Mission San Gabriel

UPDATE: It is important to remember that while California Missions have been hailed as places of peace, they also have deep and complicated histories, including slavery, violence, and forced religious conversion. I recommend reading this article that further describes the problematic history of Mission San Gabriel. I love me a twofer – and that is…

Mission Santa Barbara

UPDATE: It is important to remember that while California Missions have been hailed as places of peace, they also have deep and complicated histories, including slavery, violence, and forced religious conversion. Over the weekend Patrick and I drove up the coast and crossed another one of California’s Missions off of the list, Mission Santa Barbara,…

Mission San Juan Bautista

UPDATE: It is important to remember that while California Missions have been hailed as places of peace, they also have deep and complicated histories, including slavery, violence, and forced religious conversion. After securing our apartment and spending time in Disneyland, we headed back north, stopping at Mission San Juan Bautista. I had visited this mission back…

Mission Dolores

UPDATE: It is important to remember that while California Missions have been hailed as places of peace, they also have deep and complicated histories, including slavery, violence, and forced religious conversion. My last stop on this trip to San Francisco was Mission Dolores.  It was on our way back to the airport, and so Patrick…