Chalk It Up: I Madonnari Street Painting Festival
The Queen of the Missions, Mission Santa Barbara, is lovely in its own right. With a backdrop of the Santa Ynez Mountains and the abundant blooms o...
Read moreSanta Barbara Meanderings
Santa Barbara's Midnight Bird Singers
Santa Barbara is full of singing birds this time of year. The House Finch has a cheery song and seems to prefer close association with us, often bu...
Read moreGranada Theater: A Tall Tale
The Granada Theater is (and continues to be) the only 8 story building in Santa Barbara and is the anchor for our vibrant downtown arts district. H...
Read moreDiscover La Arcada
Santa Barbara has no shortage of paseos, or ambling, often artistic, passages and promenades that connect spaces. The prevalence of our Spanish Col...
Read moreSan Miguel Island: My Childhood Memoir REVIEW
This incredible historical memoir San Miguel Island: My Childhood Memoir 1930-1942 tells the story of Betsy Lester Roberti's childhood on desolate ...
Read moreA Spring Without Winter
A winter without rain. Drought is a word that clutches at the heart. In many places, 2013 was the driest on record. Less than an inch fell in Dec...
Read moreDiscover Elings Park of Santa Barbara
The City of Santa Barbara boasts an impressive 360 acres of developed parkland and 1,183 acres of open space parkland. Pocket parks dot our neighbo...
Read moreWest Beach and The Black Skimmers
Locals know that the best time on the beach can be winter time, when most of the visitors have left, the Channel is crisp and clear, and the water ...
Read moreHiking Saddlerock
Santa Barbarans and our visitors are blessed by a myriad of trails weaving their way through what we refer to as the Front Country, the ocean-facin...
Read moreWalk on the Wild Side: Santa Barbara Botanic Garden
Looking up at the stony face of the Santa Ynez Mountains, one sometimes gets the impression that the mountains are impenetrable. But studying a goo...
Read moreSycamore Trees in Santa Barbara
October arrives subtly in Santa Barbara with the soft golds of our native sycamores (Platanus racemosa). How to describe this tree that most often...
Read moreAn Insider's Guide to the Courthouse
The beloved Santa Barbara County Courthouse is a designated National Historic Landmark and one of the most photographed buildings in the country. T...
Read more5 Pieces of Public Art Not to Miss in Santa Barbara!
Alongside the charming Spanish colonial architecture and stunning coastal geography, there’s a surprising abundance of public art scattered around ...
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