See Nan Go: East Coast

Journal Entry...13 July 2008

We have reached St. Augustine, Florida.....which was our goal when we started our trip three weeks ago from northern California. This town is the oldest continually European occupied community in North America. The Spanish used it as a supply base for their galleons coming from Central and South America.

The Spanish used a local stone for their construction called coquina. It is a mixture of sand and shells that have formed under pressure into a stone-like material over eons of time. Whenever cannon balls would hit the fort walls they would be absorbed into the coquina without much damage. In effect, it just made the walls stronger by the addition of the metal balls. Along one edge of Anastasia Island are the remains of an old quarry where the blocks of coquina were quarried for many of the buildings and fences in the area. I would imagine that this material would be very good security as the sharp edged shells are like so many knives.

There are so many interesting things to see in and around St. Augustine that you could spend weeks just playing tourist. Start with the old fort which has been repaired over and over through the last 500 years. Take a walk through Old town which is now a shopping district with working artisans, antiques, curios, souvenirs and restaurants. The buildings composing the college alone are a well preserved beauty of another era that you must see. It seems every building has a story to tell. I highly recommend taking the tram tours. The driver/guides were very knowledgeable about the local history and old gossip of the area. Plus you will get to see much more of the town than you would walking about in the heat and humidity.

There seems to be something for all tastes here. From the formal hotels, to crafted souvenirs, historical tours and silliness made especially for tourists.

Ponce de Leon discovered a spring here in 1533 that he believed to be the Fountain of Youth. According to the guide at the Fountain exhibit, when Ponce de Leon's ship arrived in Florida he found 7 ft. tall natives greeting him on the beach. This was amazing to the Europeans since de Leon was only 4ft. 3 inches and he was the tallest in his crew. The average life span for Europeans at that time was only forty years. So when de Leon found natives that could prove they were in their 70s and 80s he was sure that he had finally found the genuine fountain of youth. Granted the water is healthy, modern testing has shown that it contains over 40 minerals. Yes, the Spring is still producing and it is documented to be the actual spring discovered by Ponce de Leon.

The spring has been enclosed in a well as you see above. The grounds of the exhibit are beautifully landscaped and had several gorgeous peacocks strutting around. The plant in the photo is a sago palm. It is believed to be the oldest type of living plant. It isn't really a palm but a cyad which is more closely related to an evergreen tree. The feathery looking fronds and center "ball" make it very attractive, but the whole plant is thorny to touch.

We were able to camp just moments away from St. Augustine at Anastasia Island State Park. Our camp site was in a grove of trees within walking distance of the beaches.

The sand on the beach is like fine white flour. Even in the sun it was cool to our bare feet.

TThe long, white, drifting dunes are lovely to look at but you are not allowed to walk across them or pick the flowers. A long wooden boardwalk has been constructed over the dunes so that you may reach the beach.