My Visual Travel Experience: Napa, California

My wife and I spent a month in the western part of the USA in 2011 after our marriage. We spent time in Hawaii, San Francisco, Carmel, Napa, Fresno, Yosemite National Park, Las Vegas and Grand Canyon. We rented a car and drove to Napa, which lies about 80 km north of San Francisco. We enjoyed our tours of some of Napa's plush wineries. We got to taste many varieties of wine. Though we are not wine aficionados, we still had a great time tasting the delicious wines. The wineries were also beautiful and well worth seeing.

The town of Napa is situated in the American state of California. The town has a population of a little over 75,000 and is the second largest town in California’s wine growing region after Santa Rosa. Napa was incorporated as a city in 1872.

The first exploration of the area dates back to 1823. It was led by Padre Jose Altimira, the founder of Mission San Francisco Solano. The region was inhabited by Native American Indians back then. Many were converted to Christianity. Most others were driven out. In 1850, tensions between white settlers and Native American Indians resulted in many of the latter being killed. By 1870, the population consisted largely of white settlers.

Napa grew significantly in the California Gold Rush of the late 1850s. Agriculture and wine making became popular towards the turn of the century. Industries, commercial activities and the retail sector also expanded. Napa also developed one of the largest red light districts for a town of its size. Premium wine growing became popular in the 1960s, and today the region around Napa, known as Napa Valley, produces some of the world’s most premium varieties of wine.

Signage at the entrance to Napa Valley

Castle Winery, formally known as Castello di Amorosa, is a castle and winery. It opened in 2007. It was the brainchild of Dario Sattui, a 4th generation winemaker. The winery is on 171 acres of land. The castle has 107 rooms over 8 floors. The castle has a moat, a drawbridge, a courtyard, a torture chamber, a chapel, a knights’ chamber and a great hall.  Castle Winery produces 16,000 cases per year. Tours are allowed, as is wine tasting. 

Castle, Castle Winery

Chapel Interior, Castle Winery

Knights' Hall, Castle Winery

Vineyards, Castle Winery

The Entrance Gate, Castle Winery

Sterling Vineyards are spread over 1,200 acres of land. They produce 400,000 cases per annum. Visitors have to take cable cars from the entrance to the main villa and distillery. The white plastered villa looks like buildings in Mykonos, Greece. Production began in 1969.

Villa, Sterling Vineyards

View from the Terrace, Sterling Vineyards

Barrel, Sterling Vineyards

Hagafen Cellars is a winery that opened in 1979. It is California’s first kosher winery.  The winery makes 8,000 cases per annum. Hagafen specializes in Cabernet Sauvignon. Hagafen wines  cater to the top end of the market, and they have been served at the White House on many occasions.  

Overview, Hagafen Cellars

Barrel, Hagafen Cellars

Wine Tasting Room, Hagafen Cellars

Vineyards, Hagafen Cellars

First Presbytarian Church was built in 1874 in Neo Gothic style. It has an imposing steeple. The church was damaged in a 2014 earthquake, but was subsequently restored.

First Presbytarian Church

Interior, First Presbytarian Church

Napa was a charming place. The beautiful vineyards, the wine tasting experience, and the magnificent Medieval Europe inspired castle of Castle Winery were the highlights for me. My wife and I are both fans of dessert wine, and we got to taste some delicious dessert wine there. We have now managed to go to several wine growing areas in the world - Napa Valley in California, Duoro Valley in Portugal, and Yarra Valley in Melbourne. The area around Bordeux in France is still pending, as is the area around Nashik in India. All in all, it was a great outing from San Francisco!

My Visual Travel Experience: Cambridge, England

I have close associations with the city of Cambridge. My father spent a year in Cambridge in the mid 1950s learning Japanese at St John's College. It was a part of his language training after he joined the Indian Foreign Service. He was subsequently posted to Tokyo. My wife spent a year in St Edmund's College in the late 1990s and she did her M Phil in Development Studies there. A very close family friend of ours has spent several decades as a History Professor at Trinity College.

I have had the chance of visiting Cambridge twice, once in 1987 with my parents and sisters, and once in 2006 on a solo trip. Both have been rushed visits of a day each, but I have managed to explore the beautiful city, and seen some of its spectacular colleges, and a few of its pretty churches.

The university town of Cambridge lies in the English county of Cambridgeshire, 90 km north of London. The city lies along the River Cam. It has a population of about 125,000. Along with Oxford, Cambridge is one of the world’s best known university towns.

The city was an important trading centre during the Roman ages. There is a Roman fort that was built around 70 AD. The Romans withdrew from Britain around 410 AD. The Anglo Saxons began occupying the area shortly afterwards. Viking rule was established in 878 AD. Cambridge became a vital trading town and grew rapidly. After the Vikings, the Saxons came to power.

William of Normandy came to power in 1066. Cambridge came under the king’s control. The University of Cambridge was established in 1209. In 1349, the Black Death struck, and a lot of the town’s population perished. There were more deaths in the second epidemic in 1361. Work on King’s College Chapel was started by King Henry VI in 1446. Construction was completed in 1515, under the reign of King Henry VIII. The building is the town’s best known landmark.

Cambridge saw further development in the industrial era in the 19th century. Today Cambridge’s economy is supported by education, research and development, software consultancy and tourism. The city has two universities, the University of Cambridge, and the Anglia Ruskin University. The city caters to around 30,000 university students.

King’s College was founded by Henry VI in 1441. King’s College Chapel was completed by Henry VII in 1544 and is an example of Gothic English architecture. The chapel is famous for its fan vault, its stain glass windows, its wooden chancel screen and its choir. The chapel also has Peter Paul Rubens’ masterpiece, Adoration of the Magi, which was a gift from the property millionaire, Alfred E. Allnatt, in 1961.

 Chapel, King's College

Gateway, King's College

Statue of Henry VIII, King's College

Courtyard, King's College

Rubens' Adoration of the Magi,
Chapel, King's College
Public Domain; Courtesy: Google Arts

St John’s College was established in 1511. The college’s list of alumni includes multiple Nobel laureates, prime ministers, archbishops and royalty. The college’s landmarks include the Great Gate, the First Court, the Second Court, the Third Court,  New Court, the Dining Hall, the Library, the Bridge of Sighs and the Chapel. The chapel was completed in 1869 and replaced an old 13th century chapel. The chapel’s tower is 50 meters high.

Chapel, St John's College

Bridge of Sighs, St John's College

Second Court, St John's College

New Court, St John's College

Queens’ College was founded in 1448 by Margaret of Anjou, the wife of Henry VI. The Mathematical Bridge connects the two sides of the college.  The buildings of the college include Cloister Court, Old Court, Walnut Tree Court, Friar’s Court, and Cripps Court.

Mathematical Bridge, Queens' College

Sun Dial, Queens' College

Church of St Mary the Great was built between 1478 and 1519, and the tower was built in 1609. The church was financed by Richard III and Henry VII. It has been restored several times since then. The Protestant reformer, Martin Bucer, was buried here. The famous physicist, Stephen Hawking, had his funeral here too. The church has the University Organ and the University Clock. Visitors can climb up the tower for great views of the city.

Church of St Mary the Great

University Clock,
Church of St Mary the Great

Market Place,
View from the top of Church of St Mary the Great

Round Church dates back to around 1130. Its official name is Church of the Holy Sepulchre. The small medieval church is built in stone, and it has a circular nave. The church was in great disrepair and was renovated in the 19th century.

Round Church

Cambridge is lovely. I would rank it among the most beautiful towns I have been to. Besides the University of Cambridge, the other university campuses that I have found absolutely stunning have been the ones at the University of Oxford, the University of Stanford in Palo Alto and the University of Harvard in Boston. For me, highlights of Cambridge are the architecture of the colleges, the splendidly manicured lawns, and the youthful and vibrant college atmosphere. It would take a lot more time to go into depth and see more of the beautiful college buildings, but in my limited time, I did manage to cover some of the main ones.