Anza Borrego Day 2

There is nothing quite like waking up to the sunrise in the desert. Awesome and inspiring.

 Barrel Cactus

 I'm actually in a better mood than I look.

 Cholla flower

Anza Borrego Desert State Park--Day 1

Because what would a road trip be without a soundtrack?

Cholla Cactus

Wake up Desiree

This store took me back to the local grocery stores of my childhood. It did have laser scanners, but that was all that was contemporary. It had a small produce section. The store employed a butcher with limited a case of types of meat and an old chicken rotisserie.

On to Anza Borrego

I hadn’t planned on stopping in Camarillo but as lunch was approaching, I thought it would be nice to visit Somis Market, where I used to have Mexican food on occasion while attending St. John’s Seminary. The place was more developed (I couldn’t have expected that the place would remain the same): the gravel road was no more. There was a post office, real estate office and a fire station nearby. The plastic billboard looked the same. The food was as good as I remembered—they were known for their chile verde.

 There is nothing like eating like a local, especially when you used to be a local.

Chile relleno with chile verde--yummy

I unfortunately could not visit the seminary, as now there is an automatic gate. The entire east side of Lewis Road (which was once citrus fields) was developed into housing. The entrance had changed—as the perimeter road had become the entrance. There is a kiosk and formal entrance announcing the seminary. In my day, you could simply drive in. I buzzed to get in. Nothing. But as I wasn’t sure how long it would take to get to Anza-Borrego, I could not insist and had to press on. 

Road Trip to Sta Margarita

Our trip began precariously as it had been raining all week.

Our first stop was a country road near Santa Margarita, as recommended in Sunset magazine. While it was beautiful, it was post-bloom. California can have the most diverse and spectacular landscapes.

 Water along the road stopped our path.

 Desiree was taken by the little flowers.