Bookworm Press

Again, I traveled to research the second book in The Wine Lover’s Daughter series, Finding Angelo. This time, the journey in the novel began in Paso Robles, California, the home and vineyard of Sofia and Nicholas Segantino. Sofia and Nicholas traveled to New York City for a late honeymoon. From there, Sofia embarked on an adventurous and dangerous trip to Tuscany and the Piedmont region in Italy in search of her missing great uncle, Angelo, who disappeared under mysterious circumstances twenty years ago.

The goal of my research was again to capture the unique features of the locals and the people, the vineyards of the Central Coast of California, the bustling life of New York City and Staten Island, and the diverse and fascinating countryside of Tuscany and the Piedmont region of Italy.

Let’s take a trip together through my novel, Finding Angelo (The Wine Lover’s Daughter, Book 2). Enjoy the journey from the convenience of your home. Click on the following link:

Picture Tour – Finding Angelo

I usually drive through San Luis Obispo on my way to Cambria or Paso Robles wine country. This time, I wanted to explore the city itself and what better guide than Shawn who has a knack for spotting interesting and quirky sites. Our first stop was the famous Madonna Inn. I’ve seen it from the road but have never been on the grounds or inside. What a crazy, more than slightly overdone but fun place that is! Now, if you have some extra (lots of extra!) disposable income, you can spend the night at this Californian symbol of craziness, but it’s quite expensive. Looking around, however, is free and the food at the coffee shop is reasonably priced. The food is okay, the coffee somewhat sub-par for my spoiled coffee palate but the scenery is well worth a visit.

Anyway, here are a few pictures of this amazing hotel.

Our next stop was at the mission of San Luis Obispo, with its beautiful gardens, a lovely museum and those amazing three large bells. The full name is Mission San Luis Obispo de Tolosa and it was founded by Father Serra in 1772 and named after Saint Louis, Bishop of Toulouse, France. It was built with the help of the local Chumash Indians. If you are a mission fan, like Shawn, you can read more about it here: http://missionsanluisobispo.org/

Below are a few pictures of the mission:

The garden with the three beautiful bells and the small museum were particularly enchanting.

The next stop, an old library converted into a history center, was close-by.

There is a story to these bottles which Shawn describes in his blog (of course completely fictional).

Next, we took a quick break in one of Shawn’s favorite places–a Tiki bar (it’s a long story). I only have a few pictures, but on Shawn’s post, you’ll get more detail (link at the end of the post).

Next, we found a truly amazing place, another one which I’ve never seen nor even heard of. It’s called the BUBBLEGUM ALLEY. That’s right, only in California. It’s an alley where people over many years deposited their chewed bubblegum on the walls and created a truly Californian “work of art” and to this day people still add their own gums to the masterpiece.

Next we headed over to the coast to Cambria to check out the elephant seals and Ragged Point, the entrance to the mountain road to Big Sur, which is still closed.

This odd place in Cambria is called Nit Wit Ridge–there is a story to this as described in the next photo, which you probably won’t be able to read. Ask Shawn!

The last two photos are from Ragged Point, also called the entrance to the mountain road to Big Sur. Since I dealt with this and the elephant seal sanctuary at Piedras Blancs in former blog posts, I didn’t take many pictures this time around. Shawn has a lot more on his blog post.

There is more to come in my next blog post. But don’t forget to check out Shawn’s interpretation of this day–an absolutely fictitious SILLINESS GALORE! Have a good laugh and enjoy some great pictures!

https://monsterago-go.blogspot.com/2017/10/the-central-coast-with-christa-2017_29.html

My friend Shawn and I recently met in Paso Robles in the Central Coast area to do research–Shawn for some articles he writes as a freelance journalist and I for my novel series The Wine Lover’s Daughter. I’m working on book three of the series, called Fire in the Vineyard. I came up with the title long before the devastating fires in Napa Valley and I certainly don’t think I’m psychic, but now, the title sounds almost ominous.

Anyway, we decided to pool our resources, do some “work” and have some fun at the same time. The first day of the trip, I was on my own. I drove up from the Los Angeles area to Paso Robles and made a stop in San Luis Obispo. One of the characters in my novels is associated with a Benedictine monastery in the Piedmont in Italy as well as in the San Luis Obispo area. To get a feeling for the place and the environment, I visited the Benedictine Monastery of the Risen Christ. It’s a lovely place, simple and unassuming, high up on a hill with a gorgeous view of the valley and the surrounding hills and mountains in the background. Here are a few pictures.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

At the bottom of the hill, there is a meditation labyrinth made of stones where you can walk through the 14 Stations of the Cross or just sit on the bench and enjoy the fresh air and peaceful atmosphere.

There are different events at the monastery for the public to attend. You can also stay there overnight and get a feeling for the life in a monastery or just take a few days off from your busy life. Very tempting!

Here is the link to the monastery: http://monasteryrisenchrist.com/

After visiting the monastery, I drove the rest of the way to Paso Robles, the wine country, for another kind of “spirit.” After all it does say somewhere: In Vino Veritas!

To be continued.

Fire in the Vineyard (The Wine Lover’s Daughter, Book 3) is available: https://mybook.to/FireVineyard

One of my favorite types of research for my novels is traveling to different places where my characters live and work. This time, I spent a few days in one of my favorite spots in California, namely in Cambria at the Cambria Pines Lodge. Since the fictitious Segantino family lives in the wine region of the Central Coast in California, the Paso Robles area was on my itinerary as well. And last but not least, I checked out the California Polytechnic State University or Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo. This is the place where Julietta Santucci, a major character in The Wine Lover’s Daughter series, studies architecture and environmental design.

Here are a few pictures of my vacation/research in beautiful San Luis Obispo county.

Cambria Pines Lodge, Cambria

Cambria Pines Lodge is situated on a hill above the town of Cambria and is a charming lodge with beautiful gardens, the perfect place to dream and write.

A very special kind of flower bed

 A garden with organically grown herbs and vegetables they use for cooking is also part of the landscape.

View from my room

A couple of miles north of Cambria is a famous elephant seal spot. These amazing animals come here year after year to breed, raise their young, and relax between their long and arduous migrations in the Pacific Ocean. Every season has its own kind of spectacle. In September, the young males are jousting playfully, preparing for the serious and often bloody fights for dominance and their chosen females.

Of course, a visit to the famous wine region around Paso Robles, the imaginary home of the Segantino family, is mandatory!

Next stop is San Luis Obispo, where I took a brief walk through the Cal Poly campus, a well-known technical and agricultural university.

Another important spot that plays a role in my next novel is the Benedictine monastery in San Luis Obispo, but time ran out and I had to postpone this for another visit. There is always a reason to come back to this beautiful area of California.