In honor of Jane Emerson, long-time San Diego resident and activist
Saturday, March 31, 2007
One year birthday
Today it has been 1 year of San Diego Daily Photo. Others who have passed this 1 year milestone (and 2 years for Eric of Paris!) have made a collage of their best photos or posted a special photo. Due to my delinquent, lazy, and "fly by the seat of my pants" behavior I'm bringing you what I can. So, in celebration of César Chávez Day and as a tribute to my activist grandmother to whom this blog is dedicated, I thought I'd show a photo of a local union office supporting food and commercial workers. Like other daily photo bloggers' experience, for me this has been a very fun time consuming outlet of artistic expression connected to a wonderful community of people and I don't want it to end! And so, I've talked a few people into contributing.... I've already posted some things from Stu and he will continue to contribute from time to time. And please welcome Alexandra who will begin to post on Thursdays. We are looking forward to showing more new and exciting photos from our city. To SDDP visitors near and far, thank you very much for your comments and for stopping by to say hi! Comments and visitors keep us all going, so speak up and let us know what you'd like to see, or, if you are tired of seeing Balboa Park just say so!
Since I took you to the lower levels of San Diego food last week, here's a much higher level of food. Photo and description contributed by Stu: Thinking of serving bull's penis for dinner this weekend? How about pig stomach? Rooster comb? If so, you'll be headed to 99 Ranch Market, by far the biggest of the Asian markets in the Kearney Mesa area. They sell all that, plus more varieties of fish (some of them still swimming) than I could possibly name. Personally, I avoid the really exotic stuff and carry away the 99cents-per-pound duck.
On a clear day the Birch Aquarium has a spectacular view. Mornings tend to be overcast and hazy by the beaches, so this is not the most spectacular. The pier you see in the photo is the Scripps Pier - here's a view of the pier on a clear evening.
This Moon jellyfish (about 1 foot across when open) was my favorite creature from the Birch Aquarium. They also have other smaller jellyfish taken from local waters. BTW, this is not a B&W photo. Check out Not Strictly Seattle to see Susan's aquarium photos from last month.
Whale fountains grace the the entrance to the Birch Aquarium where you'll find a 70,000 gallon kelp tank, sharks, coral reefs, and a tide pool area where you can touch starfish and other sea creatures. This is also the last week until the end of the year that naturalist-guided whale watching tours are offered through the aquarium.
This striking sculpture stands outside the San Diego Hall of Champions Sports Museum in Balboa Park. The museum features San Diego's outstanding athletes and sports memorabilia from all sports. This museum is free to residents on the 4th Tuesday of the month. Click here to see the schedule for "Free Tuesdays" at Balboa Park museums.
I'm hitting a new low on the the food chain here. If you happen to be traveling in California (or Nevada & Arizona), In-N-Out Burger is the best fast food burger that you can buy. Their motto is freshness - the burgers are not made from frozen patties and you can watch as they take a whole potato, run it through a grater, and fry them up.
I overheard a conversation where one parent was asking another where they bought their cool/cute child restraint/leash. I wish I had gotten a photo of the child with her "backpack" on. Since I was at the mall, I thought I'd show you this device. What do you think of it?
A groovy blonde sits at the end of a freeway exit and welcomes you to the Hillcrest neighborhood. Click here to see seven more electrical boxes from around town.
This house is in the Hillcrest neighborhood and is built in the Spanish Colonial Revival style, a popular architectural style in many older parts of San Diego.
This was my first visit to Mission Trails Regional Park and it felt like we were many miles from the hustle bustle of the city. We went on a short 5 km hike that was mostly easy walking. There are several trails ranging from easy walks to very challenging hikes (straight up the mountain).
On 5,800 acres of preserved land, Mission Trails Regional Park is only 8 miles from downtown and offers camping, hiking, and as you can see, rock climbing. A rock climbing gym in our backyard...this area is called Mission Gorge. Wishing you all a spectacular weekend and a Happy St Patrick's Day!
Stu sent me running, not walking, to Siesel's Meats (their mother store is Iowa Meat Farms) to buy their barrel cured corned beef in order to cook up the traditional St Patrick's Day meal (corned beef, cabbage, and potatoes). Like their website says, they are San Diego's meat specialists. I have some great memories of a roast lamb and a bbq'd duck that came from Iowa Meat Farms. And where else would you buy veal in San Diego?
This is the view from the Torrey Pines Reserve visitor's center. From here you see a bit of the city of Del Mar, the beach I showed you a few days ago, and the Los Peñasquitos Marsh and Lagoon. Marsh Trail takes you on a hike where crabs, mussels, clams, 15 types of fishes, several types of birds, and some of the animals I mentioned yesterday live. Remnants of Native American life can be found in the kitchen middens that are present in the marsh.
At the Torrey Pines Lodge and Visitors Center there are books and information about the geology, animals, plants, and history of the park. The most exciting part is their display of stuffed and mounted animals. On display are this little skunk, foxes, a racoon, a mountain lion, a bobcat, a great horned owl, a pelican, several smaller birds, an opossum, mice, and more. All the animals on display were found dead on the road in the park and all but the mountain lion still inhabit the area. There are still mountain lions in the county, just in less inhabited areas.
Many of you may have guessed where I was headed after seeing yesterday's photo. Torrey Pines State Reserve has 8 miles of trails all with stunning views of the ocean. The park is named after the Torrey pine tree which is the rarest pine in North America and only grows here and on a small island off the coast of Santa Barbara, California.
This beach goes for 3 miles and is popular for surfing, swimming, and sunbathing. At the southern end of the beach there is a nude beach called Black's Beach. The hill that you see to the left is Torrey Pines State Park a wilderness area of pine trees, sandstone canyons, and hiking trails that overlook the ocean.
Here is Mission San Diego de Alcalá, the first of the 21 missions (churches) in California built by the Spanish to introduce Christianity to native peoples. It was first established in 1769 and moved back and forth between its current location and the Presidio location.
This is a photo of the San Diego River as seen from just off of Mission Gorge Road and looking toward Mission Valley. The river travels 52 miles from its source outside the of the town of Julian to the ocean. The river flows into the Pacific Ocean near the entrance to Mission Bay.
Gelato Vero is a well known coffeehouse that serves gelato (Italian ice cream). My intent was to show the gelato but most of my photos didn't turn out very well. The flavors of the day: caramel with brownies, pistachio, dark chocolate, expresso bean, mocha rum crunch, mango sorbetto, blackberry sorbetto, gianduia, spumoni, strawberry, tiramisu, and Tahitian vanilla.
Last time I passed by the Royal Food Mart I didn't get a good full frontal photo, so here it is. Click here for the side view. And yes, the railing still needs another coat of red paint!
Below the palm trees in this photo there is a battle going on to save the mobile home park at De Anza Cove. The mobile home park's lease expired a few years ago and the disputed land would be turned over to the city which doesn't allow for permanent residences. De Anza Cove is part of Mission Bay Park - click here to see a panoramic sunset photo.
Many people use the colonnade of the Spreckels Organ Pavilion as a backdrop for wedding photos or other special occasions. The bamboo and lighting make for a beautiful background. Yesterday there was a group called Indirani (tribal belly dancers and fire dancing) taking photos for their website and everyone that came by was expecting a performance.
Every Sunday afternoon Balboa Park's House of Pacific Relations International Cottages are open. There are 31 little houses featuring a different country. Each "promotes multicultural goodwill and understanding through educational and cultural programs". Volunteers staff the house and inside you will find photos of famous people and events from that country, traditional clothes or household items, a map of the country, and sometimes food is offered. This food stand is outside of the United States' cottage.
The circus is in town for a few more days. From when I went to the circus as a child, I can still remember being amazed by the trapeze artists swinging from ropes and balancing up on the high wire. What's your favorite part of the circus?
If you like your pizza with a New York accent, Bronx Pizza is the place to go. The lunch special is your choice of two slices and a drink for $6.00. My favorite is the whitestone (mozzarella, ricotta, garlic and parmesan) with mushrooms.
Today it has been 1 year of San Diego Daily Photo. Others who have passed this 1 year milestone (and 2 years for Eric of Paris!) have made a collage of their best photos or posted a special photo. Due to my delinquent, lazy, and "fly by the seat of my pants" behavior I'm bringing you what I can. So, in celebration of César Chávez Day and as a tribute to my activist grandmother to whom this blog is dedicated, I thought I'd show a photo of a local union office supporting food and commercial workers. Like other daily photo bloggers' experience, for me this has been a very fun time consuming outlet of artistic expression connected to a wonderful community of people and I don't want it to end! And so, I've talked a few people into contributing.... I've already posted some things from Stu and he will continue to contribute from time to time. And please welcome Alexandra who will begin to post on Thursdays. We are looking forward to showing more new and exciting photos from our city. To SDDP visitors near and far, thank you very much for your comments and for stopping by to say hi! Comments and visitors keep us all going, so speak up and let us know what you'd like to see, or, if you are tired of seeing Balboa Park just say so!
