The Magic of Mendocino

The brightly-colored storefronts of Mendocino contrast nicely with the azure blue sky, and the dried grass of the meadows that stretches toward the headlands. 

The thing I noticed right away was the quiet. People seemed to talk softly, not only in the restaurants and sitting areas of the hotels, but also along the streets. There are specialty gift shops, book stores, eateries and fine dining establishments, and old-fashioned hotels, reminiscent of  New England.

Notice the fabric-wrapped columns in front of the stores? There's a lot of that going on in Mendocino. Trees and posts are covered in brightly colored material. The tradition met with mixed reviews with our crowd, but I love it; it adds to the quirkiness of the quiet coastal town.

These baby birds caught the attention of a small gathering of tourists.

MacCallum House Bed and Breakfast serves sumptuous meals. Every window in the dining room provides inspiring views, either of the surrounding gardens, or of the sea. The food is exceptional, and the staff, very attentive.

The Gallery Book Shop has Catsby as its live-in mascot. He seemed quite content to survey the bookstore from his perch atop this freestanding shelf near the checkout.

Tonia took advantage of one of the window seats in the Gallery Bookshop.

My friends took this picture, using the funky knitted cap as a stand-in for me after I was gone. I wonder if they left the hat there, in keeping with the town's latest trend of decorating fence posts, trees, and columns with textiles?
Photo Credit: Pushing the Bruise, Roslynn Pryor's blog

If you ever get a chance to go to Mendocino, go. There is something restorative about the headlands with the cool, ocean breezes, and the quaint village full of specialty shops and other locally-owned businesses. I'm going to have to take Tonia up on securing my own key to the guest house. This is a place that will call to my heart for years to come.