Visitors to the Spanish Village Art Center in Balboa Park walk through a sunlit paradise of color and creativity.
Over the past five years, I’ve blogged about Spanish Village Art Center many times, on Cool San Diego Sights and on my other website Beautiful Balboa Park. Spanish Village is one of my go-to places when I need to feel optimistic, free and alive.
Whenever I stroll around the many art studios, I feel like I’ve entered a kaleidoscope of living color and creativity. It’s a wonderful place to visit if you want to be inspired.
Lovers of art in San Diego need to swing on by. You’ll find yourself lingering. And smiling.
Sign lists 2018 events, including special shows and sales, in Spanish Village Art Studios in Balboa Park.Patio tiles leading visitors to the front door of Studio 26 seem like a Yellow Brick Road of many colors.Surprising colors grow in four pots.The rear of the Uni-two-corn by sculptor Kim Ogburn, which functions as a seat for two.A dreamlike canvas in front of Studio 31 in Spanish Village.Someone admires a glass vase created by the friendly glassblowers in Studio 19.Beautiful cacti in a planter near the front door of Studio 18.An amazing flower outside the San Diego Mineral and Gem Society building in Spanish Village.Colorful cats have gathered on the patio in front of Studio 16 in Spanish Village.The local artists in Studio 14 specialize in Kaleidoscopes, Egg Art and Handmade Art.A painter creates new artwork outside the window of the Southwestern Artists’ Association Gallery in Studio 23.Mary-Ella Bowles in Studio 6 created this fun Fairy House out of a gigantic hollow gourd!A colorful frog is standing on a big leaf outside Studio 10.
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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!
Today, after I checked out the San Diego Cup racing at Mission Bay, I headed to Old Town San Diego State Historic Park to see if anything interesting was going on. Somehow I’d forgotten that Stagecoach Days are celebrated in Old Town on summer Saturdays, and so I was surprised and happy to stumble upon Days of the Vaqueros!
I blogged about this exact same event last year, and took lots of photos and provided a fair amount of description and background. I saw many of the same participants again this year, and debated whether I should take more photos.
I love Old Town so much I couldn’t resist. If you want to learn more about life in San Diego when Southern California was a part of Spain, then Mexico, and large ranches employed the original cowboys, or vaqueros, then visit my blog from last summer’s event here.
You might also enjoy reading my blog post about Old Town’s McCoy House Museum, which includes many displays that concern San Diego’s fascinating early history.
Meanwhile, here are a few uncaptioned photographs of what I experienced today…
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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!
Early morning in Balboa Park is a time of quiet and new light. Golden beams from the rising sun crown each beautiful tower and building. The park appears freshly created, bright, magical.
These photographs are from a walk through Balboa Park that I took today around sunrise.
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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!
I often drive down Miramar Road past the Flying Leatherneck Aviation Museum. When I do, I usually turn my head to see if any people are outside investigating the dozens of unique military aircraft that are on display. Few people seem to visit.
The Flying Leatherneck Aviation Museum, located at MCAS Miramar, is open free to the general public. It features all sorts of airplanes and helicopters that have been used by the United State Marine Corps over the decades.
When I first visited the museum last year, I was floored by the extent of its collection. While many of the aircraft might not be restored to pristine condition, they each represent a fascinating era in U. S. military history. Visitors to the museum can also see other equipment that has been used by the Marines, including tanks and artillery pieces.
Most impressively, the museum owns the actual helicopter that was last to leave Saigon at the end of the Vietnam War. That Sea Knight helicopter’s call sign was Lady Ace 09. If you’d like to see photographs of Lady Ace 09, and learn a bit more about that moment in history, click here.
The following photos depict just a fraction of what you’ll discover at the museum.
The Flying Leatherneck Aviation Museum seems to be a little known gem in San Diego. Those who are interested in 20th century history, aviation or the United States Marine Corps should definitely swing on by!
The Flying Leatherneck Aviation Museum, open free to the public, is located at Marine Corps Air Station Miramar.Inside the museum, a variety of exhibits detail different aircraft that have been used by the United States Marine Corps.Dozens of historical Marine aircraft can be viewed outdoors at the Flying Leatherneck Aviation Museum in San Diego.Beechcraft T-34B Mentor.General Motors FM-2 Wildcat.Northrup F-5E Tiger II.Grumman F9F-2 Panther.Hawker-Siddeley AV-8A(C) Harrier.Bell AH-1J SeaCobra.Sikorsky HUS-1 (UH-34D) Seahorse.Bell 214ST.McDonnell Douglas A-4M Skyhawk II.Visitors to the Flying Leatherneck Aviation Museum learn about the history of one airplane in a very large and fascinating collection.
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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!
A little before noon, I enjoyed a fine walk through the Gaslamp Quarter, mostly down Fifth Avenue.
A lot of people were about for a late Saturday morning. So many exciting events going on today.
The World Cup. Taste of the Gaslamp. The Etsy market at Horton Plaza Park. People out on a walking tour, learning about the Gaslamp’s extraordinary old buildings and lively history. And the tourists, the workers, and downtown residents like me.
Enjoy this small slice of life in San Diego.
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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!
What a crazy week. I was so busy tracking down Comic-Con trolley wraps, I didn’t have time to sort through photographs I took in Balboa Park last Sunday.
When I finally reviewed the photos this morning, I noticed they all had a wonderful something in common: simple sunshine and happiness.
Balboa Park never grows old.
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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!
A couple walks along Broadway in downtown San Diego.
This long, lazy weekend I’ve been sifting through my computer, searching for fun photos that I haven’t used yet. I discovered a few that I’d like to share.
These photographs are in no particular order. All were taken in the vicinity of downtown. I snapped them during recent walks down from Cortez Hill, where I live.
You might see why I love San Diego.
Several buildings in East Village are reflected in the glass windows of the headquarters of Sempra Energy.Looking up at the fantastic dome of downtown’s Central Library.People enjoy the grassy hill in the Park at the Park, near the statue of baseball hitting legend Tony Gwynn.A banner hanging on a lamppost near the Gaslamp Quarter landmark sign shows a fun photo from San Diego history.I’m not sure if this is a fluffy llama or alpaca. It stands guard in front of Inka’s Bar and Grill in the Gaslamp.The Art of Dr. Seuss is now showing at The Chuck Jones Gallery in the Gaslamp.People play in the fun, splashing fountain at Horton Plaza Park.Colorful new banners have recently appeared around Cortez Hill. Very cool!Morning photo of the handsome old World Trade Center building, once home to publisher Harcourt Brace Jovanovich.Some guys ride their bikes down Fourth Avenue through Bankers Hill.Bright red bougainvillea on a building’s balcony in Little Italy.Sunlight on the side of the Hilton San Diego Bayfront.A few days ago I spotted a couple in Tuna Harbor having their engagement photos taken by the water.Tourist souvenirs on a vendor’s cart on the Embarcadero.The Admiral Hornblower and another boat pass near the bow of the USS Midway Museum, recently deemed the best attraction in California.Enjoying sunny San Diego Bay from the end of Broadway Pier, watching the Maritime Museum of San Diego’s restored Swift Boat pass on by.
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A spring day in San Diego that feels a whole lot like summer.
Many say San Diego has the best weather in the whole wide world. I can’t disagree. Most days in San Diego are comfortable and sunny.
As I walked along the Embarcadero this fine Sunday afternoon I felt like I was on summer vacation. Even though it’s still spring.
Come along with me…
Working up a sweat at Embarcadero Marina Park South.Dancing in some Seaport Village sunshine.Bubbles and kites at Embarcadero Marina Park North.Soaring joy.A didgeridoo summons deep magic by the water.A friendly sun smiles at Alamo Flags.Three lazy dogs in hammocks. It’s not quite the dog days of summer–not yet!Lots of sails between blue sky and gentle San Diego Bay.Walking by Ruocco Park. It’s always a good time for ice cream!Beautiful spring blossoms by the USS Midway.Stopping for a moment on bikes at the end of Broadway Pier.Disney Wonder cruise ship at dock in its happy, welcoming home port.A smiling sun on one of the tile benches along the Embarcadero.A large ladybug has landed nearby! Fun artwork on the Embarcadero.It must be another summerlike day in beautiful San Diego!
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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 large Reading Cinemas building on Fifth Avenue is being renovated. Once reopened, the interior will be radically altered.
Early yesterday morning I walked through the Gaslamp Quarter. As usual, I was amazed at all the ongoing renovation of buildings and businesses up and down Fifth Avenue.
It isn’t unusual for restaurants and nightclubs to come and go, but several projects are in progress that will upgrade long-time San Diego destinations.
The two projects that I observed were a radical transformation of the building that used to be home to the now closed 15-screen Reading Cinemas, and an expansion and redesign of the Ghirardelli Ice Cream and Chocolate Shop.
The old Reading Cinemas building is being converted into a luxury movie theater and two restaurants. The developer is part owner of the famous Grauman’s Chinese Theatre in Hollywood. The Gaslamp’s new 8-screen Theatre Box will host film festivals, San Diego Comic-Con events, and be within steps of a tasty new Sugar Factory restaurant (which includes a candy store with superhero themes) and a Landshark Bar and Grill (part of Jimmy Buffett’s Margaritaville food and hospitality empire).
A somewhat confined Ghirardelli Ice Cream and Chocolate Shop down the street is being expanded and made much more roomy and inviting. When completed, it will once again welcome visitors to the Gaslamp Quarter with a tempting array of delectable, mouth-watering treats!
Fifth Avenue south of Broadway is the hub of San Diego’s popular Gaslamp Quarter.Workers beautify a building that will be home to a luxury theater and two new restaurants.One of several Gaslamp destinations undergoing renovation. Many downtown establishments strive to be attractive and upscale.The iconic Ghirardelli Ice Cream and Chocolate Shop will also see various changes.Square footage is being increased and counters repositioned. The interior will be less crowded, more inviting.A graphic on a construction fence designed to make people drool! All these Ghirardelli treats and more will be returning to the Gaslamp!
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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!
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