Tag: smile

Excitement fills San Diego during 2022 NLCS!

The games might be played inside Petco Park, but during the first two days of the 2022 National League Championship Series, plenty of excitement fills the streets of downtown San Diego!

Walking outside the ballpark, one feels the energy from thousands of enthusiastic Padres fans. Many families and generations are creating forever memories.

Baseball gloves are already on many hands, as fans hope to catch a ball during the NLCS.

I’ve never seen so many swag chains!

A few Philadelphia Phillies fans are out there too, but the Friar Faithful far outnumber them.

Enjoy these photographs that I took this morning!

Hopefully the Pads prevail in Game Two early this afternoon, before Major League Baseball’s National League Championship Series heads over to Philadelphia.

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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!

Padres fans go crazy outside Petco Park!

Minutes before the start of the 2022 National League Championship Series, Padres fans were going crazy outside Petco Park!

The rally goose seemed to appear from around every corner, as did the rallying cry LFGSD!

There were smiles, excited kids, clever signs, thumbs up, and people watching the pre-game broadcast and partying in every sports bar.

Let’s go Padres!

Let’s trounce the Philadelphia Phillies and win the pennant!

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Thank you for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!

I post new blogs pretty often, so you might want to bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and check back from time to time.

You can explore Cool San Diego Sights by using the search box on this website’s sidebar. Or click a tag! There’s a lot of stuff to share and enjoy!

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!

Learn about nature at Torrey Pines trailhead!

At Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve, several popular trails (including the Beach Trail and Razor Point Trail) can be accessed from a small parking lot south of the Visitor Center.

At the trailhead visitors will see a wooden structure, the words Torrey Pines Docent Society, and many smiling volunteers who are happy to provide information or explain interpretative displays before you begin your hike. The structure is called the Trailhead Information Kiosk, or TIK for short. Docents greeting visitors here are called TIK Talkers!

I remember how, many years ago, this trailhead “kiosk” was nothing more than a portable table and EZ Up canopy. Today’s handsome, sturdy structure is a testament to what volunteer hands can create!

The Trailhead Information Kiosk is a great place to learn about Torrey Pines’ native plants and animals. There are signs detailing what hikers might encounter, photographs of wildlife, and cool models of insects, snakes and other animals.

Before beginning a short hike the other day, I paused at the TIK to absorb a little knowledge.

Reptiles of Torrey Pines

Birds of Torrey Pines

Insects

Flowering Plants of Torrey Pines

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Thank you for visiting Cool San Diego Sights!

I post new blogs pretty often, so you might want to bookmark coolsandiegosights.com and check back from time to time.

You can explore Cool San Diego Sights by using the search box on this website’s sidebar. Or click a tag! There’s a lot of stuff to share and enjoy!

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!

Another fine Sunday walk in Balboa Park!

Early October. A walk in Balboa Park. Another fine Sunday full of sunshine and magic.

I headed nowhere in particular.

Visitors to wonderful Balboa Park stream down El Prado.

Does the Botanical Building appear strange? It’s in the middle of its big renovation! But the Lily Pond is as beautiful as ever.

A local artist smiles and shows her colorful work.

She makes awesome papier-mache figures. I recognize Frida Kahlo!

My friend Mitchell was on El Prado playing his didgeridoo.

I got a cookie. (And more smiles!) Proceeds help the San Diego Civic Dance Arts, whose home is the Casa del Prado Theater.

Why are peanuts in a pile inside the Spanish Village Art Center?

That’s why!

Lunch time for a squirrel in the park.

Here comes the Balboa Park Miniature Railroad! Kids love it. The small train ride is operated by the nearby San Diego Zoo.

A big Balboa Park Spooktacular is coming up at the Municipal Gym on Saturday October 29, 2022. There will be a costume contest!

The House of Austria had their lawn program today. I got a folk costume preview as I strolled early through the International Cottages.

Gazing down into the lush Lower Garden of the Japanese Friendship Garden.

Shortly after noon, not many had arrived yet for the two o’clock Sunday concert at the Spreckels Organ Pavilion. San Diego Civic Organist Raul Prieto Ramírez rehearses up on the stage.

Spreckels Organ Society member pulls a sign out for the free Sunday concert.

Everyone loves Balboa Park. Including friends with four legs!

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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!

Art, oddities, and inexplicable moments!

Just a fun batch of photographs taken during various walks around San Diego.

Sometimes I’ll spy odd or unexpected things that bring a smile. And a quick click of the camera shutter…

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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!

Playing with design at the Mingei!

A super fun and enjoyable exhibit is now on display at the Mingei International Museum in Balboa Park!

Toying with Design intentionally coincides with San Diego Design Week 2022, which concludes today. Fortunately, however, this very unique exhibit will continue on until February 2023.

So what will visitors to one corner of the Mingei’s upstairs gallery see? Lots of clever designs! Including all sorts of inspired designs that make common functional household items as playful as toys!

I particularly enjoyed how ordinary kitchen utensils were creatively infused with surprising humor!

Check it out!

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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!

Nayarit celebrated at the House of Mexico!

The Mexican state of Nayarit was celebrated today at the International Cottages in Balboa Park!

Baile folklórico dancers performed outside the House of Mexico cottage, and various displays promoting tourism in Nayarit greeted surprised visitors wandering through the park.

As soon as I noticed all the costumes and smiles, I was drawn right in!

As I understand it, the Mexican Secretary of Tourism teamed up with the House of Mexico to promote Nayarit with this special cultural event.

The state of Nayarit is located on the west coast of Mexico and features popular beaches, fascinating history and beautiful scenery.

This is what my camera recorded…

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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 photos for you to enjoy!

Dvořák, Liszt and laughs on Silent Movie Night!

Where can you listen to exquisitely played classical music, then laugh at absurdly silly slapstick humor . . . all in one sitting?

At Silent Movie Night!

This evening, acclaimed concert organist Clara Gerdes played classical compositions by Dvořák, Duruflé and Liszt on the incomparable Spreckels Organ in Balboa Park. Then immediately after, the audience was laughing uproariously to the gag-filled antics of Charlie Chaplin and Buster Keaton! (Accompanied by organ, of course!)

From the sublime to the absurd. That was the magic of Silent Movie Night at the 34th San Diego International Organ Festival!

You didn’t go? Why not?

Silent Movie Night is one of the most fun events every summer in Balboa Park. A couple thousand happy people fill the benches at the Spreckels Organ Pavilion. And it’s free!

So watch for it next year!

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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 Gingerbread Man runs in Chula Vista!

The Gingerbread Man emerged from a hot oven and arrived in Chula Vista today, thinking he could easily outrun families and kids attending Arts in the Park. But, alas, the famous little cookie met his fate.

The story of The Gingerbread Man was acted out, to the delight of the audience, in a very small wooden theater.

It was a fun demonstration of Kamishibai, a form of outdoor story telling that was popular in Japan during the first half of the 20th century.

The Kamishibai version of The Gingerbread Man was presented by Write Out Loud, who brought their live reading performances to the annual Arts in the Park event, held at Memorial Park in Chula Vista.

Run, run as fast as you can! You can’t catch me. I’m the Gingerbread Man!

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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!

Free ice cream and concert in Balboa Park!

What’s better than free ice cream and a free concert?

Free ice cream and a fantastic free concert in beautiful Balboa Park!

A huge crowd came out to the Spreckels Organ Pavilion this evening to smile, laugh, sing, and dance to the music of San Diego’s own The Moonlight Serenade Orchestra. And, of course, to devour ice cream!

The annual Ice Cream Social concert, one of many free summer Twilight in the Park concerts, was made possible by the awesome folks of Forever Balboa Park!

The music was infectious. The vibe was energetic. The audience was often clapping, and couples were swaying and spinning on the outdoor dance floor. Tunes included Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy, Dancing Queen, Old Time Rock and Roll, Respect, In the Mood, Over the Rainbow, and a variety of others, including many big band classics.

The highlight for me–and it appeared to be for many–was the solo drumming performance by D. J. Jackson in the encore song Sing, Sing, Sing. He was a magician whose magic seemed limitless. I didn’t want his inspired wizardry to end.

A long standing ovation resulted!

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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!