Tag: morning

San Diego’s world-famous Donut Bar expands!

San Diego’s world-famous Donut Bar has moved its downtown location and greatly expanded! Their fresh new location at 1 Columbia Place opened yesterday, and early this morning I swung by to see my friends in action! Chef Santiago and staff were smiling and ready for another busy day!

All the usual great donuts were on display at the front counter, and a new section up front will soon be featuring cakes and other sweet bakery items! I saw that every sort of coffee awaits those who need a morning injection of caffeine, and the fun vibes are stronger than ever!

One super fun feature of Donut Bar’s new location is . . . the walls. That’s right!

The walls are covered with black-and-white graphics depicting San Diego. The cartoony graphics turn into a dynamic, colorful, augmented reality experience when you aim your phone at them! Donuts fly through the sky! A boat crosses San Diego Bay! Jets fly off the USS Midway! A baseball flies out of Petco Park!

The new Donut Bar location is 401 West A Street on the ground floor of 1 Columbia Place, a block west and north of the San Diego Central Courthouse. They’ve got outdoor seating perfect for sunny San Diego, too!

Now which yummy donut to choose…

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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 (formerly known as Twitter)!

Sunrise paints the sky above downtown.

This morning, as the sun broke above the horizon somewhere east of downtown San Diego, sunrise colors painted the sky and reflected from building windows along Broadway. It was stunning.

I stood in the median of Broadway at Kettner Boulevard and aimed my camera at the risen beauty. A few minutes later, the fiery colors would fade.

Late tonight another big storm rolls into San Diego. More flooding is expected. Hopefully everyone stays safe!

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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)!

A morning walk along MLK Promenade.

Today, January 15th, is Martin Luther King Jr.’s birthday.

As the sun rose early this morning, I strolled along Martin Luther King Jr. Promenade in downtown San Diego. A few other walkers were out, too.

I photographed public art along the linear park that honors a great civil rights hero. (You can see more of the three sculptures here and here and here.)

Many famous and thought-provoking MLK quotes are engraved along the pathway. I randomly aimed my camera at two. (See more of the quotes here.)

I started near the intersection of Harbor Drive and Market Street, headed southeast past the newly renovated Children’s Park, then concluded my walk at the Convention Center trolley station.

Just a few photos…

Shedding the Cloak, by artists Jerry Dumlao, Mary Lynn Dominguez, and Tama Dumlao.

DREAM, by artist Roberto Salas.

Breaking of the Chains, by artist Melvin Edwards.

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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)!

A damp New Year’s Eve walk in Balboa Park.

It was a bit damp on the morning of New Year’s Eve in Balboa Park. It had rained overnight.

Big weekend crowds wouldn’t turn out until the afternoon, which made my early walk quiet and easy.

I wandered about randomly, turning right or left with no clear destination. The sky was overcast and the air was chilly.

Kids splashed in puddles. Artists were setting up along El Prado. Street musicians were already filling the air with music. Ambitious tourists pointed at new sights, as they explored San Diego’s crown jewel. The faces of friends were already smiling.

Even on a gray, damp, chilly morning, Balboa Park is very alive.

I’m sure in the coming year this special place will bring more joy to you and me.

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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)!

The re-opening of downtown’s Children’s Park!

Children’s Park in downtown San Diego will celebrate its Grand Re-opening early next week, on November 14th at 9 am. Finally!

The major redesign of the park is going to make this space much more fun and community friendly. A huge playground is perhaps the upgraded park’s centerpiece, but there will also be exercise equipment, a leash-free dog area complete with obstacle course, and, eventually, an open concession shack offering food and refreshments.

As you can see in these photographs, which I took this morning, the familiar pool near Harbor Drive still features sprinkling fountains that attract seagulls and the eyes of convention-goers and passing trolleys.

The last time I took photos of Children’s Park the renovation had just begun. This blog post from May 2022 provides more information concerning this project.

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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)!

Rising sun and fog on Broadway Pier.

These three photographs were taken early this morning.

I walked very slowly along downtown’s Broadway Pier as the sun rose–and as a bank of fog rolled in from San Diego Bay.

The sun, clearing the horizon somewhere behind downtown’s high buildings, magically turned the fog orange. Then the gray creeping fog made those buildings vanish.

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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)!

Skeleton in window of The Brain Observatory!

The Brain Observatory in downtown San Diego appears to be an intriguing place. It’s been open for a year or so, if memory serves. It’s located in the space that the SDSU Downtown Gallery once called home.

According to their website, The Brain Observatory is not only a research institute with state-of-the-art scientific equipment, but students and visitors can examine a large collection of donated human brains.

There is also an art gallery at The Brain Observatory. Check out a fascinating exhibition featuring six artists here.

As I walked down the sidewalk past The Brain Observatory early this morning, I noticed a skeleton sitting inside one window holding a brain.

Does the skeleton intend to place the brain into its own skull?

Or is this simply a bit of fun for Halloween?

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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)!

Beautiful sunrise above San Diego River.

I walked in Mission Valley early this morning.

As I passed down Mission Center Road above the San Diego River, the rising sun illuminated low clouds to the east, and beautiful colors reflected from calm water.

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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)!

Bush sunflowers greet Spring in Mission Valley!

Beautiful yellow California bush sunflowers are thriving early this Spring!

An unusually wet winter has caused San Diego’s native flora, accustomed to an arid climate, to grow like crazy and turn bright green!

I took morning photographs in Mission Valley as I walked near Mission Center Road and the San Diego River…

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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 Twitter!

City life on a wet, very windy morning.

San Diego is experiencing very high winds today. Combined with morning showers, including a sudden bout of hail, the icy wind made walking downtown a bit of an adventure.

I ventured outside after the hail. Nevertheless, my usual San Diego jacket felt far too thin. And crazy wind gusts almost knocked me over several times!

Flags were whipping around, most people were bundled up and my hat flew off twice. As you can see in the next photo, it’s Ash Wednesday.

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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 Twitter!