There is a string of 21 Spanish missions, lying along a 600-mile stretch of coast from San Diego to Sonoma, which were California's first European settlements. Built between 1769 and 1823, their adobe walls, arched doorways, tile roofs and Mediterranean gardens had a lasting influence on California architecture. Fires, earthquakes, floods and disuse caused most to fall into ruin, but nearly all have been restored. Here are some of the missions that you can visit. • San Diego • San Juan Capistrano • San Fernando • Santa Barbara • La Purisma, in Lompoc • San Miguel • San Carlos Borromeo de Carmelo (in Carmel) • San Juan Bautista • Santa Clara • San Jose • Dolores (in San Francisco) Source: Vacation America, published by Rand McNally This website: Copyright © 2001 Studio Q Int'l Inc / Urban Mozaik Magazine. All rights reserved. This website/publication, in whole or in part, may not be reproduced without written permission from the publisher or the previous publisher of original republished materials.