Robert Plimpton at the Spreckels Organ in Balboa Park.
Who’s that person at the microphone in the Spreckels Organ Pavilion? It looks like Robert Plimpton, San Diego’s Civic Organist Emeritus! Most of the time he uses his amazing musical talent as resident Organist of the First United Methodist Church.
Robert Plimpton was San Diego’s official Civic Organist from 1984 to 2000, when Dr. Carol Williams (first woman in the United States to be appointed Civic Organist) took his place. She happened to be out of town, so he returned for last Sunday’s free public concert in Balboa Park . . . and played magnificently, of course!
I tried to get a good photo of the organ’s enormous pipes, but the images turned out too shadowy. I’ll try again at some future time!
A plaque at the historic Spreckels Organ Pavilion. Dedicated to the people of San Diego and all the world, by the philanthropist Spreckels brothers in 1915.View of Spreckels Organ Pavilion from a spot near the Japanese Friendship Garden.Bust of John D. Spreckels watches organ concerts behind benches.
Here’s a photo I took in late 2015, during Balboa Park’s yearlong centennial celebration.
Patricia McAfee, mezzo soprano, and Robert Plimpton, San Diego Civic Organist Emeritus, entertain a Sunday afternoon audience during “A Tribute to Kate Sessions, The Mother of Balboa Park” concert on November 8, 2015.
It must be around two o’clock on a Sunday afternoon. Time for the weekly free concert at Balboa Park’s Spreckels Organ Pavilion!
Crowds gather in the sun under colorful umbrellas to listen to the majestic sound of the Spreckels Organ, one of the largest outdoor organs in the world. The city of San Diego employs an official Civic Organist, none other than Dr. Carol Williams, one of the top performing organists in the world! Each Sunday she plays classical music, jazz, marches . . . and occasionally one of her excellent original compositions. The Spreckels Organ Society helps to raise funds to keep the tradition of free public concerts alive. It’s a tradition that has lasted a hundred years!
The beautiful Spreckels Organ Pavilion is used for various concerts and events throughout the year, including the yearly December Nights festival around Christmas. It’s also a favorite venue for wedding photography. The ornate, elegant architecture makes it interesting to visit even when the stage and benches are empty.
Yikes! Look at the creatures I spotted lurking among the trees on the west side of Balboa Park! That big one looks like a gigantic bloody yeti with goat hooves. Watch out!
What are scary monsters, aliens and trolls doing in Balboa Park? They’re being created for Halloween . . . to populate The Haunted Trail! Sunday afternoon I spotted the huge creatures under construction behind a fence. Look how high that bloody monster stands compared to the step ladder! I also observed a human dummy in an electric chair and loads of more weird, grotesque scenery.
San Diego’s unique Haunted Trail has been raising goosebumps for years now. Looks like visitors to this dark outdoor “haunted house” will be in for a lot of screaming!
Here’s the spooky castle-like entrance to The Haunted Trail!
During my morning walks, I often see military personnel jogging through Balboa Park. Sometimes they can number in the hundreds. They wear distinctive yellow t-shirts marked “NAVY” and lustily chant military cadences as they proceed. I’m not sure whether they are sailors from one of the several nearby naval bases or marines from the Marine Corps Recruit Depot. Usually one or two men will be holding a flag, and a few men in front will lead the way, suddenly changing direction at a moment’s notice.
My camera’s flash in this photo reflected brightly off safety tape on the joggers, making the energetic scene appear kinetic and dazzling.
A large plaque affixed to a boulder near the House of Hungary in Balboa Park’s International Cottages remembers San Diego’s first sheriff, Agoston Haraszthy.
Haraszthy, born in 1812, was the first Hungarian to settle permanently in the United States. Before coming to San Diego, he founded the oldest incorporated village in Wisconsin and operated the first commercial steamboat on the upper Mississippi River.
After moving to San Diego, he formed a partnership with Juan Bandini and began many business and agricultural projects. He planted fruit orchards, operated a livery stable and stagecoach line, and opened a butcher shop. He was instrumental in organizing a large portion of San Diego called Middletown, which many called Haraszthyville. He imported grape vines and planted a vineyard near the San Diego River.
In 1850 he was elected first sheriff of San Diego County.
House of Hungary in Balboa Park’s International Cottages.
I took this photo while strolling down El Prado, Balboa Park’s breathtakingly beautiful central promenade. Lined with fountains, fine museums and Spanish Colonial Revival buildings designed for the 1915 Panama-California Exposition, it is one of the most scenic walks in San Diego.
I caught this man taking a stroll with his dog in front of Casa del Prado, one of the spectacular buildings along El Prado.
This closeup photo was taken on a different day:
Ornate plaster elements add elegance to the Spanish Colonial Revival building.
And here’s one more pic!
Casa del Prado facade photographed as evening approaches and lights turn on.
Here we are strolling eastward across the Cabrillo Bridge into Balboa Park as the sun rises. To the left we see the California Tower, directly adjacent to the domed Museum of Man. During the day, the tower’s carrilon can be heard throughout the park marking time every 15 minutes. At noon the electronic chimes play a medley of beautiful music.
Many walkers and joggers love the peaceful morning atmosphere of wonderful Balboa Park.
I like this photo…even though an optical illusion makes it appear a bit tilted!
This was taken in the early morning from the short walkway that passes over Balboa Park’s shimmering reflecting pool. You are looking toward the splendid Spanish Colonial Revival buildings on El Prado.
Later in the morning, when the world has yawned, stretched and put on its shoes, people will be sitting on the white benches. Children will be standing at the pond’s edge, gazing down at Japanese Koi and myriad other critters in the water. An older gentleman will probably be heard nearby, playing Mariachi music with his guitar. And dozens of photographs will be taken. Each as beautiful as this one!
Here are some additional pics taken at various times…
View of the entire reflecting pool from the Botanical Building.Side view of the Balboa Park’s reflecting pool.Photographer at work beside the beautiful water.
One of my favorite places in Balboa Park is the reflecting pool, or lily pond, as some call it. This tranquil body of water lies between El Prado and the enormous wood lath structure which is the Botanical Building.
Flower beds, green grass and families enjoying picnics surround the pond, and colorful lotus flowers grace the surface. All sorts of interesting creatures call it home. In addition of numerous large koi (two can be seen in this photo), and floating turtles craning their heads to gaze at tourists, there are crawdads and a variety of fish that people have dumped into the pond. Years ago a small shark was spotted in the serene water!
An interesting historical fact: during World War II, when Balboa Park was utilized to mobilize American soldiers, the Navy used the reflecting pool to train sailors! You can still see old black-and-white photos of men rowing on the pool when you visit the San Diego History Center, a bit further to the east down El Prado.
These photographs are of the small pond-like section right next to the Botanical Building. This is the best place to watch brightly colored Koi swimming about.
Looking down at bright colors in the reflecting pool.Lots of color can be found in this section of the reflecting pool, by the Botanical Building.Turtle comes out of the water to enjoy a bit of San Diego sunshine!Crowd gazes into small section of the Balboa Park lily pond.
Elaborate facade of the beautiful California Building in Balboa Park.
Here’s one iconic sight in Balboa Park I always lift my eyes to enjoy. The elaborate facade of the California Building, home of the San Diego Museum of Man, contains sculpted historical figures molded from clay and plaster. These figures include Junipero Serra, father of California’s Spanish missions, and Juan Rodriguez Cabrillo, who discovered San Diego Bay nearly five centuries ago in 1542.
This fantastic building, inspired by the church of San Diego in Guanajuato, Mexico, was erected for the 1915 Panama-California Exposition, an event that celebrated the opening of the Panama Canal and promoted San Diego as a destination. Like other similar buildings to the east along El Prado, it is in the Spanish Colonial Revival architectural style, which was largely developed by Bertram Goodhue.
The California Building and adjacent California Tower, and the more simple structure to the south across El Prado–housing Evernham Hall and the St. Francis Chapel–form the California Quadrangle. The courtyard-like area at the quadrangle’s center, where visitors can sit at tables and through which cars today travel, is called the Plaza de California.
Every few years I venture into The Museum of Man just to refresh my memory. There are a number of interesting anthropological exhibits, including a whole room full of spooky Egyptian mummies!
Here are some more pics…
Gazing up at the colorful dome of the California Building, and the California Tower.People on the street in front of the Museum of Man. El Prado runs through the Plaza de California.Plaster figures from local history adorn the ornate facade.Banners near the entrance show current exhibits at the Museum of Man.Plaque a bit west of the Museum of Man, beside the archway into Balboa Park’s California Quadrangle, commemorates Cabrillo’s discovery of California.Sitting at a table under an umbrella near the beautiful Museum of Man.
Here are even more photos from a later date…
Sign in the California Quadrangle. Built for the 1915 Panama-California Exposition, the Plaza de California and surrounding buildings served as the grand west entrance for the exposition.Photo toward the southeast corner of the California Quadrangle shows Mission Revival style arches.Photo of the iconic California Tower from a point east on El Prado.The ornate upper levels of the California Bell Tower. Tours up the tower’s stairs provide amazing views of Balboa Park and San Diego.Photo of the beautiful California Building from the east, near the Old Globe Theatre.Elaborate ornamentation around the archway outside the east side of the California Quadrangle.Colorful dome tiles, part of the Spanish Colonial Revival masterpiece of exposition architect Bertram Goodhue.
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