Santa Barbara- Vacation Day 5

We stayed in this quaint Wine Valley Inn in Solvang for the past two evenings.  Solvang is a dutch town that sits just outside of Santa Barbara.  If you are looking for a wine tasting community and getaway Solvang is a quaint place to visit.

We began our exploring in Santa Barbara downtown at the Mission Museum, which some say is the most photographed building in the nation.  If you are like me, you might be wondering how they know it is the most photographed building in the nation?? I do not know how they arrived at that statistical knowledge, but we decided to participate and add to the number of photographs of the building.

Years ago Santa Barbara started a fundraising event by different people/organizations purchasing an area on the courtyard to draw with sidewalk chalk. The event has now spread and so has the artistic ability.  There is  A LOT of detail put into these squares and the squares are drawn with sidewalk chalk that will fade and only have ruminants by August.

Caroline in front of the Santa Barbara Mission

 Drawn with Sidewalk chalk...

 We walked the pier and Santa Barbara Wharf, dined at Moby Dick's Restaurant, and then strolled the beach.

 I enjoyed the relaxation, peace and quite, and laughter of my little one.

My view of the palms

My two favorite people..I adore them

 We left Solvang this morning and drove into forty miles of vineyards.  Stunning.  We connected to the Pacific Coast Highway.  The view from the highway was picture perfect.  We marked this drive off our bucket list.  The Pacific Coast Highway is a must if you are in California.

 Along Highway 1 we stopped at Piedras Blancas to see the elephant seals.  A moment of awe when you see these animals in the wild lying on the banks of the highway with not a care in the world.

We saw stunning views of nature today, and the scenic highway with mountains on one side and the pacific coast on the other.