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San Juan Bautista, 12/31/2000
On the last day of year 2000, Cam took me for a bike ride in the country-side. I started to understand Cam's passion for riding. One is so much closer to the surroundings. The smell of the pine, the warmth of the sun, the crispy air, the blue sky and the ocean in the distance; they all seem so touchable, so real. After the leisure rolling green hills covered with grazing cattles ("These are some serious cow countries, John Steinbeck country" I thought to myself while sitting on the backseat of Cam's Guzzi), we stumbled upon San Juan Bautista. Cam remembered Mission San Juan Bautista from his elementry school field trips. It turned out to be a quaint little town with some interesting sights.
bautistaCemetoryView cam_bike_chevron cam_guzzi_mission_blur cemetery mission
Catholic Cemetory on the Hill. We saw a large number of tombs for the Breens family, originally from Ontario, Canada. It turned out that the Breens Family are Donner Party Survivors! Cam and his shiny Guzzi. In the Mission. Cemetery Mission
mission_bells mission_cacti mission_corridor mission_door mission_olivetrees
These bells actually were used by Hitchcock for the ending of Vertigo Large Cacti in the quiet Mission garden. Two cocky roosters were "gaurding" the garden, which has signs posted everywhere "Smell, Look, but Do Not Cut." in both Spanish and English. One of the roosters started to crow around 3pm. Idyllic. Corridor Door to the Mission Cemetery Olive trees in the cemetery. According to the little blaque by the door, 4300 unnamed Indian, Spanish and other early California Settlers were buried in this small piece of land. Through the heavy fruited olive branches, one can see the beautiful California plain expanding to the horizon in the hazy sunshine.
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Cam took Route 129 on our way back. It was a loverly winding road. The sun threw our shadows onto the grass land, the golden mountain side, and the brown bushes. We passed through vineyards, orchards, redwood forests, ancient eucalyptus, and this beautiful valley in the setting sun. We could also see the ocean glimmering in the far end of the valley, where Santa Cruz mountains lie.