Sunshine & Summertime

 Magnolia Avenue in the ancient city of St. Augustine has been labeled "one of the most beautiful streets in America" by National Geographic. 61 trees made up of 59 live oaks, one water oak, and one laurel oak make up a graceful canopy over the street, dripping with Spanish Moss. It is a breathtaking example of the natural beauty that abounds in Florida. Near the Fountain of Youth, you'll turn right on Myrtle Avenue just north of Mission Nombre de Dios, go to the end, and turn left. The canopy has thinned since the hurricanes in 2004, but in 2005, the city paid an arborist to examine each of the 61 trees to investigate problems and make recommendations.  The street is highly photographable, and well worth a stop to get out and look around.

 Dating back to the early 18th century the Oldest Wooden Schoolhouse is located at the north end of St. George Street in St. Augustine, not far from the City Gate. None of the wooden structures built in the city before 1702 still stand, because the British burned Spanish St. Augustine to the ground that year. As a result, the earliest property records for the schoolhouse date to 1740. The original structure consisted of a one room, single story building with a detached kitchen, made of wood siding with a coquina chimney, where food was prepared for the family. Kitchens were commonly separate structures in those times, not only to keep the house cool during the hot summer months, but also to prevent any kitchen fires from spreading to the residential areas of the home. The exterior of the house was made of bald cypress and red cedar bound together by wood pins and iron spikes, all made by hand. In addition to the separate kitchen, there was a privy with a privacy wall and a well, al...

 The St. Augustine Lighthouse and Keeper's House serve as both a scenic attraction and a maritime museum. Still an active aid to navigation on the North Florida coast, the Lighthouse and Maritime Museum is a private, non-profit museum dedicated to its mission "to preserve, present, and keep alive the stories of the Nation's Oldest Port as symbolized by our working St. Augustine Lighthouse." Standing 165 feet above sea level, the Lighthouse overlooks the Atlantic Ocean and Matanzas Bay from Anastasia Island. Visitors can climb the 219 steps to the top of the Lighthouse for an incredible view of the city of St. Augustine and the ocean. You'll have the opportunity to experience life at a Light Station through the exhibits at the Keeper's House, stroll through the grounds, check out the gift shop, or take a "Behind the Scenes" guided tour, included with admission. "Behind the Scenes" tours are offered on the hour from 11am to 3pm every day. It ...

 If you're on A1A Highway about three miles north of St. Augustine, you'll catch a glimpse of the turrets of Castle Otttis (yes, there are three t's in its name, I double checked). Designated as a garage due to a clerical error, it's an unusual sight to see as you're driving along the coastal highway. Built by Ottis Sadler and Rusty Ickes between 1984 and 1988, its design was based on Irish castles from about 1,000 years ago. It was designed to be a landscape sculpture, open to the elements and rising over 50 feet tall. When the pair began working on the castle, it was not intended to be a business or residence. Their primary goal was the creation of a work of art, one that would evoke the spirit of an old Christian Church or Irish Abbey. Sadler and Ickes handled all of the masonry themselves with no additional paid labor. Once they had built the walls tall enough to be  easily noticed, they were told they needed a construction permit, at which point a clerical erro...

 As I'm sure I've mentioned, we like to try new restaurants whenever we stay out of town. Since we're planning a move to St. Augustine, we're all about trying different places every time we visit so that we get to know our new home. My fiance and I were both working in the restaurant business when Covid hit, so we spent the end of our Ohio shutdown on Anastasia Island, since Florida had just reopened. It was during this trip that we began formalizing our plans to move to Florida. The Salt Life Food Shack is situated just across the street from the St. Johns Fishing and Ocean Pier, so when we saw it as we walked up to the street from the beach, and saw an open restaurant for the first time in two months, we had to give it a try.  We enjoyed a spectacular lunch on their rooftop patio with the breeze blowing off the ocean. Since then, I've done a little research into the place, primarily due to my own curiosity about the "Salt Life" logo emblazoned on the fro...