Our son and his wife have gotten into playing the Italian Classic- Bocce. So today we headed to the very cool Juilliard Park, one of Santa Rosa's oldest. The park site was once home to the Juilliard Family. A two-story Victorian house stood near the center of the park, and the rest was orchard. The home was built in 1872, by Charles F. Juilliard, a winemaker.

Frederic Juilliard gave the property to the City in 1931 after he moved to New York. Frederic was the brother of Mrs. Isabella (Mark) McDonald who lived on McDonald Avenue. Frederic's uncle, August Juilliard, established and endowed the Juilliard School of Music in New York City. Another of Frederic's brothers, Louis Juilliard, was a State Senator. History is EVERYWHERE.


Gaming and a picnic... what an idyllic Sunday in Santa Rosa. Fantastico!

Side note: JUST HOW DO YOU PRONOUNCE BOCCE? Most people say bah-chee. While it's the Americanized pronunciation and commonly used, it is incorrect. Bah-chee, in Italian, is spelled baci, which means kisses. The correct pronunciation is more like bow-chay. If an Italian hears you saying bocce balls, and you're pronouncing it bah-chee, that Italian might think you're saying something else altogether. So be careful when you say bocce. Bow-chay will keep you closer to the authentic pronunciation!