Southern California Mountain Retreat

Julian California is locate in San Diego county in the mountains outside of San Diego.  It's economy is mostly based on tourism and agriculture because it's a perfect summer weekend retreat.  The town is high enough to be much cooler in the summer than most of southern California and high enough that it gets snow in the winter.

The town is full of little shops and lots of restaurants, lodges and hotels to accommodate the summer crowds who have headed to the mountains to cool off.

It's become known for it's pies!  Many Californians drive up for the day and have a slice of pie at one of the many restaurants.  They might even take a pie home with them.

It's a small place but if you are looking for a particular business, you can consult this sign to point you in the right direction.

A meal to remember...

The Cava de Cano winery is tucked in the suburbs of Mendoza Argentina and was once the home of the area's governor, Don Guillermo Cano who established Mendoza's first wine festival in 1935.  The current owner Claudio Mellimaci renovated the property and turned the cellar and other rooms into dining rooms.    Imagine walking down this vine covered path and entering that door at the end to find a dining room already laid with meats, cheeses, vegetables and other appetizers.  It was one of those "wow" moments.

The table was so full of wonderful treats, we didn't know where to begin.  But wait, this was only the appetizer.  The grand meal was yet to come and each course was served with a selection of the wonderful wines of Cava de Cano.

I think we might have been there for 3 hours enjoying the huge and delicious meal of roasted meats, pasta, salads, and of course, fabulous empanadas.  All those noble wines served with each course just added to the pleasure.

As we rolled ourselves out of there and back to the car, we passed this very picturesque wall made of wine bottles.  I have a cropped version of this photo framed and hanging in my kitchen.

Sculptures of Treviso Italy

This statue is hidden away in a small courtyard outside of a clothing store in Treviso Italy but, I learned that it has a very interesting history.  It is called La Fontana dell Tette and it was originally built in 1559.  The story states that in honor of each new mayor, the fountain would spew red wine from one breast and white wine from the other breast for three whole days.  The public could drink as much wine as they wanted during those three days.  At some point in it's history, the statue was considered a bit of a bad influence so it was moved to a museum for a while before it found it's way to this location in more recent years.  Today it spews fresh water and passers-by can drink from it....if they dare.

In the canal in Treviso there are several sculptures that blend well with the water.  This one is of a mermaid who appears to be mimicking the pose of the statue above.

In different places you can see fish sculptures popping up out of the water too.

More about Treviso

Above is a picture of the city square in Treviso.  I'm not sure how I caught it so quiet and calm for this photo.  Over to the right, you can make out an awning over some tables and to the far right some arches.

At night, tables appeared under those arches and a restaurant served dinner there.

However, we always opted for the one with the awning.  The Pizzeria daPino was so good we went there twice while we were there.  In fact, that's Janet in the red jacket talking to Steve while we waited for a table.

On Saturdays, there was a huge outdoor market that went up.  You could get literally anything there.  Clothing, household goods, flowers, plants and of course, shark if you wanted it.  Shark fin soup anyone?

The vegetables and fruit looked fantastic and were enthusiastically being picked up by locals who were thinking of the big weekend meals they were going to have.

There will be some more to learn about Treviso in a future post.

Treviso

When I went to Italy two years ago, the second week of the trip was spent in Treviso staying with my friend Janet's nephew Steve.   He was working there on a temporary assignment.  Treviso is a city in the Veneto area and is the capital of the Province of Treviso.  It sits in the heart of an industrial area where much of Italy's manufacturing takes place.

Treviso is a walled city and the photo above shows one of the old gates that led inside.  There are about 3,000 residents who live within the walls but, there are some 80,000 that make up the entire urban center.

The city is the home of the Limited Colors of Benetton clothing company and it's flagship store is pictured above.  It is also the home of the Pinarello Bicycle company, the elite brand of bicycles used by famous racers around the world.

Another of the city's claims to fame is that it's the birthplace of the dessert known as Tiramisu.  In fact, it was invented at the restaurant picture above, Ristorante Beccherie.  We had lunch there one day and I must say it was one of the very best meals I had in Italy.  I ordered the pasta with pesto and that had to be the freshest and most delicious pesto I've ever had.  No, I didn't have the Tiramisu.  I don't care for the taste of coffee so any dessert that has coffee in it is avoided by me.

I'll post some more photos from Treviso next Sunday.

Tiny City Park

When I visit Laguna Beach in the summer one of my favorite stops is a very tiny little city park that is sort of hidden from the street.  At the entrance you will find these two chairs in sculpture form.  They convey a relaxing atmosphere.

The park is long and narrow but, keep walking.  The end of that walk will be very rewarding.  In this shot you can see that some people have already reached the end for the main event.

When you get to the end, the view below is breathtaking overlooking the ocean.  The railings around the the look-out spot are framed with poetry.

But, I'm guessing that many people don't see the poetry because the view is so appealing.  From here you have a grand view of Laguna Beach's main beach area with all the beach-loving people enjoying the sun and ocean waves.

Spanish Influences

After walking under those Mission bells (pictured in my last post) to the entrance of the Mission Inn hotel in Riverside California, the Spanish style continues into the beautiful wood beamed lobby.

Every corner of the lobby is warm and inviting with special touches that make it feel like home.  The stairway leads to the second floor where my room happened to be.  There was an elevator to use but, I really enjoyed using those beautiful stairs.

At the end of the hall where my room was located was this beautiful stained glass window.  I took a few photos of the window hoping to capture that late afternoon sunlight streaming through.

The lobby bar is called the Presidential Lounge and that photo of Richard Nixon is there because Richard and Pat Nixon were married here.

This is another sitting area in the lobby right next to the entrance door.  

Scattered throughout the hotel were beautiful murals depicting scenes from the California Mission era.  I'll post some more photos from this beautiful place sometime in the future.  I think from the last three posts, you can see that this is a special place.

Rainy Sunday

Continuing with my post from last Sunday from the Mission Inn in Riverside California, when I woke on Sunday morning at the hotel I was greeted by a light California morning rain.  I grabbed my camera and headed out because I knew the rain would add another dimension to the photos of the place.  Above is an area of rooms known as Authors Row.

This section probably has a name too but, I'm not sure what it is.  This balcony looks over the pool area.

This little balcony spot looks over the area called The Spanish Patio.  When I arrived the day before, the umbrellas were up and people were dining at the tables below.

The beautiful entrance to the hotel took on a whole new look when glistening with the morning rain.  I posted another photo of the entrance in November of last year that you can see here.  On my next post, I'll show you some photos from the inside of the hotel.

Jewel of Riverside

I posted two photos from the Mission Inn in Riverside California back in November of last year.  You can see those here.  I took hundreds of photos of the place when I stayed there back in 2010 so I thought I'd show you more from this beautiful landmark.  It really is a jewell of place and well worth a visit even if you don't stay there.  Above is the St. Francis of Assisi Chapel.

There were at least two wedding that took place here the day I stayed.  The one pictured to the left had quite  a long line of wedding attendants.

I did manage to catch the bride just as she was entering the chapel.

Another area of the hotel is the rotunda open to the California sky.

A climb all the way to the top along the spiral stairway is well worth the effort.  It looks down onto a lovely fountain at the bottom.

Here is a closer view.  I have many more photos of this place to show you in the future.

Art in the Streets

When I visited San Gimignano back in 2012 there was an exhibit of Antony Gormley's sculptures in town and spilling out into the streets were many of his standing man sculptures.  I had seen many photos of these sculptures in a variety of places like water and mountains but, I had never seen one in person.

They were located in the streets in places where you could walk right up to them.

When I got to the Piazza Duomo, I turned to take a photo of those famous towers and I spotted another statue atop the tallest tower.

I wanted to yell "don't jump" but, I controlled the urge.

This poor fellow is stuck right where he is standing. I wonder if he's still there.

I did enjoy seeing this collection of sculptures!

Unexpected Art Installation

Back in 2006 on a trip to Paris, I stopped by the Pantheon for a visit and I found the inside completely full of a cobweb-like work of art.  The work was called Laviathan Thot by the Brazilian artist Ernesto Neto.  It was certainly an interesting and most unusual piece of art.  It was described as a "contrast between the animality of tulle-and-polystyrene creature suspended under the dome of the Pantheon, with the weight of History and the cultural layers of this landmark".

As one reviewer put it, "it looks absolutely mind blowing".

I must say it was quite an interesting sight in such an old and historic building.

If you would like to see some of Neto's work, check this web site.  I have to say, he does some very unique installations.

Basilica Nuestra Senora del Pilar

This 18th Century Jesuit Church is located adjacent to the Recoleta Cemetery in Buenos Aires Argentina.  It was originally built in 1732 by Franciscan Recoleto and has been beautifully restored in recent years.

It is built in Baroque style and is considered one of the best preserved examples of Argentine colonial architecture.  The ornate silver altar table is stunning framed by the golden backdrop of the altar.

On the second floor of the church is a small museum that houses religious artifacts from over the centuries.

They sparkle and shine inside glass cases.

There are also windows that offer wonderful views of the cemetery from a higher vantage point.  It's a good place to snap a few pictures of the complex maze of tombs that lay below.

I'll post more photos from inside the cemetery in another post.  It really is a "must see" for any visitor to Buenos Aires.