Santa Barbara

Santa Barbara

About 90mi northwest of Los Angeles via US-101 (the Ventura Freeway) north.

Red-tile roofs, white-washed stucco buildings and palm-fringed beaches give this chic yet relaxed enclave a distinctively Mediterranean feel. The Spanish staked their claim here in the late 18C, building a presidio and a mission. A century later, wealthy Americans, many from the East, got wind of the area's mild climate and the health-promoting mineral springs, and began coming here in droves via a new branch of the Southern Pacific Railroad.

After a severe earthquake leveled the business district in 1925, residents rebuilt in the Spanish Colonial Revival style, a look that today extends from the biggest adobe structure to the smallest mailbox. The downtown lends itself to walking: State Street is the main thoroughfare, connecting an upscale shopping district (bounded by Ortega and Victoria Sts.) to historic Stearns Wharf.

Mission Santa Barbara

2201 Laguna St. Open year-round daily 9am-5pm. Services Sat & Sun.

Rising up majestically against the Santa Ynez foothills, the twin bell towers of "the queen of the missions" attest to the city's remarkable continuity. Throughout its 225-year history, the mission has never ceased to serve as a parish church, and today it remains a vibrant part of the community. The first church, erected in 1787, was replaced three times by larger structures, all of which anchored a complex of about 250 adobe dwellings for the Chumash Indians ("neophytes" in the missionaries' parlance). Then, in 1812, a severe earthquake destroyed the site, which had to be rebuilt from the ground up.

The church you see today dates from 1820. Inside, the painted canvas reredos (1806) formed the basis for the detailed design scheme. In the Padres' Quarters you'll find a collection of mission artifacts from the late 18C to the early 19C. Note especially the 1792 psalter (book of psalms), with its 75 hand-lettered sheepskin pages.

Santa Barbara County Courthouse

1100 Anacapa St. Open year-round Mon-Fri 8:30am-4:30pm, weekends 10am-4:30pm. Free tours Mon-Fri at 10:30am & 2pm, Sun 2pm. Closed Dec 25.

Shining star of Santa Barbara's architectural renaissance, the L-shaped Moorish structure (1929) boasts arched doorways, open-air galleries and Tunisian tile and metalwork; even elements such as telephone booths are cached in carved wood frames. The building surrounds a sunken courtyard.

Observation deck - Go to the top of the 85ft clock tower for panoramic views of the city.

Santa Barbara Museum of Art

1130 State St. Open year-round Tue-Sat 11am-5pm (Fri until 9pm); Sun noon-5pm. $7.

Housed in an elegant Italian Renaissance-style building, this is one of the country's best regional art museums. Thirteen galleries showcase 4,500 years of Asian, European and American art, with a curatorial eye toward educating and inspiring visitors.

Main level - Works range from Greek and Roman antiquities to the present. Note especially the rotating thematic and one-artist exhibitions of California art, a specialty of the museum.

Upper level - The Asian art collection embraces cultural artifacts from Japan to India. Photography is displayed in the Sterling Morton Gallery.

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