In 1967, my Grandparents (Charlie and Theresa) took me along with two of my cousins to Santa Barbara for the weekend. We visited the Santa Barbara and the Santa Ynez missions. We also visited my cousin Bonnie, who had 2 little girls at the time. The photo above was taken at the Santa Ynez Mission. Grandpa Charlie was the photographer. I am not sure why the parking lot took center stage over us or the mission buildings but that was probably why Charlie was better in front of the camera than behind it.
In October of this year, my sister Kate was visiting me from Colorado. I suggested to her that we take a road trip from San Diego up to the Santa Barbara area. On our way back to our hotel, the Santa Ynez Inn, from Solvang, Kate pointed out the Santa Ynez mission. We decided to stop and visit for a bit. I immediately thought back to my trip with my grandparents and cousins 46 years ago.
Here's a photo of what the mission looks like currently --
Funny thing -- the parking lot still basically looks the same!
While we were in Santa Barbara, we did meet with one of Bonnie's daughters, Julie, who is now all grown up with kids of her own. It was fun visiting with her and her family, as well as with my brother and some of his family. Travel and family -- it doesn't get better than that!
