I greatly admire people who have and display passion for their jobs--teachers, janitors, chefs, mothers, writers, musicians, and even tour guides. Bill, our tour guide at Hearst Castle, exuded energy and passion--not only because he had been giving tours for almost 30 years, but because he palpably loved to talk about and describe that house and the people who inhabited and built it. He bubbled when he discussed Hearst's mistress, Marion Davies, but he really burst with pride when he described the architect who brought Hearst's constantly-changing visions to reality, Julia Morgan.
To me, the Castle and guest houses are a bit much, but I can fully support the two swimming pools.
And the surrounding views.
Not bad for just a camping spot.
Part of me wishes that's what it still could be.
*And, yes, I do realize that Hearst Castle was not built during THE Gilded Age.
2 comments:
We also had a great tour guide and shortly after leaving started looking up books on Julia Morgan. I was impressed that a there was such an influential female architect at that time, and that WRH saw fit to utelize her talents. I asked our guide a little bit about it, and she said something to the effect that his mother was a very strong figure who taught him to respect women, in power or otherwise. I wish that wasn't so rare.
Love the photos!
Hearst Castle tour was my favorite day trip while we were at Monterey.
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