In contrast to the Christmas markets of Germany, I flew to LA and Santa Barbara just before Christmas for some, shall we say, "business." (No quotes necessary, actually.)
Santa Barbara is very pretty, with the Santa Ynez mountains in the backdrop and the Pacific Ocean front and center.
There's a bike path that follows the ocean, and the town itself is very bike-friendly.. even to beater beach cruisers.
The old Mission is beautiful, with a sort of park and flower garden out in front of it that people hang out in.
The harbor was packed...
.. and the view from Inspiration Point was a very welcome reward for a good hike.
