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Mission San Juan Capistrano - #CaliforniaMissions

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Mission San Juan Capistrano is only 25 minutes away from Irvine, Ca. It is one of the most visited places by school age kids to learn about early California life. The mission is open to the public and March is the perfect time to visit as the swallows return to the mission. 

This spring you won't want to miss visiting Mission San Juan Capistrano. We live near the beautiful Mission San Juan Capistrano in Orange County, CA. Living nearby means that we get to visit often on the weekends. Early this year we decided to get an annual pass to encourage visiting without rushing through the mission. The annual pass came with a free audio guided tour and a cookbook. The kids had fun listening to the audio. The audio gave them the freedom to walk ahead and discover on their own. We had fun listening to the history of the mission. 
The mission has beautiful reminders of the past. We used our imagination to see what these ruins might looked like in it's glory days. What can be seen are the walls were made out of different types of seashells, quartz, rock and cement. Standing there all of us got to see first hand the architecture design of 1776. The design clearly shows the hard work that went into building the mission. It is a must see mission as it is often referred as "the Jewel of all missions."
The Mission was founded on All Saints’ Day November 1, 1776, by Spanish Catholics of the Franciscan Order. The purpose of the mission was to teach the Native Americans Indians the religion of the Catholic church and to protect the lands from the French and British hands. This brings to mind how much history took place at these beautiful grounds.

For a few moments we were transported to the past. The mission holds tools and items that were used when the mission was in full use. We all discussed what life meant living in November 1776 nearby. The kids were shocked to find out that everyone had to do heavy labor. The most shocking was that there was no fast food like McDonald's. The worst for them was that there was no running toilets. Our discussion went on and on about life in 1776. The best part is that all of us are thankful to be alive now not back then. 
In total there are (21) missions built throughout California that you may visit all year long. Sharing a list that was taken from 21 California Missions.
California Mission Order and Date Founded

San Diego de Alcalá July 16, 1769 by Father Junipero Serra 

San Carlos Borromeo de Carmelo  June 3, 1770 by Father Junipero Serra 

San Antonio de Padua   July 14, 1771 by Father Junipero Serra 

San Gabriel Arcángel   September 8, 1771 by Father Pedro Cambon and Father Angel Somera

San Luis Obispo de Tolosa  September 1, 1772 by Father Junipero Serra 

San Francisco de Asís (Mission Dolores)  June 26, 1776 by Father Francisco Palóu 

San Juan Capistrano  November 1, 1776 by Father Junipero Serra 

Santa Clara de Asís January 12, 1777 by Father Junipero Serra 

San Buenaventura  March 31, 1782 by Father Junipero Serra 

Santa Barbara  December 4, 1786 by Father Fermin Lasuen 

La Purísima Concepción  December 8, 1787 by Father Fermin Lasuen 

Santa Cruz   August 28, 1791 by Father Fermin Lasuen 

Nuestra Señora de la Soledad  October 9, 1791 by Father Fermin Lasuen
 
San José     July 11, 1797 by Father Fermin Lasuen 

San Juan Bautista     June 24, 1797 by Father Fermin Lasuen 

San Miguel Arcángel    July 25, 1797 by Father Fermin Lasuen 

San Fernando Rey de España      September 8, 1797 by Father Fermin Lasuen 

San Luis Rey de Francia      June 13, 1798 by Father Fermin Lasuen 

Santa Inés         September 17, 1804 by Father Estevan Tapis 

San Rafael Arcángel       December 14, 1817 by Father Vicente de Sarria 

San Francisco Solano    July 4, 1823 by Father Jose Altimira 
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Location: San Juan Capistrano, CA, USA

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