Category: History

Californian Mission: Santa Clara de Asís (8)

My third Mission is Santa Clara de Asís,  founded on January 12 1777.  It is the eighth Californian Mission and located in the grounds of the University of Santa Clara. Whilst staying in the city of Santa Clara, some 40 miles south of San Francisco, I decided to investigate a few more Californian Missions, this one being the closest.

Named after Saint Claire of Assisi, a thirteenth century Italian nun, this mission was the first to be named after a female saint. It has been destroyed and rebuilt no fewer than six times and the current church is a modern interpretation of the fifth church which was built in 1825 and later destroyed by fire. Its layout is the traditional quadrangle. Continue reading Californian Mission: Santa Clara de Asís (8)

Californian Mission: San Carlos Borroméo (2)

Continuing on from my previous post about my obsession with California’s Missions (read about the first one for background information) the next mission to be founded was on the outskirts of Carmel, 5 miles south of Monterey. I first saw this mission on my PCH trip, but unfortunately arrived there too late to go inside the grounds. On my next visit to California we were staying in Santa Clara and I took the opportunity to drive back to Carmel and visit this lovely Mission. It is considered to be the loveliest mission in the chain of nine missions that stretches along California’s Central Coast. Continue reading Californian Mission: San Carlos Borroméo (2)

Californian Mission: San Diego de Alcala (1)

During my visits to California I have become interested obsessed with the Californian Missions. I have previously written about one mission in San Francisco – Mission Dolores – but want to tell you about a few of the other 21 missions I have managed to get to beginning with the first mission in San Diego. I enjoy visiting them because they represent a vibrant chapter of California’s past, they are tranquil spaces, often in large conurbations and often combine my love of architecture and gardens. Continue reading Californian Mission: San Diego de Alcala (1)

Just Back From… 1066

It seemed fitting for my 100th post on this blog to write about an historical event, one with far more importance though…

It is a date that every English child will know sooner or later. The year 1066, when King Harold was shot in the eye by an arrow and died on the battlefields at Hastings.  The most famous battle  fought on English soil  and the last successful invasion of this country. Continue reading Just Back From… 1066

North Devon: Clovelly

The other must-do in North Devon is a visit to the village of Clovelly, where you have to park (and pay) to enter at the top of the village. Like Robin Hood’s Bay in North Yorkshire, this village is inaccessible by car. Originally the main occupation of the village was fishing – for mackerel and herring. Nowadays the fishing is only done on a limited, sustainable basis and the main income is from tourism. The steep and uneven cobbled streets run down to the harbour where you can visit the Red Lion Hotel for a welcome drink or food or grab a snack from the Quay Shop or Seafood Shop. You can hop on a Land Rover for the return trip if you don’t feel like hiking al the way back to the top! At a price, of course. And you can get a ferry from here out to Lundy Island, that lump of rock seen in the background of some of my photos in this region where the Atlantic meets the Bristol Channel. Continue reading North Devon: Clovelly