Part Deux! Fiesta! Old Spanish Days in Santa Barbara!

Seems I forgot to regale you with pictures from Fiesta! 2009 in Santa Barbara. Click on READ MORE! for more shots. If you love horses, the horse parade on Friday (this was the first weekend in August) was quite spectacular. I've been to Fiesta many times since living in Cali but I prefer Solstice in May. I thought this may be my last "Old Spanish Days" for a while so I took in the sights and sounds as one last swan song before I move back to WI. Plus, any excuse I can use to party with the Santa Barbara Nowaks is an excuse I'll snap up in a minute. Incidentally, my parents and Brother Jason were partying that same weekend with Tom Nowak (of Santa Barbara) and Rick Nowak (Greendale, WI) at Village Days in Greendale. It was a West Coast/Midwest Ircink/Nowak party weekend! (If you don't know, the Nowak's are family through marriage - my dad's youngest sister, Aunt Ev, married the oldest Nowak, my Uncle Bob.)

The dancers above were featured on that same Friday evening at the Sunken Gardens (part of the Santa Barbara courthouse grounds).

Greg Nowak (standing), Chuck Nowak and his wife, Heather and their four children at the Children's Parade on Saturday.

Horses during Friday's horse parade, one of the largest in the country.

More dancers at the Sunken Gardens.

Mark Aldecoa, Laura (Nowak) and their eldest, Melissa, who's off to start her freshman year at UCLA.


The Santa Barbara courthouse.

Chuck's two oldest. We passed out flowers to the pretty senoritas during the parade.

Even this dog got in on the festivities.

This lady, I believe, was a Fiesta parade grand marshall or Fiesta princess back in like 1900.