A Walk Down the Streets of Santa Ana, California

Today we had to drop by the Orange County Civic Center in the city of Santa Ana, at the Office of the Recorder to submit documents that needed official registration. Although we had the option to send the papers by mail we decided to turn them in personally, and get it over with as soon as feasible. Besides, we needed to get out of the house and soak in some sun.

Surprisingly, there were no lines at the Recorder window so the process took a mere 30 minutes. With a lot of time in our hands, we decided to walk and re-discover this part of our neighborhood that we have not quite visited in years.

This is the City of Santa Ana, California, the County seat, which houses government facilities that have been modernized in recent years. And yet, it also boasts of a historic downtown district with buildings of old, some in the Art Deco period. Following are pictures of the buildings that we encountered as we walked down the street. Here is the newly built Civic Center, landscaped with tall agaves.

This is the modern Ronald Reagan Federal Building and United States Courthouse and its grounds.

Circling through the courthouse, we found the West End Theater, the County’s second oldest remaining theater structure that was originally built for cinema. It is now home to a couple of small retail stores.

Walking further into the historic district, we passed by more buildings, (and some alley graffiti) until we reached the historic corridor of 4th street also known as La Calle Cuatro.. We stopped here for a Philly sandwich and a refreshing avocado-boba drink.

We resumed our walk and later ran into the old Orange County Courthouse, which is now a museum. It is a brick structure of Romanesque revival architecture.

In front of the building is a time capsule ( to be opened in 2089, 67 years from now; one wonders what that generation will find interesting or even amusing about the present; will the smartphone be in oblivion?). In another part of the courthouse yard, we found two World War I guns dedicated to “the memory of the men and women who responded to the cause of democracy”.

Turning around the corner we came to the Dr. Howe-Waffle House and Medical Museum, a beautifully restored Queen Anne Victorian house that was built in 1889, and owned by the lady doctor Dr. Willella. It was the most beautiful house we have seen today.

That was the end of our walking tour, and we were more than ready to head back home..