San Juan Capistrano Things To Do

The Great Stone Church Ruins
Mission SJC

by keida84

The Great Stone Church stood only six years until December 8, 1812, when a tremendous earthquake shook most of Southern California, from San Luis Obispo to Oceanside. The church bell tower fell into the church, carrying two young bell ringers to their death. Mass had just started when the quake hit and the parishioners panicked, trying to get out the doors which had been twisted in the quake and would not open. Those who followed the priests' directions to go to the sacristy survived, others did not. When the shaking finally stopped, forty people had died. The church was in ruins and was never rebuilt.

The ruins have been slowly excavated and preserved. The remains are still impressive today.

Address: Ortega Highway and Camino Capistrano Street

Phone: 949 234 1300

Website: http://www.missionsjc.com

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	Father Serra's Church Tip Rating:

Updated By keida84 on April 23, 2005

The Golden Altar

by keida84

This is the original mission church, the oldest building in California and the only standing structure where Father Serra said Mass.

The altar is in the Baroque style, over 300 years old and is wood with gold leaf overlay.

Mission San Juan Capistrano, named for St. John of Capistran, Italy, a theologian of the 14th century, is the seventh mission founded November 1, 1776, the Feast of All Saints, by Fr. Junipero Serra. His icon can be seen holding the red banner on the golden altar.

The painting on the walls is a language and is read from the bottom up.

Address: Ortega Highway and Camnio Capistrano Street

Phone: 949 234 1300

Website: http://www.missionsjc.com

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	Swallows Day Parade: Swallows Day Parade Tip Rating:

Updated By cnango on November 16, 2008

Marching in the Swallows Day
Parade

by cnango

On March 19 people gather at the Mission to watch the Swallows return to Capistrano. The Mission Bells are rung,Mariachi bands play and there is a Fiesta at the Mission. Outside the gates of the MIssion the whole town takes to the streets and celebrates with a Swallows Day Festival and Parade.This is the largest non motor parade in the USA and a popular local event.

In this picture I am holding the banner of the SJC Mission Docent Society. Docents are volunteers who give guided tours of the MIssion and teach Early California History. I must admit I do NOT like how I look in this picture. But it was an honor to be asked to hold the Docent Society banner as we marched as a group. It was also alot of fun, even though it rained on "my" parade.

Directions: The Parade started at the corner of Ortega Hwy and Del Obispo. We walked down Del Obispo to Camino Capistrano past the entrance of the Mission on the corner Camino Capistrano and Ortega Hwy.

Website: http://www.swallowsparade.com/

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	San Juan Capistrano Mission: Visit the Campanario at the Mission Tip Rating:

Updated By keida84 on November 14, 2005

The Campanario Bells

by keida84, 1 more photos

The Campanario, or bell-wall, erected in 1813, and still used to ring the mission calls. The calls were to awaken the residents, call them to meals, to siestas and to prayer.

Address: Ortega Highway and Camino Capistrano Street

Phone: 949 234 1300

Website: http://www.missionsjc.com

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	Visit the Mission Gardens Tip Rating:

By cnango on September 25, 2005

Garden at the SJC Mission
entrance

by cnango, 2 more photos

As a Docent I often stand near the entrance to welcome visitors. I always enjoy watching the reaction of the people when they first enter the Mission. People always rave over the flowers in the garden, often saying how beautiful they are. I do apprechiate the beauty of this peaceful Mission even though I know the grounds by heart. I still marvel sometimes myself when I first enter the Jewel of the Missions.

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	Explore Cactus and Succulent Gardens Tip Rating:

By cnango on September 25, 2005

Colorful Succulents and Cactus

by cnango, 2 more photos

Most of the flowers in the SJC MIssion Gardens are not native to California. Before the Spanish introduced irrigation, California a natural desert was covered mostly with Cactus, Chapparel and Scrub Oak. The SJC Mission has several gardens showing these indigenous plants. If you get a Docent led tour you may get a lesson on how the Jaunenos used the native plants for food, shampoo, sewing and medicinal purposes.

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	Lilies in the fountains Tip Rating:

Updated By cnango on September 25, 2005

Lilies in the Fountain of
the Apostles

by cnango,
2 more photos

At the entrance of the Mission and in the center courtyard we have beautiful fountains with lilies and koi fish. The fountains look different in each of the four seasons. The picture of the bright colorful lily pads was taken right at the beggining of Fall. The pictures are nice but do not begin to capture what it is like in person. imagine hearing the trickling sound of water and seeing colorful koi swimming beneath the lily pads.

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	San Juan Capistrano Mission: Take a Walking Tour of San Juan Capistrano Tip Rating:

Updated By keida84 on November 15, 2005

by keida84, 2 more photos

When we visited the area of San Juan Capistrano we knew we would walk everywhere we went. The nice thing about that is many of the stores offer free walking tour maps.

You can begin your self-guided walk at any point on the map, you will see most everything there is to see in San Juan Capistrano, everything from the Mission to the Yorba Adobes and the San Juan Capistrano Regional Library. San Juan Capistrano has a rich history dating back to the last 200 years.

There are several organised walking tours in case you should want a bit more of the local history:
San Juan Architectural Walking Tour: Meets 10 am on Saturday Mornings, lasts about 90 minutes and it meets at the information booth at the train depot. $5 donation is recommended per person. 949-489-0736 for more information.

Historical Walking Tours of SJC: Meets on Sundays at 1pm at Ortega's Trading Post across from the Mission. 949-493-8444 for further information.

San Juan Capistrano Page by zrim

Website: http://www.sanjuancapistrano.org

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	O'Neil Museum: The O'Neill Museum Tip Rating:

Updated By zrim on March 3, 2004

home to historical society

by zrim

Located in the Los Rios District the O'Neill Museum is home to the San Juan Capistrano Historical Society. The museum is open Tuesdays through Fridays from 9:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. and on Sunday afternoons from noon until 3:00 p.m. The historical society is the repository of most historical documents, genealogies and photographs pertaining to San Juan Capistrano.

San Juan Capistrano Page by zrim

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	The Chapel at the Old Mission Tip Rating:

Updated By zrim on March 3, 2004

gilded alterpiece in
chapel

by zrim

The grounds at the San Juan Capistrano Mission are open every day except for Thanksgiving, Christmas and the afternoon of Good Friday. Admission is $6 and well worth the price, especially since the admission price helps support the restoration projects at the mission. Currently, there is a $20 million restoration campaign. The mission is a purely non-profit endeavor and is not supported by any government funds.