Hello, my friends! How was your 4th of July, to all my American friends? Ours was pretty cold and foggy, as usual! Maybe you saw it on my Instagram stories! If you’re not already following me there, please do for daily snippets of food and life.
In any case, this past week, I went to southern California to see some family! We stopped by at the Mission at San Juan Capistrano, and thought you’d be interested in this gorgeous location, the Jewel of the California Missions. You may have seen photo shoots take place here, but you can also visit it for yourself! Seriously, my mom loves it so much, she is a member.
The mission is situated in the historic district of San Juan Capistrano, and it is truly an oasis in the otherwise highway-laden Southern California. The mission was first founded in 1775, but was soon abandoned for a bit before being re-founded in 1776. It is one of 21 Spanish Franciscan missions established along California to convert locals to a Spanish lifestyle. The history surrounding the missions is complex and not always pleasant, although the mission is gorgeous. The gardens seem to be maintained to ensure a maximum number of butterflies.
Today, the mission is a meeting place, where traditions and community can come together to celebrate events like the swallows that return to the Mission every year from Argentina, music concerts, art exhibits, and more. Of course, no mission is complete without ghost stories, and there are several here.
When you visit the mission today, you can catch a glimpse of life in the early days of the mission by seeing the original church bells, living quarters, kitchen, chapel, and other exhibits throughout the rooms. Outside, you can see brick-making facilities, metalwork areas, and a garden area that shows the crops that were planted (as well as grapes for wine). It’s no wonder that the location is popular with school groups.
Take a stroll through the mission with me!
Mission San Juan Capistrano: 26801 Ortega Hwy, San Juan Capistrano, CA 92675. Open 9am-5pm daily, apart from some holidays and in the event of bad weather (It’s SoCal, it’s pretty rare!). Visit their website for more information. Ticket pricing: Adults: $9; Seniors (60+): $8; Children (4 to 11 years): $6; Children under 3 years: Free. Please Note: This pricing is not applicable to field trip reservations or festival days.
It’s my work to create great content for you. Do you love you see? Let’s work together!
PHOTOGRAPHY! Let me bring your food projects, business, and products to life. Let’s create something beautiful together! See my food photography portfolio. Or see my portrait portfolio for portrait work. Contact me to start brainstorming!
PARTNER! Let’s chat and see if we can make something together! Contact me!
BUY through my affiliate account links at The Cheese Grotto (where you can find a beautiful cheese humidor)
, Amazon.com (where you can get nearly anything under the sun) and the French Farm (where you can find delicious and beautiful French products for the kitchen, and get free shipping for orders over $75). Bookmark these links for later! You can purchase anything through them, not just what I recommend to you, and I will receive a small percentage of those sales at no extra cost to you! Everybody wins!
