| Just moments from downtown San Diego is Balboa Park, rated as one
of the best cultural parks in the world. Within its 1200 acres there are 15
major museums, 8 gardens and many other cultural and recreational
attractions including the San Diego Zoo. Many of the buildings feature
highly ornamented Spanish Renaissance style facades. This building houses
the Art Museum. |  |
 | The first
buildings were built for the 1915-1916 Panama-California Exposition
commemorating the opening of the Panama Canal. It includes the El Prado
pedestrian walkway at the front of this building under the arches. In the
depression of 1935-6 more buildings were added for the California Pacific
International Exposition. |
| This tower and dome house the Museum of Man, one of the museums
we were able to visit using the museum passports we bought, which gave us
access to all the museums in the park. |  |
 | The dome is
highly ornamented with some wonderful tilework. The exhibition inside is
good but the building was exceptional. |
| Spreckels was a sugar baron and a major benefactor of the park
(and many other things in the area). He funded this open air organ which is
used for outside concerts every Sunday and has been since 1915. It is the
largest outdoor pipe organ and one of very few outdoor organs in the world.
We caught part of the Sunday concert and listened to it being played. |  |
 | The organ building
is the centrepiece of an amphitheatre with two balustraded wings which end
in ornate lodges like this. |
 |
Above the walkways are a couple of towers which are also very
ornamented as they rise above the colonnaded walkway below. |  |
| On both sides of the road there are colonnades which run the full
length of the principal buildings and make up the famous El Prado walkway. |  |
 | As you walk along
you have views of the other buildings through the arches. |
| Behind the Museum of Man is the Old Globe Theatre, a replica of
the original Shakespearean theatre. It is used today for regular theatre
productions. Across from here is an open air theatre used by a dance
company. |  |
 | The statue at the
centre of the group of buildings is of El Cid. Quite what he is doing here
we weren't sure. |
| One of the more recent buildings is the home of the Natural
History Museum. This too is an impressive building but of a less ornamented
style. |  |
 | One of
the older buildings at the centre of the park is the Botanical Building, a
conservatory which is built of wood but has no glass between the slats. The
pool in front contains water lilies, though there is not much to be seen at
this time of year. |
| Between El Prado and the zoo is a collection of buildings laid
out like a Spanish village and surrounded by a wall and palms which help to
create the atmosphere. |  |
 | It is an arts
showcase with dozens of small art workshops covering all types of art from
painting, to sculpture and everything in between. |
| There is plenty of parking for the thousands of visitors. A free
shuttle runs round the car parks to try to persuade people to park a little
further from the crowded centre. |  |
 | As impressive as
the buildings is the huge Moreton Bay fig tree which has pride of place
outside the Natural History Museum. This is one of the largest trees in
California. |
|