15.42 as I arrive at Reading station and it is extraordinarily dark.
Travel to northern California took me first to Hearst Castle the great media mogul’s ranch/folly/palace at San Simeon. It almost marks the halfway point between Los Angeles and San Francisco and is as famous for its accretion of European art as it is for wild parties with Hollywood and Washington guest lists. To tour the castle today, it is necessary to follow a supremely knowledgeable and terminally laconic guide through designated areas of the building.
The fun comes in playing detective with the works of art, all responsibly sourced and sustainably imported by Hearst through recognised art dealers we are assured. It is as if there is an organic certificate for shady antiques. Some are truly exceptional works although many are second and third rate and incongruously juxtaposed, even assembled as in the case of a marble spanish lion with a column sprouting from its back.
Tour one is the overview tour, tour two is the bedrooms, tour three is the behind the scenes tour etc etc. All are a 10 minute bus ride from the parking area so there is no chance of you mistakenly seeing more than you have paid ($24) for. Which proves that despite the exchange rates not everything in America is cheap.
Clothing stores are cheap though and it is a fool that would take a full suitcase on a trip to the USA these days. Enough clothes to last the weekend then attack Macy’s seems to be the m.o. of the wise traveller. Shirts sweaters, socks and shoes are all at the bargain prices to be found all over the store. Reluctantly I leave withut a coat which simply would not have fitted in my luggage.
The round of work continues and is moderately successful although the late booking patterns of these recession hit times are a worry. The weather is at first unseasonably cold then very wet; all good for California’s water supplies but a bit of a damper on my social pursuits.But there’s always shopping of course with Christmas coming soon.
I finish Edwin Mullins short book Cluny before the return flight. It is an increasingly good recapitulation of the subject for gneral readers (such as myself) and reminds me of some of the themes of our walk along the Camino de Santiago which we are repeating once or twice during the late spring of next year. The architectural legacy of the monastery is a feature of the north of Spain particularly on the pilgrimage road to Compostela but I also learn a lot that is new including the fact that Abbot Hugh instigated the feast day of the dead at the start of November. It appears that there are few countries and fewer important religious matters that are not dominated by the great abbey and its many fine abbots during the eleventh and twelfth centuries.
Return to Taunton via an unusually cooperative public transport system (I missed the BA strike!) to wallow in jetlag until later this evening.
