The sun is warm and the weather is breezy. The Eurodam is at anchor off the coast of Santa Barbara, California. Here are a few shots from our cabin.
This is our first visit to this lovely town of 92,000 people. We started our day a little after 8:20am by boarding a tender for the trip into the harbor. Our tender was packed, every seat taken.
From the tender we were off to the Santa Barbara Trolley for a narrated tour. I took a few shots from the trolley. Hopefully they accurately reflect the area. Here are a couple of my better photos.
After a drive out of the city to see where the rich and famous live and play we came back along the shore road into the town itself. We drove along State Street and I managed to get this photo of the Eurodam framed by tall, really tall, palm trees as we wizzed by . . .
. . . and this one of the Hotel Santa Barbara.
This photo, also taken from the trolley, is of the Moreton Bay Fig Tree which was planted in 1876 and is believed to be the largest in the United States. According to our driver, it produces fruit but you better not eat them.
I even was able to get these shots of giant figs, green ones and red.
And then we arrived at the Mission Santa Barbara. It was founded on December 4, 1786, the feast day of Saint Barbara, by Padre Fermin Lasuen, a Franciscan missionary.
The view of the mountains from the Mission was outstanding.
We departed the trolley on State Street and set off for the Santa Barbara County Court House.
The entrance is graced with this fountain.
We read that the Court House is a definite attraction that shouldn’t be missed. It is a masterpiece of Spanish-Moorish style. The floors and many of the walls are covered with exquisite tiles. Here is a shot of one of the staircases.
In the Board of Supervisors’ Room there are some outstanding murals by Dan Sayre Groesbeck depicting the history of the county. Here is a photo of the room followed by a couple of shots of the murals.
I thought this spiral staircase interesting.
And the law library looks like it gets good use.
After a simple lunch, we strolled along State Street. I took a few shots of the area. I especially like this shot of a Bird of Paradise.
A window washer; a lifelike statue.
We made our way back to the tenders for our return to the Eurodam. As we made our way down the way to the gangplank, we came across this memorial to the victims of the recent dive ship fire that took place off of Santa Cruz Island on September 4th. 34 lives were lost including a family from Stockholm, Sweden.
Back on the Eurodam, waiting for the last of the tenders to be secured. Next stop, San Diego.
Great photos as usual. Looks like the weather gods have stayed with you. Hopefully they continue in Mexico.
Thanks Gail. So far the weather has been excellent. We will keep our fingers crosses.