St. Augustine Part 2

St. George Street – is a pedestrian only street with a colonial feel filled with sights and smells. The street ends near the Old City Gates and the Oldest School House is located here. I found some areas a little to “touristy” with many cheesy things being sold but the specialty shops were nice. If you make it off of the street without anything sweet – more power to you because the smell of ice cream cones, fudge and desserts is overpowering.
Spanish Bakery on George St.
I ate here on a recent class trip with my son. It is quick and cheap for the area. Limited choices, but for $5.50 you get an entrée, rolls, drink and cookie. Rolls are awesome and they even sell them or loaves of bread. It is on the north end of George St. and tucked away behind a gate. Outdoor seating is available.
Lighthouse - http://www.staugustinelighthouse.com/ this was a must for us. Ticket prices were reasonable. To get there we had to ride the trolley and then get on our beach access bus, which was included in the trolleytour, across the bridge. Currently the Bridge of Lions is being reconstructed. The lighthouse can be seen on the trolleytour but driving up to it was exciting. It was advised to us to go early during Florida’s rainy season because they will shut the lighthouse down if lighting is near. So we went first thing in the morning. If you have ever been up the steps of a lighthouse you know how your legs can feel, but the good thing about this one is the steps are against the wall and not in the center. Eight landings are spread out over 219 steps so you can stop if needed. Each landing has a solid base and a window…the only breeze you will feel in here. My kids had no problems getting to the top, I cannot say the same for the 2 adults. The top offers a great view of SA and a welcoming breeze! You can see the Great Cross across the water which stands 208 feet; this is also a stop on the trolleytour.

Once you are done in the lighthouse you can tour the innkeepers home and read some of the history. They do sell food – very reasonable (chili hot dogs, chicken, ice cream) and ghost stories if you ask the right person. We ate our meal in a nice area out front with huge Oaks covering the sky. After we walked through a wooded area in the back that was slightly hilly. Defiantly a must see for visiting SA. Next time maybe the moon tour!!!

Castillo de San Marcos – http://www.nps.gov/casa I have read reviews on the fort and one thing is true – if it is sunny & hot, plan accordingly because the fort does not have air conditioning J the price is great and kids (under 16) are free, tickets are good for 2 days. Check times on the schedule and you can observe a reenactment of the cannon being shot off the eastern side of the gun deck on the 2nd level. It is loud!!! Tours with Rangers meet on the first level and they also have a self guided tour brochure in many languages. Total you will spend about 1-2 hours at the fort. The kids got a little bored but I think the temperature had a lot to do with that. The bookstore sells water for $1. Lots of walking, great views and photo ops.

The Old Jail – one of the main stops for the trolleytours, also the Florida Heritage Museum is here. The jail was built in 1891 by the same people who built Alcatraz. We took the tour and were led by a women dressed as though she just stepped out of history. She talks as to you like you are prisoners and takes you around the jail area cell blocks and death row as well as the side that housed the Sheriffs family. Lots of photo ops outside, I thought it was interesting and was glad we went.
St. Augustine Beach - even though we live near the beach here in Melbourne, SA beach is different. They have more of it for starters. The sand is a nice white color with hilly dunes and rock areas. It’s amazing how many kinds of sand & beaches Florida has. Don’t forget SPF!
St. Augustine Beach Dunes

Ghost & Gravestones Tours - http://www.aghostlyexperience.com/home.html We originally were going to do a walking tour, well my daughter & sister in law were because I couldn’t talk my son into it at all. This tour was recommended, it was higher priced but on a trolley instead. You go into 3 “haunted” places during the tour. The night before my son finally agreed to go, actually he was bribed. I love Ghost Hunters and knew SA was a well known area for sightings so I was excited. The tickets are purchased through trolleytours and while doing so they continuously run the episodes of Ghost Hunters that took place in SA several years ago. The tour was about 1.5 hours. They sold out quickly so if you are going to do this one get your tickets early. My thought on this tour is that it was fun. We did visit all 3 areas but none were particually scary, plus we had a crying child in the group who kind of overpowered anyone else that may have tried to communicate J including our guide. I prefer something more factual and I think I prefer walking as well. The trolley tour was drama with people dressed up telling stories. But it worked for the kids because they loved it.