September 28 - Cabrillo Day in California

Posted on September 28, 2020

San Diego, California, is a very nice place. It was 
nice even before a world-class zoo, a sea-life 
theme park, and a cage-free wild animal park 
were built there. It was nice before a huge park - 
a park with gardens and 17 museums devoted to 
everything from art and archeology to space and 
veterans - was built there.



Why is it so nice? Great weather! Also, San Diego 
is on the Pacific coast - and it boasts lovely beaches, 
a wonderful natural harbor, and bits of rugged 
coastline - but it is close to mountains and deserts, 
as well.



Some of that was 
probably noted by 
Portuguese explorer 
Juan Rodríguez 
Cabrillo when he 
stepped foot in what 
is now San Diego 
on this date in 1542.

Cabrillo was sailing for Spain, and he was very much 
a product of his times. For example, he was a part of
conquering and ruthlessly enslaving native peoples,
"discovering" lands that were already occupied, and 
putting Spanish names on features that already had 
native names. The name he chose for the glorious bay 
we now call San Diego (also a Spanish name) was 
"San Miguel," named after one of his three ships. He 
later named what we now call Santa Catalina Island 
"San Salvador" (after another of his ships), and what 
we now call San Clemente Island he dubbed "Victoria" 
(after his third ship!). 

He really had a thing for 
naming places after ships, 
didn't he? I noticed that he 
DIDN'T try to name 
everything "Cabrillo Bay," 
"Cabrillo Island," and so 
forth. Nowadays, plenty of 
things are named for him, 
including a National 
Monument, a club for 
Portuguese Americans, a 
beach and aquarium, several schools, a highway, a bridge...



I know that Cabrillo would be pleased that a wooden 
steamer ship that was used as a ferry was called the 
SS Cabrillo!


Also on this date:

















Flag Day in Thailand











Plan ahead:



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