This is the first weekend visitors to the Star of India can walk on the beautiful new poop deck!
We all are a part of history. Sometimes it’s hard to remember that.
The people at the Maritime Museum of San Diego are contributing to history by restoring the main deck of the world-famous Star of India. The poop deck is finished! Visitors can now enjoy the beautiful new wood deck and varnished helm and imagine putting to sea steering the romantic wheel. On a historic tall ship that is now 153 years old!
The beautiful new wood deck underfoot is meant to last another 50 or so years. The bench along the saloon’s skylight will be sanded and varnished next.The 1863 Star of India is a world treasure. Its amazing, varied history includes circumnavigating the globe 21 times. It’s the oldest active sailing ship in the world!A visitor rang the ship’s cheerful bell while his friends talked near the binnacle and helm.The helm’s new varnish is still drying! In my dreams I command this amazing tall ship while standing at the wheel!A super nice Maritime Museum docent showed me how the steering mechanism works. The two opposing screw-like worms were made with amazing precision over 150 years ago!The port side of the main deck has been caulked! Now just to sand and apply several layers of sealing protection.The people at the Maritime Museum of San Diego are working hard to keep an important part of world history alive.The finished main deck on the starboard side. Soon the entire ship’s deck will be shiny like new!Folks enjoy a sunny San Diego day on the newly restored poop deck of the historic tall ship Star of India.
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Walking past public art in Chula Vista’s Bayside Park. The Fisherman is a sculpture of a great egret, created by Stephen Fairfield, 2006.
Look at these cool examples of public art! I spotted them Saturday during my visit to Chula Vista’s Bayside Park.
Some of the artwork, as you can see, is rather strange and surprising! Read the photo captions to learn more!
The Fisherman, by Stephen Fairfield, was a part of a past Urban Trees exhibition along San Diego’s Embarcadero. It’s now part of the Port of San Diego Tidelands Collection.Dark shadow of what appears to be a gigantic egret on a walkway in Bayside Park.One of several tables by San Diego Bay containing a tile chess board.Walking north along the beach area. Downtown San Diego and the Coronado Bay Bridge can be seen in the distance.Still walking north, toward more interesting public art at Chula Vista’s Bayside Park. This is Wind Oars by George Peters and Melanie Walker, 2004.Oars in the blue sky change position in the shifting wind. A kinetic artwork landmark in San Diego’s South Bay.Like rowing through blue water above.At the north end of Bayside Park, we now approach some unusual temporary art. Bench Party, by artists Jose Parral and Tasia Paulson, will be on display through May 20, 2017.Visitors to the Bayside Park might sit here and talk, or take in views of San Diego Bay.A large group of people could sit here and have a bench party!The huge travelift at Marine Group Boat Works in Chula Vista is seen beyond the benches. Super yachts and large boats can be lifted out of the water there.A breakwater by Marine Group Boat Works looks like strange art on the water. Rising in the distance we can see Point Loma.A bird swims past stacked rocks.Feeding birds at a park picnic bench.A second sculpture from an Urban Trees exhibition is also located at Bayside Park. This is San Diego Synergy, by Kent Kraber, 2007.Seabirds soar above fish, their food.A school of fish in the ocean kelp.A silvery tuna between a fishing boat and sailboat, at the base of the San Diego Synergy sculpture in Chula Vista.
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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 fun photos for you to share and enjoy!
Just sitting on a bench at the Chula Vista Marina. Masts of sailboats touch the clear sky. Another sunny day by the water.
Last Saturday morning I did some walking around the Chula Vista Marina and the neighboring Bayside Park. It was a perfect day for a leisurely stroll. Sunlight reflected from the water onto the smooth shiny hulls of boats. A forest of masts tickled the blue sky.
I sat down for awhile to drink in the calm and beauty. Another reason to love San Diego!
The Chula Vista Marina and adjacent Bayside Park are perfect places to relax and recreate.An abstract sculpture near the Dockmaster’s Office.The sculpture is titled To Remember Me, by Ross Barrable, 2001. In tribute to Ron McElliott who believed in the potential of the South Bay.Some street art on a nearby utility box depicts a tall ship on the ocean.Sitting at a table by the marina feeding the birds.Hundreds of sailboats and pleasure craft in the Chula Vista Yacht Harbor await an opportunity to glide across San Diego Bay.Walking the dog across Chula Vista Bayside Park’s fishing pier, next to the marina.A fisherman out on San Diego Bay. The Coronado Cays are visible across the calm blue water.A happy sun shines on the marina building.A beautiful fountain on the grass near the Chula Vista Marina office.
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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!
Monster Energy Supercross is in San Diego next weekend. Some trucks have already arrived for the event at Petco Park.
What a day! I walked like crazy! In the morning I headed down to the historic center of National City in San Diego’s South Bay. I have five blog posts coming this week about National City, featuring public art, some really cool street art, and a handsome collection of historic buildings. After my walk around National City, I took the trolley back to the 12th and Imperial station, and commenced a slow walk up the Embarcadero. I took my sweet time because the Martin Luther King, Jr. Day Parade would be held farther up the Embarcadero later in the afternoon. Yes–I’m going to blog about the parade, too!
But first, here are some photos from my relaxing walk. During the winter months fewer people are about, and few boats are out on the bay. The air is a bit cooler, but the sun still likes to peek through. It’s San Diego.
The new Park 12 luxury apartment building is taking shape just east of Petco Park.Gazing down from the Harbor Drive pedestrian bridge at a long freight train and the edge of the trolley yard.If you live on the West Coast and eat bananas, they probably arrived on a Dole cargo ship at San Diego’s Tenth Avenue Marine Terminal.Engine powered articulating boom lifts in a row behind the San Diego Convention Center.The high masts of super yachts rise behind the convention center into the sky.People and birds can enjoy a view of the San Diego Bay from atop the convention center.Two basketball players and a bicyclist. It’s a fairly quiet day at Embarcadero Marina Park South.Railing creates patterns at the park’s gazebo. Picnic benches are empty this quiet winter Sunday.Pigeons on the pier are taking it easy.A fine day to bat at a ball.Or to catch a wayward ball.Or to just walk along.Or dangle.Visitors to San Diego check out a map of the Embarcadero.These guys must own a boat docked at the Marriott Marina.A couple enjoys outdoor conversation at Seaport Village’s San Pasqual Wine Tasting Room.Member of the Cat-illacs band chats with folks at Seaport Village’s East Plaza Gazebo.Colorful but weathered picnic table at Embarcadero Marina Park North is the remnant of public art from years ago.Several years ago–I forget how long exactly–the picnic benches near the water at Embarcadero Marina Park North were all decorated with colorful tile artwork. This is all that now remains.A quiet day on the bay. A good time to meditate, relax.Just kicking back.
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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!
Someone gazes from the Broadway Pier across the water toward Coast Guard Air Station San Diego, whose buildings shine, reflecting early morning sunlight.
I was surprised at the number of beautiful photos I was able to capture this morning during my leisurely walk out on the Broadway Pier. All was quiet. The sun was rising…
The sun is about to rise above a part of the San Diego skyline.A gull glides over still water.Early morning light turns active aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71) golden. It is docked at Naval Air Station North Island.Colorful reflection on San Diego Bay of the USS Midway Museum, seen from the Broadway Pier.Bronze plaques create an historical timeline as one walks toward the pier’s end. The construction of the Broadway Pier took place in 1913.An exquisitely beautiful seagull feather on the wet concrete at my feet.Someone rides out to the end of the Broadway Pier early one Friday morning. Few people are about.Water droplets cling to the metal seats and tables at the end of the Broadway Pier.Three large maps on the Broadway Pier show the shape of San Diego Bay in different eras. This outline of the modern bay shows where I now stand on the Embarcadero!Beautiful clouds and morning light on blue water frame a United States Coast Guard Cutter in the middle of San Diego Bay.A dreamlike vision one morning at San Diego’s magical Broadway Pier.
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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!
Cool artwork on wall in the famous Donut Bar in downtown San Diego.
Another year. More opportunities for discovery!
Yesterday’s storm ended and the sun came out. So I decided to take a wander around my fair city on New Year’s Day.
I started mid-morning and went for hours, taking photos of everything and anything at my leisure. Mixed among more ordinary looks at life were a few cool discoveries.
I met two friendly street artists during my walk–Carlos and Juli–and meant to include a couple photos of their work here, but I’ve decided to write a special separate blog post tomorrow. Look for it!
My first stop this morning was the Donut Bar. One Boston Cream, please! Super yum!Walking past Symphony Towers, I noticed this graphic on their outdoor display. A free concert for the community next weekend!My feet this New Year’s Day took me through Horton Plaza Park. I recently posted a blog with photos of the Broadway Fountain lit for Christmas at night.An unexpected discovery! It appears Horton Plaza Park has a time capsule buried between the grass and the Starbucks! History happens here.And a few steps to the west I spotted another plaque at my feet. The Salvation Army held its first San Diego meeting here, March 31, 1888.Crossing an intersection in the Gaslamp, I spotted an odd thing at ground level. This tile showing a burglar has been cemented to the asphalt in the middle of the street!It appears Monkey King is a restaurant soon to open in the Gaslamp Quarter. I discovered a shining gold mural on their wall!No mural on this interesting wall. A lady in pink shoes walks her dog in downtown San Diego.Just a cool photo of light and shadow and architectural geometry. The tall glass building is the new corporate headquarters of Sempra Energy in East Village.In East Village, this brightly shining mosaic sculpture in a medical office window caught my eye!Look what I found! These must be new. Two huge baseballs at Petco Park near the Padres Hall of Fame.One huge baseball has the autographs of the 1984 National League Champion Padres!And, of course, the second baseball has the autographs of the 1998 National League Champion team!A car carrier freight train covered with graffiti has stopped along Harbor Drive.People crossing the Harbor Drive pedestrian bridge seem to walk in the clouds.Tourists on Segways pass the Coming Together sculpture by artist Niki de Saint Phalle.The Holiday by the Bay ice rink near the Hilton San Diego Bayfront seems to be winding down. A few skaters were out on New Year’s Day morning.Folks with a dog walk along San Diego Bay, approaching the high masts of superyachts.Two superyachts behind the convention center have really, really, REALLY high masts!The futuristic black superyacht Ahimsa has been docked in San Diego for at least a year, it seems. According to one website it’s worth 80 million dollars. Passersby have referred to the sleek vessel as the Bat-boat!The San Diego International Car Show is taking place this weekend. Test drives can be taken in the parking lot behind the convention center.Looks like some folks will be test-driving a new Ford.I saw this guy walking along with a large flag. He seemed to be on a mission. I didn’t think to pursue him and ask why.Just beautiful yachts in the Marriott Marina.I am fortunate to live in such a beautiful city.I spied the new downtown San Diego Central Courthouse between the silvery Marriott Marquis buildings. I believe the courthouse’s construction is nearly finished.The Silvergate ferry heads toward Coronado beyond the Embarcadero Marina Park South fishing pier.Two pelicans hanging out at the pier. A good day to kick back and fish.People descend the San Diego Convention Center steps that lead to the Flame of Friendship sculpture.An art installation in the new passageway between the Marriott and Hyatt waterfront hotels titled Kelp, created by artists Katie MacDonald and Kyle Schumann of After Architecture.Dogs stretch and relax with a human near Seaport Village.Lots of cranes in the skyline lately! The two nearby are for fishing boats. The construction crane on the left is for the new InterContinental Hotel. On the right, a high crane rises by Pacific Gate by Bosa.On New Year’s Day lots of people are enjoying a walk by the water. I see what appear to be two Navy oilers docked at North Island.Uh, oh! Look what I spotted. The live bait-catching seiner Cachalot seems to be drifting away from the Tuna Harbor’s G Street Pier! Those ropes seem loose. Perhaps last night’s storm is the reason.In San Diego, walks are often accompanied by music.Very strange! Wisconsin’s Pulaski High School Red Raiders marching band is in San Diego today! Why? A little searching indicated that they will will perform tomorrow morning in the Tournament of Roses Parade, up north in Pasadena!That isn’t a cruise ship. It’s the MV World Odyssey, a floating classroom! Its Semester at Sea allows students to study abroad, while touring the world!Dozens of sailboats out on San Diego Bay during New Year’s Day. It’s a sailing regatta!Curious gulls analyze a bicyclist at the Embarcadero’s new observation deck, just north of the Broadway Pier. Life is full of surprises!
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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 fun photos for you to enjoy!
Tall ship America, owned by Next Level Sailing, turns about in San Diego Bay as it comes in to dock at the Maritime Museum.
Earlier this month, on December 11, America came home to San Diego, after a long and very eventful journey representing The America’s Cup. Its epic America’s Cup Tour included many stops, from the Gulf of Mexico up the East Coast and then south again to the Caribbean. During the tour it hosted throngs of visitors and was welcomed by some of our nation’s finest yacht clubs.
But there was also one very dangerous adventure! In October the ship had to take shelter from Hurricane Matthew by heading up the St. Johns River in downtown Jacksonville, where it docked in a less windy spot behind the large Hyatt building. America survived with little damage!
The beautiful ship is a replica of the schooner America that beat 15 top British racing yachts in a 53 nautical mile regatta around the Isle of Wight in 1851. The Royal Yacht Squadron’s 100 Guinea Cup, won easily by the New York Yacht Club, became a challenge trophy known as the America’s Cup. Today it is the oldest international sporting trophy in existence. (San Diego’s own legendary yachtsman Dennis Conner won the America’s Cup four times.)
The replica America that makes San Diego its home is owned by Next Level Sailing, and it is glorious to behold when under sail. Now that the America’s Cup Tour is safely over, it is once again available for charters and whale watching adventures out on the blue Pacific.
This afternoon I happened to catch America out on San Diego Bay, heading in to the Maritime Museum, where it docks. I got a few photos before I hurried back home to take shelter from tonight’s storm! Not a hurricane, thank goodness!
America passes the Maritime Museum of San Diego’s Soviet Foxtrot B-39 submarine. It’s a cloudy New Year’s Eve afternoon, with a storm on the way.America carefully approaches the dock behind the steam ferry Berkeley.Time to tie her up to the dock.A member of America’s crew leaps through the air to secure the beautiful ship, a replica of the victorious racing schooner that ushered in the America’s Cup.Welcome home, America!
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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!
Tourists on San Diego’s Embarcadero have fun with gigantic bubbles.
Just a few photos of people at work and play in San Diego. These were taken over this last year. How time flies.
A businessman walks to work one morning in downtown San Diego.Two fishermen enjoy their day on Shelter Island.Working and chatting at Horton Plaza Park.Two sweethearts enjoy slacklining at Embarcadero Marina Park South.Unloading boxes of produce at the Flagship dock near Broadway Pier.People enjoy a day of boating on blue San Diego Bay.Families investigate statue-like street musician in Balboa Park.Construction workers put the finishing touches on a new downtown building.Walking on some rocks on a fine sunny San Diego day.
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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!
The Chinese frigate Yancheng, docked in San Diego at the Cruise Ship Terminal. It is part of a four day visit by ships of the People’s Liberation Army Navy.
This morning I got a few photos of a Chinese Navy warship that will be visiting San Diego for four days. The ship I saw docked at the Cruise Ship Terminal is the frigate Yancheng, which is part of the People’s Liberation Army Navy Surface Force. Two additional Chinese Navy ships arrived during the day. I saw them in the darkness after work during an evening walk along the Embarcadero. Those two other ships are the frigate Daqing and the oiler Tai Hu.
The intent of the visit is to foster trust and mutual understanding between two military powers–the United States and China. In addition to cultural exchanges, visiting Chinese and local American sailors will enjoy playing games of table tennis and basketball together. In a small, sometimes turbulent world, perhaps it is good to make friendships.
United States military personnel walk along the B Street Pier during a visit of the Chinese Navy to San Diego.Another photo of the Chinese frigate Yancheng, docked in San Diego Bay on December 6, 2016.
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The once-mysterious origin of a U. S. Navy bronze plaque on display in San Diego has come to light. Learn more about this fascinating bit of San Diego and Navy history by checking out my blog post Creating a plaque: Navy history in San Diego revealed!
Early this morning I took a walk along gentle San Diego Bay. A few birds circled nearby. Light on the water danced, intensified, became blue like the sky…
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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!
Cool San Diego Sights! 