The Germans are coming....

.....so Cynthia and I set out on yet another adventure to find the places we think they would most like to visit. (She has visitors coming from Germany in a couple of weeks). Today we ventured out to Mt. Carmel to check out the Maynard Dixon Museum (frankly, didn't have a clue who the guy was until I saw some of his work and then realized that I did know of him) and we had a wonderful adventure as we pulled in the parking lot....not to be deterred by the "We Are Closed until Friday" sign, we got out and walked in. A lady came out to meet us to inform us that we were just outta luck but we asked a few questions and finally got her to agree to let us have a self-guided tour of the place because she was too busy getting ready for the huge art gig coming up next week-end which we would later find out was to include many of the finest landscape artists in the country and, also......David Michaels (film producer) who is the younger brother of Al Michaels (sports broadcaster) and is an aspiring landscape artist, will be there...whew, that was a long sentence. Anyway....we walked around the place and read the plaques and the guy told us quite a bit about the time Dixon spent in Mr. Carmel and how he and his wife were able to purchase and restore this beautiful location as a museum. As I walked around it I could picture the serene summer days that Dixon could sit outside in peace and paint the beautiful landscape surrounding him. You can read more about Maynard Dixon as I did by clickity clicking right HERE . I was surprised to find out he was born in Fresno, California but lived and painted in many places before passing away peacefully in Tucson, Arizona. The curators of the museum in Mt. Carmel told us his ashes were spread atop a little hill where a memorial has been made in his honor. He told us to walk up but ...."don't look back until you have reached the top." I tried really hard to do as I was told and I did....only to find what I had imagined....the most breathtaking view of the beautiful coral mountains with the background of crystal blue sky. That picture is at the top of my blog.

The day ended with lunch at what used to be "Bumbleberry Inn Restaurant" but is now "Wildcat Willy's" and doesn't serve Bumbleberry Pie (but we were able to get some at the adjacent bakery.) The day was complete and the meal was very good. I would recommend it. So until Cynthia shows up again at my door, taking no excuses and motions me to ...."come on....let's go", it's been another great adventure to blog about. The Germans are gonna love it here.......