When you grow up in Ohio, you take your vacations in Florida. I think it's a law. At least, looking back, that's how it seemed. That's where we (my family) - and everybody I knew - went for any vacation lasting longer than 5 days. We usually drove. On a side note, I'll never forget my first flight ever, to Orlando, Florida in 1991...
Anyways, being the child of a history teacher, our family usually found places with some history / Americana mixed in for good measure. One of those cities was Saint Augustine, Florida.
St. Augustine has the honor of being the oldest continuous European settlement in the U.S. It was discovered by the Spanish in 1513. If you know your legends, Ponce de Leon was looking for the Fountain of Youth (and gold) when he stumbled here. The Spanish influence can be seen everywhere, and it's definitely a unique place. It's located on the east coast of Florida, not far from Jacksonville, off the A1A, never too crowded with tourists, very walkable, and surrounded by plenty of beaches.
The Fountain of Youth Park is a nice afternoon stop that has a 1960's feel to it. I don't think anything has been updated since the park was built, but there's plenty to do. My favorite is the planetarium, showing how explorers navigated the seas using the stars. Make no mistake, this is not a high-tech presentation, but it was interesting enough to hold my attention.
There are also plenty of mannequins showing the not-so-friendly relations between the Spanish and the Native Americans, and re-creations of the original settlement. Then, finally, you hit the jackpot:
This is it. The big one. And, yes, you can drink from it! But there's one problem - it is disgusting. Disgusting in a way that makes you choke and gag. The water is warm, and smells like rotten eggs. Fountain of Youth? More like Fountain of Sulfur. If this is the secret to eternal youth, I'll take my chances on the afterlife. If you're curious and want to try it yourself, you can always order some from the gift shop...
The Spanish influence can be seen everywhere, but especially in the gigantic Castillo de San Marcos, an old fort built in 1672. The history of this fort involves the Spanish, British, Native Americans, and the Confederacy. and it was used up until 1900. It's now part of the National Park Service. I'll let you read about it, but I've never seen anything else like this in the continental U.S.:
Here's a top-down view for a better perspective. This place is huge, and very well preserved. Note the people walking around...
Another great example of the Spanish influence is the also amazingly, well-preserved "old town". It's only a few blocks from the fort. Walking through the city gate, you find yourself on St. George Street. Closed to traffic, you'll find the street and some shops are made of an incredibly durable, ground-up coral, unique to Spanish architecture of that era:
Speaking of which, since you're in Florida, why not try some Cuban food? I'd definitely recommend The Columbia. It's a very popular place in Old Town. There's usually a short wait, but the staff is good at turning tables over quickly. The inside is nicely decorated - very classy, and open - exactly what you'd expect.
I ordered a 1/2 Cuban sandwich / salad combo. The sandwich was a combination of ham, salami, pork, Swiss cheese, mustard and pickle grilled on fresh-baked thin, buttery bread. The salad was their famous "1905 salad", which is made up *at your table* of a bizarre combination of items; yet somehow, they all work very well together. The half sandwich was enormous, and filled me up for the rest of the day, and it only set me back about $10. This picture is from Trip Advisor (not mine), but shows you basically what I got:
Last but not least, why not visit something Bizarre? How about the original Ripley's Believe it or Not? Museum...
Set in a beautiful mansion where Ripley himself was a guest, this is the first of the brand's several museums. This is also where the opening to the circa 2000 television series was filmed. There are plenty of discount coupons available around the city, so don't pay full price.
I've been to a few of these around the country, and I've definitely noticed some of the same displays, but, overall, this one is my favorite. It seems to have the largest amount of Ripley's personal items, and that caught my attention. I could be wrong about that, though.
Also, there are a few displays out front that you can't see in this picture, but they're very interesting. I'll let you explore to lean more...
Honestly, there's too much to discuss in one blog, so maybe one day I'll follow up with more. St. Augustine is a great vacation destination, with something for everyone. Please share any suggestions / feedback.
Thanks for reading!
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