The Colors and Shapes of California

It has come time to say farewell to the San Diego, California area for another year. We spent our last few days absorbing all the "colors".

Since mangoes and strawberries are in season, I couldn't resist canning some for another day.

All the while I was canning, the hummingbirds were busy filling up at the feeder.

On Sunday, we visited the La Jolla Farmer's Market to stock up on fresh produce and flowers.

We have visited the La Jolla Coves to see the sea lions many times in the past but this time we spent more time a bit farther south and enjoyed the tide pools and unique formations along this coastline... and skyline.

Parts of the shore almost look like a moonscape... or a mountain range from high above in an airplane.

Yes, we did stop and see the sea lions and learned that to date, 42 babies have been born this season; I was able to capture only one mom and babe. Both of us remembered how much Kaci loved this area when we were here as a family. On another day we headed for Mt. Laguna, a part of Cleveland National Forest. Neighbors told us about a drive they had taken and we thought it sounded like a good idea ... besides we never can resist new territory. We headed east on "The 8" and took a left at the designated mile marker. After we climbed a few thousand feet, this is what 8 looked like.

It wasn't long before we found the gravel road and then the objects that sent us up 6000 feet into snow country... giant pine cones! I am not kidding you. These cones are huge! I bet they weigh 8-10 pounds each cuz they are full of sap. Our neighbors collected a bunch and use them for fire starters. We spent over an hour searching for the biggest and the best and yes, we now have 7 or 8 of these mammoth creatures in the car... ready for a Minnesota campfire. They made Mike's hand look small! And mine. Here you see them in comparison to other cones of normal to big size. And then of course there were the spectacular vistas from the mountain top. You see, once we had gathered the cones and enjoyed lunch, it was still early so we drove a bit further into this forested mountain. And from this height, Mike spotted a road down there somewhere SO we consulted a map and decided to do "a big loop" back to the 8. We stopped several times on the descent to take in the magnificent colors and shapes. And once we reached the lower elevation, it was desert into which we were driving. What we had seen from atop was an old stagecoach trail turned county road ... with more colors and shapes.

We actually found a campground with hot springs that we may return to another year. Great Drive!

When we finally reached the 8, it was getting close to dinner time so we drove to The Little Acorn Casino ... seemed like a logical place. After dinner and an hour of gaming, we headed for home. It was a 12 hour day and we had put over 230 miles on the car. It was worth every penny!

Today we headed for Nevada. Just before the border, I took this last picture of California color in the median.

After a maybe not so quick stop at Bass Pro Shops, we are off to Pahrump, Nevada for a couple of weeks. Death Valley, a daytrip to Vegas and maybe some golf awaits us there. Till later...

The San Diego Mission

This is one of those places that I have wanted to go to for years and just never made it - well we did last week. The original mission site was down by Old Town and when the priests wanted more room for fields, it was moved 6 miles inland. This is the site we visited; it is the one that has been restored. Unlike Mission San Luis Rey, much of this mission fell into ruin and what we see today is a product of detailed restoration. These pictures in the museum show what it may have been like when the Jesuit Missionaries landed in the 1700's and established this mission.

And when they decided to go looking inland for another site.

What first struck me on the cloudy day we visited was how much the bell tower looked like an old toy I had; a bell set with which I am sure I drove the family crazy. I think my neice Julie has it now; she enjoyed playing with it when she was little, too.

The picture above shows the gardens in the front of the church and a statue of the founding father. In the rear gardens, I admired the statues and flowers, especially the one of St. Francis.

This bell is the only one that remains from the first mission; note the crown on the top. This church, which has 4 services every weekend, is a basilica and that is the reason for the "tent" structure over the pulpit.

The Jesus figure that adorns the altar has no arms; it was found this way in the old mission and no one knows what happened to the arms but they decided to use it anyway. Look really carefully inside this crown; there is a Madonna and child figurine. (No flash photography is allowed in these old settings and it is tough to get a close up using only natural lighting.)

This elaborate crown was designed to showcase that Madonna and child which kept appearing in various places. The whole thing is at least 3 feet tall.

I ran out of batteries so there are not as many pictures as I would have liked... good reason to go back next year.

Mission San Luis Rey

One day this week, we took a drive to Oceanside to check out Mission San Luis Rey. It is called the "King of all Missions" because it was and is the biggest of the 21 missions in California. This church was built 200 years ago and much of it still remains as it was originally built; in the shape of a cross.

When you walk down the aisle towards the altar, there are Stations of the Cross from the 18th century on the walls. The ceiling is all original beams.

But the truly amazing part was the side altar on the left. This is a 62 inch sculpture from the 19th century. It depicts the suffering Christ just before his crucifixion.

This wood statue has porcelain teeth and movable joints and real hair.

When I was taking this closeup I was using the "portrait" setting on my camera. After I had snapped the first picture a message popped up saying "Blink Detected"... now that was downright spooky!

This is the front altar; all statues are from the mid 18th century. Over the altar is a wooden dome with a cupola that has 144 panes of glass which provides beautiful lighting.
This is the Madonna Chapel which originally was a mortuary chapel. Again, there is a dome overhead. There is a door to the right that leads directly to the cemetery.

This is the Baptismal area in the rear of the church.

When you leave the church, you walk through this arched pathway

to the rear of the church where the gardens are located. This archway is from the original mission built in the 1700's.

The gardens are filled with flowers and greenery. The lady in the gift shop said to see the real beauty we needed to come back when the roses were in bloom; I can just imagine what that must be like.
In the background of this picture, you see the oldest olive tree in the state of California dating from the early 1700's.

This is the original well house. The workmanship on these Mission buildings is amazing. I wonder what we build today will still be here in 2211.
This bronze statue is located in the gardens. Like the Stations of The Cross we saw in Colorado, this artist's detail is to be admired.

In the front of the Mission, we saw a sculpture depicting Jesus meeting his mother. What I loved most were the hands reaching out to one another.

This is the entrance to the cemetery.

This cross adorns the doorway.

And once again, it is the bronze sculptures that draw my attention.
Mary's welcoming stance and her gentle features give the area a real sense of calm and peace.

Add this to your list of places to see when you visit the San Diego area.