During my visit to San Diego, I spent one afternoon at the beautiful Balboa Park, which is known for the famous San Diego Zoo, but there are also tons of other things to see in the huge 1200 acre park.
Since I only had a few hours I decided not to go in any of the park’s 17 museums – that will have to wait for another trip. Instead I roamed around photographing the elaborate baroque architecture including the California Tower and Dome which house the Museum of Man.
Please click any of the images to view larger versions.
The park was home to the first world’s fair, the 1915-16 Panama-California Exposition which commemorated the opening of the Panama Canal. In preparation for the expo, many buildings were constructed in the flamboyant and ornamented Spanish-Renaissance style of architecture.
I decided to make an exception to my “no museums” rule when I heard about the Museum of Photographic Arts, but when I got there it was closed. All I could do was peer in the windows to get a glimpse of the display.
The one thing I really wanted to photograph was the famous reflecting lily pond in front of the botanical building. You know how I like icons! I couldn’t believe my eyes when I got there and the pond had been drained and there was a big mud pit of construction going on.
Well, I didn’t research this one very well did I? Sigh.
The next stop was over the little bridge to the Desert Cactus Garden.
When Balboa Park first opened as the “City Park” in 1868, there wasn’t much there but scrub. But around 25 years later a woman who became known as “The Mother of Balboa Park” offered to plant 100 trees a year in the park plus donate trees and shrubs around San Diego in exchange for 32 acres of land within the park to be used as a commercial nursery.
In 1935 she built the cactus garden. I was astonished to see so many varieties of cacti and succulents I had never seen before.
When sunset came I returned to the fountain to make my last image of the day.
I hope you enjoyed this visit to Balboa Park with me!
If you enjoyed this post, please share it with your social networks.
Great images Anne. San Diego is such a scenic location and you’ve covered it well!
Thank you so much Russ! That’s a great compliment given I only went into town 3 times! I hope to get a chance to go back again next year and spend some more time there.
Wonderful imagery. Thank you! I was in Balboa Park a number of years ago when my son was young and I loved walking around there and walking around the wonderful architecture. It was magical. Thanks for the history lesson as well!
Thanks Karen, I’m glad you enjoyed the post. The architecture is like nothing I’ve seen outside of Europe. Although I haven’t really been to that many cities. We usually go to parks.
Very good images, Anne – I especially love the second image, and also those strange and wonderful cacti! I visited Balboa Park many years ago so in addition to simply enjoying your photos, they bring back some nice memories.
Hi Laurie, thanks very much for your comments. The cactus garden was astounding! Glad to bring back some memories for you 🙂
Excellent images (as always) Anne. You bring back so many memories. I used to travel to San Diego for business and would love to hang out at Balboa Park. That was 20 years ago and I wasn’t shooting then. I need to get back there soon.
Hi Len, you should go back! I would love to see how Balboa looks through your lens. Thanks for your comments.
I really like the 4th image of the arcs and columns. Were you tempted to do a black-and-white version? Seems like a lot of people do that in these kind of images. But I really liked you kept it in color as the sun light is just gorgeous.
Hi Fabio, I haven’t tried black and white on that one, good idea! I did a black and white on an image that is similar to the second one, but it didn’t make the cut. Thanks for your visit and comments!
Very beautiful Anne. What a wonderful place to make these exquisite images.
Thank you very much Joe!
Lovely collection of photos. Nice work.
Much appreciated Kris!
Wonderful set of images, Anne. I especially like the shots of the cacti. I tried this at the Thompson Arboretum in Arizona but did not manage to get as nice a set of shots as you did – guess I will have to blame the harsh dessert light 🙂
Hi Mark, thank you very much! The light does make a huge difference in the images. Many of the cacti I photographed were in the shade. The ones in the direct bright light didn’t turn out so well.
Great images as always!
Thank you so much Mike!
Terrific post and shots here, Anne! A real getaway for your readers!!
Thank you so much Toad, I am very glad you enjoyed it.
Looks wonderful! I would love to spend some relaxing hours there…
Hi Laura, thank you very much! It was a great spot to spend an afternoon. In fact I think I could go back again and again if I lived near there.
Anne –
The architecture in Balboa Park is wonderful, but actually a little hard to photograph because many of the structures are so tall. Great photos!
Hi Pete, I found exactly the same thing! I kept looking to see if there was another building I could higher up on to photograph. Thanks for your visit and comments!