Last fall, we spent 2 months in the Saint Augustine area. If you're in Florida, it is definitely worth the trip to come and explore. One of the first things we did was take a trolley ride to get an idea of the city and decide which places we wanted to go back to. Since it is such an historic city, there is a lot to see and do.
Saint Augustine was founded in 1565, which makes it the oldest continually occupied European settlement in North America. It was originally occupied by the Spanish. St. Augustine's settlers were in constant fear of attacks from pirates, diminishing supplies and increasing hostility from native Indians.
After the wooden fort and village were burned to the ground in 1586, the queen of Spain ordered the construction of a new fort, this time made of stone. Castillo de San Marcos was begun in 1672 and took 23 years to build.
Upper Deck of fort
The fort was built of coquina, a locally quarried soft shellrock. Coquina was easily shaped by the artisans and did not crumble under cannon fire. On our tour we witnessed an actual cannon firing.
Across the street from the fort is the Pirate Museum. It depicts the life of pirates. It has the world's only authentic pirate treasure chest, its oldest wanted poster, and one of the three original Jolly Roger flags in existence.
Actual Pirates Chest with secret compartment
One fascinating place is the former Hotel Ponce de Leon, built by Henry Flagler in 1888. It was used as a luxury resort for northener's in the winter time. The building was one of the first to use poured concrete and was wired for electricity from the beginning, thanks to Flagler's friend Thomas Edison. The dining room features stained glass windows from Tiffany's. No longer a hotel, it is now the home of Flager College, a 4 year liberal arts college.
Beautiful Tiffany Stained Glass Windows in the Dining Room
Florida is home to nearly 2 million alligators, so a trip to the Alligator Farm and Zoological Park intrigued us. Viewed from a safe distance, it is home to many alligators and crocodiles. It is also a refuge for some albino alligators. (They obviously are in danger in the wild due to lack of protection from the sun and their white color not blending in with the environment.) We took a walk to view the 3:00 p.m. feeding of the alligators.They feed them a commercial mixture of gator chow. Sure enough, the migration towards the platform where the park attendant stands starts about 10 minutes before 3:00. Alligators wake up from sunning themselves and swimming to head to get some food. We have never seen so many alligators in one place!!!
Alligators lining up for afternoon feeding
Giant Tortoise at the Alligator Farm
Since we were in St. Augustine in December, we were there for the annual "Nights of Lights", which has been named one of the top ten Christmas light displays in the U.S. However, the night we went not all places were lit up (we're not sure why). So we were a bit disappointed. The most stunning display was in the trees of the downtown park.
There was a lot more that we could have taken in but we thought we made a good dent in the offerings. There are a lot of seafood restaurants, and charming shops in the downtown area on Saint George Street. All in all, we enjoyed our time in Saint Augustine!
We headed north for Christmas to be with family. We were reminded why we've decided to stay in Florida for the winter!
