Bonnie Carroll's Life Bites - Travel Adventures

Bonnie Carroll presents Mayor Randy Rowse with 2025 Sister Cities International Award

The City of Santa Barbara was awarded The Sister Cities International Innovation in Business, Trade, and Professional Exchange 2025 Award for cities with a population of 25,001 to 100,000, which was announced at the SCI Annual Awards Program showcasing the achievements of sister cities programs, offering international recognition for their contribution to the citizen diplomacy movement. Established in 1962, Sister Cities International created this program to honor the outstanding sister city initiatives.

Recipients of the 2025 Annual Awards were announced at the SCI Awards Ceremony and Diplomatic Dinner in Fort Worth Texas on July 22, held during the Summer Leadership meeting. The keynote speaker for the 2025 Awards Diplomatic Dinner was Mary Jean Eisenhower, proud granddaughter of President Dwight D. Eisenhower, the international founder of Sister Cities International, an organization focused on people-to-people diplomacy. Sister Cities International President and CEO Ricki R. Garrett and SCI Board Chair Carlo Capua presented awards to 2025 winners in attendees.

The Sister Cities Brand Marketing Campaign winning proposal for City of Santa Barbara was created and implemented by Bonnie Carroll with assistance from Santa Barbara SCI member volunteers and was entered for award consideration by Carroll, an SCI Sister Cities Board member and three-year member of Santa Barbara Puerto Vallarta Sister Cities Board of Directors. City of Santa Barbara won the prestigious 2025 Annual Award in recognition of their outstanding work in 2024 as best in its category of Innovation in Business, Trade, and Professional Exchange 2025 for cities with a population of 25,001 to 100,000 to advance the goals and mission of Sister Cities International, while focusing on the importance of people-to-people diplomacy.

Mayor Randy Rowse met with Bonnie Carroll to accept the 2025 Sister Cities International Business, Trade and Professional exchange winning award. The Sister Cities Award will be on display with countless other SCI gifts and awards in Mayor’s office. The kind support of area business and city partners including George Lilly SJL, Boone Graphics, Visit Santa Barbara, Grace Fisher Clubhouse, Newquist-Nolan Quittner Santa Barbara, Friends of City of Santa Barbara Library-Michael Towbes Library Plaza, and City of Santa Barbara Farmer’s Market helped make 2025 an award-winning year for Sister Cities of Santa Barbara.

“As Mayor of the City of Santa Barbara I am particularly pleased with the performance as well as the continued dedication of our Sister Cities groups. I think we have set a standard that is enviable worldwide, and we have fabulous relationships with all our sister cities. Thank you very much for this award, and it will be displayed prominently in City Hall,” said Mayor Rowse.

Kudos to Mayor Rowse, who attends SCI City Hall meetings, the board liaison Councilmember Oscar Gutierrez, Holly Perea, Assistant to the Mayor, and volunteer Linda Gunther for their ongoing support of the City of Santa Barbara Sister Cities Committees including Kotor, Montenegro, Patras Greece, Weihai China, Toba Japan, Miraflores, Peru and Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.

"It’s an honor to be recognized by Sister Cities International for the 2025 Best Innovation in Business, Trade, and Professional Exchange proposal and Annual Award on behalf of all our members who work so hard to make the City of Santa Barara SCI programs successful, along with our amazing SCI partners throughout the world. They say it takes a village, or in this case a great city, to shine a light on the importance of creating winning member relationships with good planning and clear communication. We are all grateful for this recognition and look forward to participating again in 2026,” said Carroll.

The list of 2025 winners of all eight Sister Cities International categories and three special individual honors is available at www.sistercities.org. Sister Cities International serves as the national membership organization for 465 U.S. communities with over 1,800 partnerships in more than 138 countries on six continents. For City of Santa Barbara Sister Cities membership information please visit www.santabarbara.gov.

A delightful surprise while visiting Rome during my birthday week was a special lunch with two dear Roman friends who whisked me away to the top of the Atlante Star Hotel to an amazing restaurant-bar, located walking distance from the Vatican in Prati district. The 360-degree view from the rooftop of Terrazza Les Etoiles was spectacular, on the left was the exquisite Vatican and, on the right, the Castle Sant’ Angelo.

The staff at Les etoiles were charming; Italian’s are always charming and never rushed us as we sipped wine and perused the menu for something we liked. This dream dining venue is owned and operated by the second generation Menucci family, brothers Federico, Roberto and Francesca. This luncheon was one of those special situations you wanted to continue in forever, an unexpected but longed-for reunion that could only be too short no matter what the circumstances.

The Gastronome-Pranzo (lunch) menu items I selected were carpaccio di spagnola, a sea bass carpaccio on crunchy salad and mango sauce that was simply outstanding, and my entrée selection was carbonara pasta with prawns, rich cheese, cherry tomatoes and saffron that was rich and so delicious. Grazie Miele to Chef William Anzidi. The tiramisu and dark chocolate dessert is a specialty at this venue in heaven. The wine list was impressive and filled with fine French, and Italian wines from every region in Italy.

It was so comforting savoring this fine Italian lunch as we talked of so many happy occasions, and shared memories, and many new experiences we had been going through, how Covid played a serious role in people’s lives in Italy, as well as America, and it was good to know we had all survived it, and we were so grateful we were all alive and striving to be our best version.

Too quickly I had to leave to catch my Viking bus back to the Jupiter ship I was cruising on through the Mediterranean, but before leaving we climbed up to the very top level of Les Etoiles to take photos on the rooftop, which is seen above in the photo. I loved the food, hospitality and divine location of this beautiful eatery, which was three floors of the hotel with a rooftop area filled with white covered fabric chairs and balconies filled with colorful flowers surrounding the dining area. The enclosed restaurant-bar, surrounded with an open patio view on the second level, and a magical formal dining room on the first level, where a baby grand piano stood, and I assume musicians entertain guests for romantic evening dinner enjoyment.

Reuniting with people you love is so precious and this was an amazing three hours for me in Rome with dear friends. I hope to return to this chic and cozy restaurant bar, where everywhere you look your eyes are filled with the beauty and light of Roma. I would love to spend more time with friends on my next visit.

I truly enjoyed sharing this delightful experience with you my readers and hope you might make a reservation at Terrassa Les etoiles where you can savor the finest Italian cuisine on your next Roman holiday. Ciao Bella!

Contact +39.06686386 or info@terrazzalesitoiles.com to make a reservation. Restaurant hours are Mon-Sun 12.30-15.00 Rooftop Bar Mon – Sun 10.00 – 24.00. Atlante Star Hotel.