Ever since reading about the World's Columbian Exposition held in 1893 I have been fascinated with World's Fairs. They held a grandeur and awesomeness that is lost on current World's Exhibitions (if and when they are celebrated these days) as our present world moves at a much faster technological pace than ever. In the older days they were literally inventing things we had never heard before. Now, we marginally increase our existing technology every minute. Hardly a Word's Fair is needed to introduce us to things like that. One of the fascinating things about these older fairs was how immense and beautiful they were and yet built to be completely temporary. They literally erected a city that was meant to be torn down after a year or so. In very few cases a building or two turned into something else afterwards. Not so much with Balboa Park.

Although Balboa Park's buildings still remain to this day, they are actually a testament to two separate expositions held at two different times. Each of these leaves behind a legacy of beautiful architecture and grounds that are lost "social celebrations" that we will never build alike. Even though the park was designed to be just a recreational park in it's inception , it was the decision to put a World's Fair (x2) there that put it on the map currently.

Wikipedia : Balboa Park is a 1,200-acre (490 ha) urban cultural park in San Diego, California, United States.[3] In addition to open space areas, natural vegetation zones, green belts, gardens, and walking paths, it contains museums, several theaters, and the world-famous San Diego Zoo. There are also many recreational facilities and several gift shops and restaurants within the boundaries of the park. Placed in reserve in 1835, the park's site is one of the oldest in the United States dedicated to public recreational use. Balboa Park is managed and maintained by the Parks and Recreation Department of the City of San Diego.

Named for the Spanish maritime explorer Vasco Núñez de Balboa, the park hosted the 1915–16 Panama–California Exposition and 1935–36 California Pacific International Exposition, both of which left architectural landmarks. The park and its historic Exposition buildings were declared a National Historic Landmark andNational Historic Landmark District in 1977, and placed on the National Register of Historic Places.[2][4]