San Buenaventura: Erle Stanley Gardner’s Town of Grace

by L.J. Martin
Old California.
What a gracious time it was.
A time when it was said, It's better to be on time than invited.
When you were never late for a meal - one magically appearing on the table when you arrived.  When a haciendado, a ranchero, would leave a bowl of coins near the front door so a traveler would never be short.
A different time indeed.
Determined to seek solace and moderate temperatures, my wife and I travel to San Buenaventura for our annual pilgrimage from snow and biting cold to sun and caressing warmth.
Each year we marvel at the Ortega Adobe.  The manicured grounds, t...