A Little Slow on the Upload
Today I finally got around to uploading the pics from this year's National Train Day excursion to San Juan Capistrano. It was originally to be a reprise of last year's Santa Barbara day trip, but those nasty fires prompted Plan B.
Yes, there is National Train Day (May 9 this year). Yes, most people on the train that day had no idea there was such a thing. Yes, I slightly regret not buying an "I Ride Trains" t-shirt. (heh!)
The outgoing trip was lovely. We met a PhD student who's writing her thesis on the ascendancy of modern Cuban art. She had great stories about her trips to the island and life there. There was also a surprisingly cool film student who was on his way to Huntington Beach to pick up his car that died there. Plus there were Deadheads. Lots of Deadheads. I didn't even know there was a Grateful Dead to follow around any more.
San Juan Capistrano is a nice little tourist town. They have several cutesy, overly expensive shops and, of course, the mission. The mission is much larger and prettier than I expected. And the "Great Stone Church", which was partly felled by an earthquake in 1812, is HUGE.
More pics from the Mission are linked here.
I regret not taking pictures inside the chapel, but it felt . . . wrong. Even I have my acting like a tourist limits, and it's still used for services. Also, I'm pretty sure that M. is going to hell for peeking in the giant gilded ice bucket by the altar that presumably holds holy water. Well, maybe not ONLY for that, but I bet it's a factor.
Yes, there is National Train Day (May 9 this year). Yes, most people on the train that day had no idea there was such a thing. Yes, I slightly regret not buying an "I Ride Trains" t-shirt. (heh!)
The outgoing trip was lovely. We met a PhD student who's writing her thesis on the ascendancy of modern Cuban art. She had great stories about her trips to the island and life there. There was also a surprisingly cool film student who was on his way to Huntington Beach to pick up his car that died there. Plus there were Deadheads. Lots of Deadheads. I didn't even know there was a Grateful Dead to follow around any more.
San Juan Capistrano is a nice little tourist town. They have several cutesy, overly expensive shops and, of course, the mission. The mission is much larger and prettier than I expected. And the "Great Stone Church", which was partly felled by an earthquake in 1812, is HUGE.
More pics from the Mission are linked here.
I regret not taking pictures inside the chapel, but it felt . . . wrong. Even I have my acting like a tourist limits, and it's still used for services. Also, I'm pretty sure that M. is going to hell for peeking in the giant gilded ice bucket by the altar that presumably holds holy water. Well, maybe not ONLY for that, but I bet it's a factor.