Exploring St. Augustine

Wednesday, November 28
We went into St. Augustine today. It was pretty chilly with freezing temps and some breeze so we weren't in a hurry to get into town. On the other hand.....it was a great day for a walking tour. Just to keep warm!

St Augustine is the oldest permanent European settlement in the US. First established in 1565 by the Spanish it predeceases the northern French and English settlements by a few decades.

We first went to the Spanish fort of Castillo de San Marcos. Built over a 23 year period, the building was started in 1672. The fort was never seized in battle although it did change hands through negotiated treaties.

The first trial of the fort came in 1702 when the English besieged the city for 50 days. They never did breach the fort walls and left after burning the city to the ground. Nearly 2000 people sought refuge in the fort during the siege.

Main drawbridge to the fort.

The shield of the king of Spain. Weather worn.

Spanish soldier from the 1700's. Looks like he'd rather be back in Spain!

Note the curved ceilings. Remarkably strong, they support the upper level of the fort with all the cannons.

The 'coquino' blocks used to build the fort........

.....made of millions of tiny shells. Turns out it was perfect to resist cannon balls. The cannon fire wouldn't break apart the stone and actually absorbed the shock of the cannon ball hit.

A model of how they built the ceilings. The inside supports were removed when the ceiling was completed.

The warehouse had to be full because you never knew when the next siege would begin!

Broken cannon barrel. Read below how it happened.....

Wow!

The cannon barrel. 

Another siege thwarted.

Soldier barracks.

Chapel

Twelve pounder. It had a range of three miles.

This is one big musket. It had it's own wagon. Huge caliber, but only single shot.

Cannon platforms and observation tower.

Wow, that is one big caliber gun! A short range mortar.

At one point in history this moat held water.

This is pretty ingenious. As the wooden grey gate above is lowered it raises the drawbridge to provide a second layer of defense.

The brown logs symbolize the wall that existed between the fort and the town. It was designed to keep unwanted persons out, like an invading army. It would at least slow them down.

After the fort we walked into the old historic area of St Augustine.

The main gates of the town.

The oldest schoolhouse in America......or so they claim.

This is St George Street. It runs for several blocks and is lined with historic buildings, most of them re-purposed as modern retail shops. A narrow street that is only for pedestrians.

This beautiful building is in great shape for its age. Read the sign below.

A close look at the stone work on the building. It is made with 'coquino', closely packed shells. Very durable but also soft as shown above with the square nail pounded into the 'stone'.

Some very unique shops.....

Wanna buy a mermaid......

.......or a mer-man!

......or .....one of these!

Yep, anything you need to maintain your 'stache'.

Pretty gardens

More narrow streets. Only wide enough for special small tourist buses.

Even bananas!

A rare empty street. Even on a chilly November day there were lots of folks out and about.

So that was it for one day. Why see it all in one day when you have tomorrow to see more?
Thursday, November 29
Back into old town St Augustine, but first we stopped at a winery on the way. A little wine for breakfast makes for a good day!

In case you can't read it.....
"Drink a few glasses and become a genius!"

An impatient taster!

 We had six samples and of course ended up buying a couple of bottles. Tasty wine. They use muskadine grapes out this way. Blended with some other grape juices in some cases.

So after the winery visit we headed into the old quarter and resumed our walking tour.

The beautiful City Hall

Statue of the founder of St Augustine, Pedro Menedez de Aviles.

Very ornate architecture.

What a place!

War memorial. Note the Confederate flag.

The tallest building in St Augustine. There is a city ordnance that restrict the height.

Statue in honor of Father Pedro Camps that ministered to the minority Minorcan community. The Minorcans were from the Mediterranean area.

The Cathedral Basilica of St Augustine

You con learn more about the Basilica here.

'The Lions' bridge. Open for a tall boat to pass.

Bridge closing to allow traffic to pass.

Another statue. They have lots of 'em.

They even sent out the local media to get our impressions of their city! :-)

Two days have given us a good look at the history and sights of St Augustine. It's a beautiful city and certainly worth a look.

....and that was Our View From Here!