In honor of Jane Emerson, long-time San Diego resident and activist
Thursday, August 31, 2006
Museum of Art
I hope you are not tired of seeing Balboa Park yet because I still haven't captured all the beautiful buildings and places in this park. This building was built for the 1915 Panama-California Exposition, along with the others that I showed here and here. Maybe the above photo will be more convincing than the photo I showed here to entice you to go see the Warhol exhibit which is open through September 10.
This may not seem like a very official lifeguard post, but the most important thing is that someone is there. Well, not in this photograph anyway. Indeed, there is a lifeguard station and lifeguards watching out for swimmers and surfers at this beach which has a dangerously hard breaking surf at the shoreline.
These morning glories grow on a drab chain link fence which I pass as I drive to work in the morning. I understand the "glory" part because they certainly pop out at you with their beauty even at 45 mph and no coffee. The "morning" part is explained by the fact that the flower lasts for only a single morning and then dies in the afternoon. New flowers bloom each day.
Send over the mojitos, I'm in the lounge chair down by the water! Okay, back to reality. Although it looks like it could be the Caribbean, this is a close up of a building at SDSU that I showed you last month...and it is back to school this week for the students.
Only 10 more days and the racing season at the Del Mar racetrack will be over. This yearly event creates a lot of excitment and draws crowds of people from all walks of life, not just the betting types. The last time I went was 17 years ago when I turned 18. You are not allowed to bet unless you are over 21. Every Friday there is also a free rock concert following the races - the last concert of the season is this Friday, September 1st.
Are you wondering what a Mexi-Deli is? I wondered too. It is just like the name implies: Mexican food - burritos, tacos, quesadillas, tostadas, and combo plates too AND deli food - sandwiches or "tortas", salads, wraps, potato salad or fruit. Everything is made fresh daily including the homemade flan.
1. Clean the front window 2. Roll down the side windows 3. Set your camera up for the setting you think you might want to use (auto is good) 4. Keep the camera within reach 5. Continue to be mindful of your driving (it's almost like talking on a cell phone while driving) 6. Don't worry about getting parts of your car in the photo or the angle - these can be fixed later 7. Click away!
This lighthouse is located inside the Cabrillo Monument National Park. It was used as a beacon for ships and as a home to the keepers for 36 years staring in 1855. At 422 feet above sea level, sometimes fog and clouds obscured the light, so a new lighthouse was built further down the hill and closer to the water. There was a wedding taking place when I visited and if you enlarge the photo you can see the bride's veil afloat in the wind and the (other) photographer getting shots of the wedding party. Happy 3rd Birthday to Simon!
Created in 1935 by San Diego sculptor Donal Hord, this gorgeously detailed stone fountain is called La Tehuana and is located in the courtyard of the House of Hospitality in Balboa Park. It was made as part of the Works Progress Administration (WPA) / Federal Art Project, a program that provided jobs for unemployed artists during the Great Depression.
Last Thursday was the first day of the city's new law banning smoking at beaches and parks. This includes Ocean Beach, Mission Beach (you can still smoke on some of the paved walkways near the beach), Balboa Park, and 3 of our golf courses. The first time you are caught by a police officer, a park ranger, or a lifeguard the fine is $250. What do you think about having a ban on smoking outdoors in your city?
I thought this was a special moment to see a giraffe sitting down. I guess every body needs to take a rest once in a while. Hope you enjoyed your Sunday!
If you like shopping, you will find many unique items from Mexico and around the world at the Bazaar del Mundo. As I mentioned yesterday, the shops and the restaurants had to move last year. The new location (just across the street at the corner of Taylor and Juan Streets) is smaller, but the shops still have the same specialty items and appealing colorful atmosphere.
In May 2005 the Bazaar del Mundo, its shops and restaurants (Casa de Pico is one of them), lost their lease and had to move from the Old Town State Historic Park. Many guide books and even web directories may still locate this restaurant and the Bazaar incorrectly, as it was in the State Park for more than 30 years. I'm still a little sad when I think about it. But the good news is that the restaurant Casa de Pico is now open in La Mesa at Grossmont Center and is still serving up good Mexican food and giant margaritas.
From the photo above, can you guess where I was on my vacation? Some of the Daily Photo bloggers might recognize Eric Tenin of Paris Daily Photo (PDP) on the left and that is me on the right. My family spent a few weeks in France visiting family and vacationing in the countryside. Eric was nice enough to meet with us over lunch - patient and gracious as my husband and I ran around after our 1 year old girl and 3 year old boy. Since many visitors also visit PDP and because his is the first of the Daily Photo blogs, I thought I would write a little something about Eric and Paris Daily Photo. Eric started PDP in March 2005 when France was going through their blog craze. He wanted to start a blog but as a journalist he felt he wouldn’t have time for a written blog. He received a camera as a gift, thought of starting a photo blog, and Paris Daily Photo was born! Initially, he thought it would last only 3 months and now there is no end in sight. After more than 100 cities joining in, Eric has a standard email greeting newcomers and letting them know about the different ways Daily Photo bloggers stay in touch (calendar of events, discussion forum, Best of Daily Photo, etc). We agreed that daily photo blogging is fun but can be a lot of work. It wouldn’t be as interesting if it were Paris Weekly Photo or San Diego Whenever Photo now would it? I asked Eric which of his own photos he likes best – click here to see one of his favorites capturing a snowy day in Paris with his point & shoot camera. A few things I noticed about Eric was that he speaks (and writes) in English very well and that yes, he is a very friendly Parisian! Thanks again for taking the time to meet with us! And to all, I hope you enjoy the last part of the summer and enjoy your vacation as much as I did.
Looking southeast from the rooftop of one of the buildings where I work. The large white building is the Mormon temple (click here for a close-up). Happy Birthday Carla!
The Salk Institute is a non-profit educational research group that was established in the 1960's by Jonas Salk, the developer of the polio vaccine.Salk collaborated with the architect Louis I. Kahn to design the buildings and plaza. Extending into the ocean, the Institute uses light, space, and the natural surroundings to foster and inspire scientific thought. Thanks to Stu for suggesting this as a place of interest!
Since I showed lots of water and beach last week, I thought I'd go in the other direction by showing this photo. We don't get a lot of rain here so to save ourselves from incredibly high water bills, many people in my neighborhood have cactus and rock gardens. At its highest point, this cactus from a neighbor's yard is about 10 feet/3 meters tall. I've been waiting for these pods to turn into some kind of flower, but so far nothing has happened.
Since I started this photo blog, I look up (and down and all around) a lot more. This is a photo of the underside of an awning that covers a walkway on the SDSU campus.
Went back to Mario's de La Mesa and got the carne asada taco. Aaron G commented before that it is one big taco, but it is really like eating 2 or 3 tacos. Another thumbs up for Mario's!
There is a wonderfully long and sandy beach behind the Hotel Del Coronado. The tents to the right are not a common sight at other beaches here, but the hotel has them out for guests to sit in the shade (and sip their cocktails). Also from here, you can see the Point Loma peninsula in the background.
On the other side of Coronado, away from downtown and the bay, is the Pacific Ocean and this famous hotel. The Hotel Del Coronado is a beautiful luxury resort that was built in 1888. It is one of the oldest and largest all wooden buildings in California. You may recognize the hotel in scenes from the 1959 movie "Some Like It Hot" starring Marilyn Monroe.
A ferry goes from downtown San Diego to Coronado several times daily for $2.75 each way, 50 cents extra to bring your bike. This map is helpful to show us the various birds and sea animals in our bay.
San Diego Bay is a great place for sailing because the waters are somewhat calm and the wind is good. This boat's name is Lady Luck and she is sailing in front of downtown San Diego and the Harbor Drive area. See another view of the Bay here.
Since I'm on vacation, I thought I would give a short tour of the city of Coronado, just across the bay from San Diego. Coronado is an "island" connected to San Diego by the Coronado Bridge as well as a small strip of land that leads into the city of Imperial Beach. In this photo, Coronado is on the left and downtown San Diego is on the right.
I mentioned Ponce's before and here is a picture of the outside of the restaurant and here is the meal that I had there. Delicious! I'm still gone on vacation. You'll see my photos as usual, but I won't be able to respond to comments or visit your sites. Hope you all are having a great summer!
These painted electrical boxes are all around the city. This is a nice colorful one near Balboa Park. I showed a few others already: a funky one, a happy one, and a pelican.
I hope you are not tired of seeing Balboa Park yet because I still haven't captured all the beautiful buildings and places in this park. This building was built for the 1915 Panama-California Exposition, along with the others that I showed here and here. Maybe the above photo will be more convincing than the photo I showed here to entice you to go see the Warhol exhibit which is open through September 10.
