I liked Mission San Gabriel. There was lots of open space and historical things for me to see. La Purisima is still my favorite, though. I was really glad when Antonio and Trevor got here. I also went with my mom to get my dad from the airport. That was cool, too.
MOM
Today started on a down note...my wedding ring is currently missing. I'm hoping I stuck it in some brilliant place where it would be safe and it is there, just waiting to be found. But I've picked out a new one just in case. ;-)
After leaving Ventura, the group drove an hour to our 5th mission: San Fernando Rey de Espana. There is an amazing archive of books at this mission. One dated from 1493! They look fragile and yet substantial at the same time. The library made me want to start collecting old books (I have NO idea where they would go, but these leather-bound tomes were stunning).
The mission grounds are huge and a lot of the original structures are still standing. The chapel itself was gorgeous with beautiful statuary in the sanctuary behind the altar. As with many of the missions, there are frescoes in earth tones on the adobe walls. We were treated to a quincenera going on in the church while we were there. The young woman was resplendent in a yellow ball gown with an adorable attendant who looked like Belle.
After walking through the chapel (the quince anos was over), we went into the cemetery and Bob Hope Memorial Garden. Turns out Bob Hope loved the place and his wife donated the garden to have him buried there. It's a lush, green landscape with headstones dotting here and there. Bob's stone looks like an open book. He is on the left; the right will be for his wife, Dolores, someday. From that stone, we learned that Bob was only his nickname. His first name was Leslie (little bonus for all you team trivia players out there).
When we finished looking at the museum and the grounds, we returned to the car and drove the 30 minutes to Mission San Gabriel Arcangel. A brief detour to In 'n Out was necessary because hungry children are crabby children! Hunger satiated, we found our second mission of the day. San Gabriel as a town has embraced their mission and much of the town is in the mission style. The church was again elegant with the added bonus of having a very special stations of the cross. The scenes were painted by the Gabrieleno Tvonga people who lived at the mission. This mission does a good job of celebrating the native culture that was present before and during the mission time. Among the ruins and recreations is a hut that replicates the homes the Tvonga would have lived in.
Another interesting feature was the cemetery. Most (if not all) of the headstones were for priests that served at the mission or the church. Above the headstones were wrought-iron crosses that were rather elaborate and weathered with age.
Eventually, we left that mission and made it to our new hotel destination in Dana Point. Around 5:00, Susan Griffin finally made it. Lisa and I had already made ourselves comfortable at the hotel happy hour on the roof deck. Sitting on the roof drinking a cocktail while staring at the ocean is not a bad way to spend an afternoon! We made poor Susan get back in her car for a short ride to dinner...the Jolly Roger. Apparently, this place was "fancy dining" when Lisa was in high school. Not so much now, but the food was good and the Copper Ridge chardonnay even better.
After dinner, Milo and I drove to pick up Gavin from John Wayne Airport. I'm really glad he is here. I hadn't seen him since last Sunday since our departure and his business trip overlapped. Tomorrow, we will be going on a dolphin safari and, no doubt, hitting the beach or the hotel pool. We'll probably be at Happy Hour again, too.
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