelle Plaza, where the terrified, trembling sheep were saved by a shepherd, who chased the wolf away.

Onlookers clapped as the wolf slinked away. That’s because they’d just witnessed a unique, often funny performance of Les moutons by Canadian company CORPUS. The strange act was part of this weekend’s La Jolla Playhouse 2024 WOW Festival!

The sheep might have been sheepish, but they did entertain the crowd with their dull stares, herd mentality, their shearing, milking and feeding sessions, and a couple of natural but unspeakable animal behaviors!

Here comes a ram through the astonished crowd? What does it want?

A howl was heard in the distance. Then…

Panic! Chaos! (My camera wasn’t fast enough.)

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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!

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 (formerly known as Twitter)!

Brave people confront danger in La Jolla!

Yesterday a group of unsuspecting people confronted imminent danger at UC San Diego in La Jolla!

The large group could not know the sort of peril they’d be facing. We had gathered in Revelle Plaza to witness a performance by Cirque Inextremiste, but many didn’t realize that WE would be the performers!

Yann Ecauvre appeared and proceeded to drag long, very heavy wooden beams out to the surrounding audience. He stood the beams on end and then had ordinary hands (some of which were rather small) hold them upright. When unsteady beams began to precariously tip, the danger was safely overcome. Whew!

Then audience members began to build a wooden structure made of more beams. Higher and increasingly impressive the construct grew . . . those vertically held beams were added . . . then a chain of courageous humans holding hands mounted the crazy, tipsy structure!

The performance was called Damoclès. It was part of this weekend’s free La Jolla Playhouse 2024 WOW event!

Would you like to bring out your own courage? Damoclès will be repeated this afternoon. See the 2024 Without Walls Festival schedule by clicking here!

(By the way–were you there? That was me, surprised, given a yellow danger tape necktie, and helping to hold up the second beam. Taking photos during the ordeal was a challenge!)

These kids were fearless!

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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!

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 (formerly known as Twitter)!

Gravity-defying dancers at UC San Diego!

An incredible performance by gravity-defying dancers was enjoyed this afternoon at UC San Diego during the La Jolla Playhouse’s 2024 WOW Festival!

Dangling high in the air, the BANDALOOP vertical dancers wowed a big crowd watching from below, near UCSD’s new Epstein Family Amphitheater. The dancers floated down from the roof of the multi-story Design and Innovation Building to whale song and watery music in a graceful ballet that made everyone ooh and ahh.

The dancers whirled, flew, even crawled like Spider-Man on the building’s side–it was anything but ordinary!

The Without Walls Festival quick guide describes Downstream (tributaries) as a “mix of dance and climbing technology guided by impermanence, wisdom and the memory of shared waterways.”

As you can see from my photos, the BANDALOOP performers were absolutely incredible. Just imagine the physical strength, steadiness and courage that is required for such a high-flying dance!

Personally, I really liked how the dancers’ shadows and reflections in windows danced right along with them!

To see the La Jolla Playhouse WOW Festival programming for tomorrow, Sunday, click here!

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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!

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 (formerly known as Twitter)!

Fascinating model of Grand Canyons of La Jolla.

Kellogg Park at La Jolla Shores features environmental displays in an outdoor plaza by the busy beach boardwalk. A three dimensional model of underwater canyons in the Pacific Ocean is one part of The Map of the Grand Canyons of La Jolla Educational Plaza.

I blogged about this amazing plaza a couple years ago. See those images (which include stunning mosaic art) and read descriptions by clicking here.

During that previous walk, the three-dimensional, topographic model that you see in the above photo was under construction. Well, it was finished when I and some friends walked by recently!

The fascinating model depicts canyons running down from Mount Soledad into the ocean. On the sides of the model, plaques present information concerning the geology of the canyons, ocean wave dynamics, and other related environmental issues.

Should you ever walk past Kellogg Park in La Jolla Shores, pause for a few moments and learn a good deal about oceanographic history, our local environment, and this planet we live on.

From the HEIGHTS OF Mt. Soledad to the DEPTHS of the Grand Canyons of La Jolla – Walter Munk Foundation for the Oceans – Honoring Walter Munk’s legacy of daring exploration and discovery through scientific research, education, and ocean conservation… A SPECIAL THANK YOU TO WALTER & MARY MUNK

Checking out information about the La Jolla Sea Caves, and Native American Kumeyaay Cosmology.

Walter Munk, “Einstein of the Oceans” – Austrian born Walter Munk arrived at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in 1939 as a summer intern, beginning a career of pioneering ocean exploration and discovery spanning eight decades…

How Bathymetry Affects Wave Refraction at Scripps Pier from a paper published by Walter H. Munk & Melvin A. Traylor (1947) – Wave refraction (bending) is affected by the shape of the ocean bottom. Wave energy can focus or dissipate, affecting coastal erosion patterns and surf conditions.

Geologic Block Diagram From Torrey Pines State Beach To Mt. Soledad

Geologic Columnar Section of Mapped Formations La Jolla Area (from Late Cretaceous to Holocene)

Graph shows how Atmospheric CO2 (carbon dioxide) Affects Sea Level.

“People should treat the oceans like we do anything else that we care about–with consideration, with care, and affection.” –Walter Munk

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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!

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 (formerly known as Twitter)!

Sculptures at Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla.

Dozens of sculptures are scattered around Scripps Memorial Hospital in La Jolla. Together they constitute the amazing Wolfstein Sculpture Park!

I walked around Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla recently and took photographs of many sculptures. There are dozens all together, and it turns out I missed several. You can see all of the art presently on display and read plaques that include artist information by clicking here.

What you see here is one of several Wolfstein Sculpture Parks! Another smaller sculpture park can be found around the Scripps hospital in Encinitas. Last year I checked out those sculptures and posted photographs here.

Why are these parks named Wolfstein? Nathan Wolfstein developed the process for purifying the blood thinning anticoagulant drug Heparin. Countless lives have been saved as a result of his discovery. Ralyn and Nate Wolfstein donate art to healing and educational centers and to help promote Arts for Healing Programs.

If you’re ever in La Jolla near Scripps Memorial Hospital, a very pleasant walk can be enjoyed outside the hospital and around nearby medical buildings!

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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!

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 (formerly known as Twitter)!

Memorial for those who donated their bodies to science.

This unique memorial was created several years ago in La Jolla, on the Scripps Institution of Oceanography campus. Words on a circular plaque read: IN MEMORY OF THOSE WHO DONATED THEIR BODIES TO SCIENCE – UC SAN DIEGO SCHOOL OF MEDICINE, SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA.

Walk down the Coastal Meander Trail, look for two benches above the beautiful Pacific Ocean, and then look for this memorial.

The memorial plaque points to where the sun sets during the Winter Solstice, Spring/Autumn Equinox and Summer Solstice. A quote on the plaque, by Carl Sagan, reads: We began as wanderers, and we are wanderers still. We have lingered long enough on the shores of the cosmic ocean. We are ready at last to set sail for the stars.

Families remembering loved ones who gave their bodies to further scientific knowledge can sit on the benches and enjoy a sunny day, and watch a beautiful sunset over the wide ocean.

You can read more about the UC San Diego School of Medicine Body Donation Program Memorial Site by clicking here.

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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!

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 (formerly known as Twitter)!

Little Girl with Fishes at Scripps Memorial Hospital.

A little girl plays among fishes in front of Scripps Memorial Hospital in La Jolla. A book lies by the fountain in which she plays. The pages are open to a poem titled The Secret. It begins:

The fish had a secret he wanted to share with the girl on the beach who had nary a care to catch her attention and beckon her out he leapt from the water and twirled about.

His scales were golden his fins were like wings when the little girl saw him, she started to sing “Oh fishy, my fishy, come play with me!” and into the water she ran with great glee…

To learn all about The Secret, visit the happy child and the fishes, and read the long poem in the open book.

This wonderful bronze sculpture and its fountain are part of the Wolfstein Sculpture Park, which is located all around Scripps Memorial Hospital and its nearby medical buildings. The art is titled Little Girl with Fishes.

This public art was created by T.J. Dixon and James Nelson, whose incredible sculptures can be found all over San Diego.

I plan to blog more about the amazing Wolfstein Sculpture Park in a few days.

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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!

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 (formerly known as Twitter)!

Pepper Canyon West buildings rise at UCSD!

UC San Diego, growing by leaps and bounds, has a surprising number of construction projects now underway. People traveling near the campus this past year have probably seen multiple cranes rising into the sky.

One of UCSD’s big projects is called the Pepper Canyon West Living and Learning Neighborhood. When finished in Fall 2024, it will provide housing for 1,300 students. Accommodating a large number of students requires some large buildings!

It’s astonishing to me how quickly the buildings have risen!

I took these photos recently, while walking through a beautiful university that I attended long, long ago. In the 1980’s UCSD was considerably smaller!

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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!

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 (formerly known as Twitter)!

Exhibit recalls Green Tiger Press in La Jolla.

Tigers, Unicorns, & Puppy Dog Tales is the latest exhibit that the public can enjoy in the La Jolla Historical Society‘s Wisteria Cottage museum.

Colorful displays recall the years when the Green Tiger Press, the Unicorn Cinema and the Mithras Bookstore were much loved La Jolla institutions. The local publisher, theater and bookstore were all established by Harold and Sandra Darling in the 1960s. The Darlings were a visionary couple who loved art, literature and the magic of imagination.

The exhibit contains printed material–postcards, stationery, children’s books, and more–bursting with unicorns and dragons and rainbow dreams and talking animals. Step into the museum and you might feel as if you stepped into a fairy tale. Or traveled through time back to your own childhood.

Bring kids to the exhibit and they will be enchanted. There’s a table where they can pore through picture books and create their own art!

Adults will be intrigued by Green Tiger printed posters that promote the eclectic, often independent films that screened inside the Unicorn Cinema. The dark theater was located through the back door of the Mithras Bookstore. The docent with whom I spoke loved the tiny theater and its popcorn machine. It sounds like a place I would have loved, too.

The Green Tiger Press relocated to Seattle, but they have lent their wonderful “carousel tiger” for this exhibition.

If you want to see all this magic for yourself, make sure to visit the Wisteria Cottage museum by January 21, 2024.

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Thanks for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!

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 (formerly known as Twitter)!