Visit Cortez Hill, one of San Diego’s oldest established residential areas. Its location on higher ground provides a great vista of the downtown below and San Diego Bay in the distance.

Park your vehicle in this district, which you’ll find considerably easier than in the more congested downtown areas, and walk or bike around to admire the older houses, buildings and green spaces.

One space that has huge appeal is Tweet Street Park, which got its name from colorful houses built for neighborhood birds. District residents were dismayed by the amount of urban development around them and a reduction in the population of indigenous birds, so the park was created to increase the native avian population and to have a place for residents to enjoy. Look up when you’re in the park for artistic pieces that hang in trees, primarily for the benefit of birds. Dogs have their own space too with a fire hydrant display, with the dual purpose of sparing the greenery. Kids can enjoy the playground.

The district is named after the historic and landmark building El Cortez, which opened in 1927 as a combination hotel and apartment complex. Ash Street is a good spot to view the building, with its clean architectural lines of Spanish Renaissance Revival style. Even though it fell into a period of disrepair in the 1980s, it has since been restored and now houses condominiums and commercial space.

St. Joseph Cathedral on Third Avenue has undergone a number of renovations since it was built in 1894, but its presence in the community has a definite importance. Its biggest catastrophe was a fire in 1937 that partially destroyed the building, while its replacement doubled its capacity for the rapidly growing city. Visit this impressive church, which holds daily Masses and a Saturday vigil.

Return easily to downtown after visiting Cortez Hill or head toward the bay and visit the adjoining district of Little Italy.