Cheers

A little bit of the UK in San Diego - complete with satellite TV for the football games. Love the sign about salad! Visit the real thing in Hyde, London, and Newcastle.

Visit other Daily Photo bloggers to see our theme day photos where we show a photo from our city that looks like, refers to, or reminds us of somewhere else.

Skater girls

When I was 11 years old I used to love to skateboard, for hours, down a very small hill into our driveway. I see more and more girls and young women skateboarding these days - and actually using it as transportation. Do you have skater girls in your city?

The best chips

El Indio restaurant is best known for their chips. Looks like they also have people interested in their "California" hot sauce too. The chips are distinctive in that they are a lot larger than the usual chip size. They also sprinkle paprika on top which is a nice touch. Let's fill up on chips!

Bakery

Just around the corner from my work and inside one of the best bakeries in town - Bread & Cie in Hillcrest. Some bread specialties are anise and fig, black olive, jalapeño, and my favorite walnut and scallion. They also make sandwiches, scones, brownies, muffins, banana bread, and cookies. A lovely place for lunch or for getting your daily bread.

Canyon blooms

This huge cactus grows wild in a small canyon down the street from where I live.

New apartments

This photo was taken in the downtown area and most of the buildings on this street are apartments built in the last 5 years or so. The orange color blocks on the left caught my eye. In a very short time this area has been transformed from a run-down part of town to a lively neighborhood with night life, shopping, hotels, restaurants, and new housing. And it continues to grow...See the crane at the top? More new buildings are on the way.

La Jolla sidewalk design

This inlaid design on the sidewalk must have been a lot of work. By the dirty stains visible in the middle part you can see that it gets some traffic, thankfully no bubble gum! I like the color.

Creative cookies

An eye catching window display of cookies made me stop.

Surfer at La Jolla Shores

It was cooler and gray today. Behind this surfer there is a nice hiking trail, called Coast Walk, that goes across the ridge and ends (or starts!) at the downtown area of La Jolla where there are restaurants and shops. And an ice cream shop which is a motivating destination.

Carne asada burrito

This combination plate is from my neigborhood Mexican food place called Los Pinos. They give a very nice presentation. My friend says the ultimate test of a Mexican restaurant is the beans. The beans are good - just the right amount of salt and fat. You can't see it in the photo but they also put corn in the rice, which I like. The burrito is just beef and guacamole, and a little bit of tomato too. I can see the problem with these Mexican food posts is going to be having to wait to eat while I take photos of the food!

Valley view from the Presidio

Here is a sweet lookout point from the Presidio. This looks toward Mission Valley.

Presidio

I mistakenly thought that this building was the first of the 21 missions (churches) in California built by the Spanish to introduce Christianity to the native peoples. Actually, it is called the Presidio or military fort & was built to protect the mission & the area. The first mission, Mission San Diego de Alcalá was briefly located on this site, but it was moved about 5 miles inland. The Presidio sits atop a high hill. From one side you see a view of both San Diego Bay & Mission Bay and from the other you look down into a valley where there is now a freeway, two shopping malls, several hotels, tons of condos, & where the San Diego river still flows.

Mount Soledad Cross

Here is a photo of the much disputed Mount Soledad Cross. In 1989 a case was brought against the city claiming that the cross' presence on city property violated separation of church and state. Read more.

Happy kids

Here is one of many painted electrical boxes that you can see around town. I love these big toothy smiles! This one is near an elementary school in Hillcrest. Sometimes I can tell that the artist was very much thinking of the location in mind when they decided what to paint on the box. Others seem kind of random. I'll try to show more in the future. Here is a close-up.

Lily

My grandma signed me up to receive the San Diego Catholic Worker newsletter. One of the articles this month is titled "Easter reminds us to surprise people with blessings at unexpected times". Now, I'm not a religious person but I like this sentiment and it reminds me of a bumper sticker I like that says, "Practice Random Acts of Kindness". Happy Easter!

Lake Murray

This little lake has a path all the way around it where people come to walk, jog, bike ride, and roller blade. Lots of people come to fish as well. We come here to feed the ducks and chase the squirrels. My son who is almost 3 years old hasn't caught a squirrel yet, but we have gotten lots of exercise trying!

Mexican food night

For anyone who has lived in San Diego, one thing that you surely miss when you are away is the Mexican food. For this reason and because there are a lot of Mexican food places here, I'm going to try to make Fridays dedicated to Mexican food. Here is the patio outside of Ortega's Mexican Bistro, specializing in lobster. It was just starting to rain, so that is probably why no one is eating outside. See the "A" in the bottom right? This is a county-wide system that gives a letter grade of A, B, or C to indicate the restaurant's health inspection score. They are required to post their score. An "A" is the best, and um if you see a restaurant with a "B" or "C", I would think twice before eating there! Do you have this where you live?
P.S.: Salud to Greenville, SC Daily Photo - are you enjoying your margaritas?

Strolling along the Bay

This lovely couple looked so dapper that I had to snap their photo. With his beret and their "French" poodle, I immediately thought of Paris Daily Photo's Frenchman with beret. With the boats in the background, I imagine I might be able to see something like this scene at Sainte Maxime Daily Photo! What do you think, oui or non?

Downtown skyline

A spectacular view of San Diego Bay. Just one cloud in the sky.

Mormon Temple

The Mormon Temple is an arresting site as you drive along the Interstate 5 freeway. I found out through this link that there are quite a few around the world. Have you seen the Mormon Temple in, Brisbane, Buenos Aires, Hong Kong, Manila, New York City, Sao Paulo, or Seoul?

Neighborhood bananas

For some reason I was surprised to find that there are bananas growing in my neighborhood. Many people here have orange or lemon trees. Well, it is hot and sunny in San Diego and those are perfect conditions for growing bananas. I'll have to take a walk in a few weeks and see if they are ripe. The photo below is another angle of the yard where the bananas grow. They have the whole tropical theme going on.

Caught one

Fishing on the OB pier. Patience is rewarded.

Flip flops required

View from the Ocean Beach Pier. A typical Southern California photo: sun, beach, palm trees, a blonde (?), and flip flops.

Cheap, fast, and delicious

This is for Susan. Are you salivating yet? My friend Carla was so kind to let me take this photo before she ate it. This is a carnitas sope (pronounced so-pay) from El Cuervo Mexican Restaurant in Hillcrest. It is a tortilla-like cornmeal bowl thing on the bottom, topped with shredded pork, guacamole, cheese, lettuce, sour cream, and salsa with a slice of lime. Yummy!

Big rainbow

The last few days we have gotten buckets of rain. I was lucky to catch this rainbow while driving to work. I was hoping to get a big SUV in the photo (or a monster truck would be even better!) because we have lots here. Oh well...cheers to future posts!

Cracked up stencil graffiti

Some seasoned advice for making stencil graffiti. I borrowed some batteries to get this photo. I was afraid it wouldn't be there later in the day. When I came back the next day it was still there and had taken on a new look.

The Sun God

Another thing San Diego and France have in common: the eye-catching works of Niki de Saint Phalle. In 1982, she worked with artist and husband Jean Tinguely on the Stravinsky Fountain (or Fontaine des automates) near the Centre Pompidou in Paris. The Sun God sits atop a 15 foot arch and was made in 1983 for UCSD. More places to see her work in the San Diego area:Kit Carson Park in Escondido - Queen Califia's Magic Circle, a sculpture garden. Near the Convention Center, 8th Ave & Harbor Drive - a sculpture called Coming Together. The Mingei Museum in Balboa Park - in front of this museum there are two pieces, "Niki Gator" and "The Poet and her Muse". Apparently, there are more pieces in San Diego, although I'm not sure if this information is current. Leave a comment and let me know!

Geisel Library

The main library at the University of California San Diego is called Geisel Library in honor of Theodor Geisel aka Dr. Seuss. William Pereira is the designer and I just learned through this link that he also designed the Transamerica Pyramid in San Francisco. There are a couple of guys up there on the sixth floor doing some work.

A simple meal

Soup, bread, coffee. Or is it a nice big glass of wine? Notice the real spoons in the upper left.

"Immigrants Are Not Criminals"

Like the French, we too have cause for demonstration. All over California this week students have been protesting House Bill 4437, a proposal which would make it a crime to be in the United States illegally or to offer aid to illegal immigrants.