Always Something Interesting Along the River

Enjoyed a nice long walk along the Guadelupe River today and saw these colorful little flags again.  Does anyone know why they are there?

And then when we took a little side trip to check out Henry's Hi Life we peeked into a hole in the wall and saw this dazzling sight.

And then this.  Always something new to see, just around the corner.

Trade Rite Market - The Commercial Heart of Little Portugal*

Little Portugal (an area roughly bordered by King, 28th Street and Alum Rock) sits just a few blocks from where I live and yet I had never eaten traditional Portuguese food until last week when someone brought food catered by Rosa of Trade Rite Market to a meeting. We talked about Trade Rite and he recommended their breakfast burrito claiming: "You have one of Rosa's breakfast burritos and you're good for the day."  Well this morning at 8:30 I had one.  The delicious, chewy, warm tortilla was filled with tender scrambled eggs, grilled onions, and red and green peppers. I topped it with tiny, pickled red pimentos enjoyed every bite. It is now 2 o'clock and I am still not hungry.

I was really tempted to sample the Porto Lagrima which sat on the counter with tiny cups and a Santa who seemed to be encouraging me to try it, but with an alcohol content of 20% and the time of day being early morning, I decided to take a pass.

The bakery and the connected grocery store have a big selection of sardines, imported wines, religious trinkets  and Portuguese pastries. 

I don't know what those pastries on the left side of the tray are, but I know that before vacation is over I am going back for one and a cup of Rosa's espresso.

*The spiritual heart of Little Portugal is Five Wounds Church.

Just One More Day to Enjoy Christmas in the Park

Dogs are not allowed in the park but he enjoyed 

circling the park and watching the displays.

He especially liked the mechanical animals...

like Mary's little lamb in 

Harker Academy's display.

Christmas in the Park is celebrating its 30th year in San Jose.  I admit that this festival (which has grown from a cheesy little bunch of Christmas displays to a big, even cheesier carnival with rides and food stands) is hard not to love.

Everything is colorful and fun and they even have snow machines to give California kids a little taste of winter. Local schools, boy scout troops and other organizations decorate the trees. People are invited to vote for their favorite tree.

 There is also Ice Skating Under the Palms until January 18th (tickets must be purchased) and a raffle tomorrow night at 7:00.

A Neighborhood Church with Some Seriously Interesting History

It was foggy and cold this morning when I took the dog out for a walk and I was just trudging along without any enthusiasm until we came to the First AME Zion Church.  Tucked away in a quiet residential neighborhood that is well off of the beaten path, the presence of the church always comes as a surprise to me. I think the church is beautiful and this morning surrounded by fog it looked even better.  The history of this church is fascinating and I encourage you to check it out on the church website.  Just click on "links" and then A.M.E Zion history.  I am pretty sure they serve breakfast on Saturday mornings to people in need but I couldn't find that in writing any place.

I think I've posted a picture of this before but

this morning in the fog, with the Christmas lights

it was quite a sight.

San Jose Holiday Parade - The fun never stops in San Jose.

We just barely escaped having rain on our parade (or maybe snow) but that didn't stop 125,000 people from coming out to enjoy the San Jose Holiday Parade.  Who isn't captivated by giant parade balloons?  My favorite was Hello Kitty.

Ocscar was being difficult.

But I also like the marching bands, especially the Marine Corps.

And people/dog watching:

All in all a splendid time.