Tag: southern california

New model train fun at the La Mesa Depot!

Look what has arrived at the old La Mesa Depot. A super cool model train layout!

During my last visit to the La Mesa Depot several years ago, Station Master Timothy was building a new layout in the historic depot’s baggage room. It has been replaced by a detailed, fully functioning HO scale layout with small town charm and mountain scenery!

Will kids love it?

Yes!

The La Mesa Depot, which can’t be missed at the corner of Spring Street and La Mesa Boulevard, is free to the public. Its doors open on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 12:00 pm to 3:00 pm, and on Saturdays from 11:00 am to 2:00 pm.

There’s plenty to explore inside the depot, including an old telegraph, ticket window and the passenger waiting room. Outside, visitors can walk around the depot’s steam locomotive, refrigerator (reefer) car and caboose at any time.

Many years ago I walked around the La Mesa Depot and took photographs. Apart from the cool new model train layout, it appears little has changed. You can see my past photos of the depot here.

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Lemon Grove’s Parsonage Museum made more beautiful!

A major project to modernize and beautify Lemon Grove’s Parsonage Museum was recently completed. The home of the Lemon Grove Historical Society has a brand new paint job! And new interior lighting!

You might recall how the exterior of the historic structure used to be almost entirely the same yellow. The new paint job tastefully adds a bit of texture and Victorian personality, with the addition of different yellows (including one that seemed to me slightly lime green), and small green highlights. (Appropriately for historically agricultural Lemon Grove, the colors of citrus fruit!) You can see for yourself in my photographs, which were taken today.

LED lighting has also been installed in the ceiling of both floors of the museum, providing much more light (particularly upstairs) with, importantly, no damaging ultraviolet output.

If you’ve never visited the Parsonage Museum, you really should. The old house’s history in Lemon Grove (it began in 1897 as the community’s first church) is on display, as well as exhibits concerning notable people, places and events in Lemon Grove.

Soon, I was told, a new exhibit will be installed concerning the 2012 Lemon Grove Little League Senior Division’s amazing run all the way to the Senior League World Series, where they won the West Region Tournament!

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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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Two sculptures seen entering Escondido!

If you’ve driven into downtown Escondido from Interstate 15, there’s a chance you’ve spotted these two fun sculptures on West Grand Avenue.

The first, a red, white and blue rooster, stands at the end of Hawthorne Country Store’s lot.

The second sculpture is located a very short distance away, in front of Raining Cats & Dogs. This one is covered with colorful mosaics depicting sea life.

I can’t tell you a thing about either sculpture–apart from the fact I love them.

Know anything? Leave a comment!

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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!

Mural tells a story at Shaks Bistro in Vista!

A fantastic new mural was painted recently in the City of Vista behind Shaks Mediterranean Bistro. I happened to come upon it a few days ago.

The long wall behind the restaurant is like an illustrated story, peopled with birds. The birds are migrating, building, cooking, celebrating. The mural, according to the Shaks Instagram, is a tribute to our roots, our recipes, and the generations that came before us.

The mural’s joyful design is by @48savvysailors and the installation was completed by @clayton.sign.painting.

As you can see from my photographs, this long mural is another great addition to the many works of public art sprinkled throughout downtown Vista!

The happy story unfolds moving left to right:

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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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More fun art found in downtown Vista!

Check out more fun artwork in San Diego’s North County!

I enjoyed a long walk in downtown Vista a couple days ago and found works of art I hadn’t seen previously. That’s probably because it has been a couple years since I’d wandered around these streets.

Downtown Vista absolutely overflows with amazing sculptures and murals. One cool thing is, from time to time new works of public art appear. (I’ve noticed the sculptures can be purchased by contacting the City of Vista.)

Okay, so what did I find?

The first photos are of a sculpture titled Sky Flowers, by artist Norberto Estrada. This colorful bouquet can be found near the intersection of Vista Village Drive and Main Street.

Not far from this sculpture is another titled Chasing Fish, by artist Noe Estrada. It’s near the corner of Main Street and South Citrus Avenue.

Check out Whale of a Tale, by artist Sergey Gornushkin! The whale is flukes up and preparing to dive at the corner of South Indiana Avenue and East Broadway.

I love this banner on South Santa Fe Avenue. Not sure how long it’s been up. It’s by Jack Green, Vista Innovation & Design Academy!

Finally, I noticed an electrical box at the corner of Santa Fe Avenue and Vista Village Drive has been redecorated in a tribute to NASA and Vista, California, Earth…

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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!

Memorial plaque at Dave’s Beach in Carlsbad.

Dave’s Beach in Carlsbad is a scenic spot that is popular with radio-controlled glider pilots. Small model aircraft are launched by hand above the bluffs beside the Pacific Ocean. The slope provides excellent uplift to keep gliders aloft. Learn more about Dave’s Beach here.

When I walked this way in 2023, I found a lot of gliding activity. See those photographs here. I also discovered a memorial plaque dedicated to Dave Kellogg.

I failed, however, to notice a second nearby plaque. I discovered it yesterday.

The shadow of a chain link fence is visible in my photograph…

In Loving Memory of Our Friend

ORAN “ORANATOR” BLOODSWORTH

Whose spirit will soar on here forever

Feb. 10, 1965 – Sep. 23, 2019

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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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Very cool mural celebrates Oceanside!

This mural in Oceanside is one of the coolest I’ve seen!

The artwork is painted on the side of Security Public Storage on South Coast Highway. It celebrates all things Oceanside!

The mural contains images of surfers by the Oceanside Pier, local Chargers hero Junior Seau, Oceanside Harbor’s faux-lighthouse, the famous Top Gun house and nearby Camp Pendleton.

Sunset colors over a beach perfectly capture the SoCal lifestyle.

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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!

Even more colorful murals in Leucadia!

Leucadia, a neighborhood in north coastal Encinitas, overflows with street art along its beachy Coast Highway. Here are even more examples!

I’m afraid this post is a couple months overdue. I took these photographs during a walk in early June. These colorful murals along North Coast Highway 101 were either relatively new, or I simply hadn’t noticed them during previous walks.

Anyway, check out this great artwork! Read the photo captions for a little more info…

A colorful tropical mural by artist Kevin Anderson on south side of Leucadia Barber Shop.
This fun mural at Mothership was created by artist Kenton Hoppas.
I spotted this butterfly during my Leucadia walk up North Coast Highway 101.
A colorful aquatic mural on south side of Just Peachy Market front entrance.
Harvesting fresh produce. Mural on north side of Just Peachy Market front entrance by @wyns_art in 2023.
A cool mural dazzles the eyes at the Leucadia Donut Shoppe. It’s titled Seaside Daze, by Taylor Chapin in 2022.

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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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A surprising art gallery in Oceanside!

There’s an art gallery in Oceanside that you might not know. I stumbled upon it by sheer coincidence the other day.

This surprising art gallery is located inside the historic Sunshine Brooks Theater building, the home of the Oceanside Theatre Company. Very fine works by regional artists hang in the lobby and down a hallway.

The current exhibition of the Brooks Theater Gallery is Black Perspectives 2. The exhibition’s inspiration was the arrival of Juneteenth. This theatre webpage explains that the gallery features previous exhibitors and new POC artists sharing their vision of Black history, culture, family and community.

Incidentally, these fine art pieces are for sale. You can support the artists!

The exhibitions in the gallery change fairly often. Next time you pass by the Sunshine Brooks Theater in downtown Oceanside, why not step through the door as I did and take a peek. You might be surprised!

A few more examples in the gallery…

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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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Photos of the Oceanside Independence Parade!

Please enjoy this collection of photographs taken today during the 2025 Oceanside Independence Parade!

The Fourth of July arrived a little early this year in Oceanside. “Stars and Stripes by the Sea” was the title of the big parade up Coast Highway. The patriotic spectacle was presented by MainStreet Oceanside.

Families lined the sidewalk, waving flags, wearing red, white and blue, as fellow members of the Oceanside community paraded past.

Oceanside is located next to Camp Pendleton, so it wasn’t surprising the parade led off with the 1st Marine Color Guard, followed by the 1st Marine Division Band and 1st Marine Logistics Group.

Many participants would follow–from hometown heroes, to local politicians, to the fire and police departments, to scouts, churches, the library, clubs, businesses, charities… Several marching bands and cheer groups included a large contingent from El Camino High School. According to the program, about a hundred entrants would go by in the parade!

Hopefully these photos convey the atmosphere…

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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!