St. Augustine Love Tree - 3/12/13

What is a love tree?  When two trees are so tightly entwined that they must embrace forever or both die.

Actually, there are so many old trees around St. Augustine that there are a bunch of these. John and I  saw the one on Cordoba Street that is a palm tree that has grown together with an oak tree.  It is said that if you kiss under the love tree that you will have everlasting love.

So, of course, that's what we did.

Here's a photo of the love tree (the palm is that straight part in the middle!).

At. Augustine Alligator Zoological Park - 3/10/14

This park was opened in May of 1893! We enjoyed this park much more than we expected.  The sheer number of alligators in one of the enclosures is astounding, even though they were mostly very docile during the time we saw them. They climb over and lay on each other without any fighting.  They are so well fed, that they are not that anxious to eat during feeding time (although they can jump an amazing 2/3rds of their height).

There are two albino alligators from the Louisiana bayou that are pretty amazing.  Legend has it that those who gaze upon them will have good fortune (I hope so!!)

Some of the other exotic critters include:
- 21-foot python (capable of eating large mammals!)
- rare mammals (pygmy marmosets, red-ruffed lemurs)
- native Florida amphibians and reptiles (snakes)
- Komodo dragon (below)

Check out Maximo: he is a 15' 3", 1,250 pound, Australian alligator and the largest animal in the park.

The most amazing aspect of this place though is the native rookery of wading birds (herons, egrets, ibis, spoonbills, wood storks).  Literally hundreds of birds nest here because of the security provided by the hundreds of alligators in the park.

kgh

St. Augustine Alligator Zoological Park

Mission Nombre de Dios - 3/07/14

On this site on September 8, 1565, Pedro Menendez landed with a band of settlers to found St. Augustine.Father Francisco Lopez (Spanish priest) offered here the first parish Mass in the United States (even before the missions in the Southwest).  The Spanish pioneers named the landing site Nombre De Dios (Name of God) in honor of their faith. This marked the beginning of missionary work in the 16th century by Spanish priests, Jesuits, and Franciscans from Miami to the Chesapeake Bay and west to Pensacola.

This place is so serene and beautiful, we both really enjoyed the visit. There were many other statues and shrines throughout the site. Bonus was that it was free and dog-friendly.  Don't miss this spot if you visit St. Augustine.  It is near old town and the fort.

In the early 1600s, the Spanish settlers established the first shrine to the blessed Virgin Mary in the US.  Many chapels have been built and rebuilt on the site with the current one reconstructed in 1915.  

Father Lopez statue in front of the Great Cross (208' tall).  You can see the cross from all over St. Augustine during both day and night.

Rustic Altar overlooking Intracoastal Waterway.

Ocean Grove RV Resort Review - Feb 26-Mar 26, 2014

Resort Review: 1 star on scale of 5

Location: Excellent, close to many restaurants, St. Augustine Beach, St. John's Pier, grocery stores.  Old town historical sites approximately 6 miles away.

Lot Size: TOO SMALL; neighbors were on top of us. Full hook up.

Amenities:  Pool (too cold, never saw anyone in it), hot tub (not working while we were there), nice horseshoe pits, shuffleboard, basketball court. Beautiful docks for viewing sunset (or fishing or kayaking) over marshes that connect to the Intracoastal Waterway. Also, nice bird watching location. Wi-fi was slow most of the time and cable reception was not good.

Cost:  $530 + cable ($48) + electric ($68)

Management: Not very friendly.

Comments:  We will not stay here again (due to lot size) but it was still a great location to explore the St. Augustine area. Also, our site had fire ants (they attacked my feet when I had on sandals and those bites hurt!)  John bought some stuff that got rid of them. On the positive side, the sunsets were gorgeous from the docks over the Intracoastal Waterway. And we walked to the beach from the resort for a night stroll which was fun!

Restaurants of St. Augustine - March 2014

Here's a review of the restaurants where we ate while in St. Augustine area (February 26 - March 26).  Rating key = Highly recommend; Recommend; Nothing special; Skip it.

The Conch House Marina Restaurant and Lounge - The fish tacos with black beans and rice were fabulous! Very pleasantly surprised at the food quality. Located on the Intracoastal Waterway, there are great views of boats cruising by or docking at the marina. We had great service.
Cost: $$. Rating: Recommend.  

The World Famous Oasis Deck and Restaurant - This is basically a biker bar (not that we have anything against bikers, mind you).  If you go, sit on the second floor for nice view of the surrounding area. John had a burger and I had a seafood wrap. Sevice was only so-so.
Cost: $$. Rating: Nothing special.

Mango Mangos - We went to this restaurant on a Saturday night and it was quite crowded (although I subsequently learned that is frequently that way). Great "island" atmosphere, helpful and sweet wait staff, and excellent seafood. We waited at the bar and then moved to a table when one became available. Close quarters, but ambiance made it fun.
Cost: $$. Rating: Highly recommend.

The Purple Onion - We went here to celebrate my birthday. An unassuming local in a "strip mall," the food was surprisingly good. John had prime rib (that he only rates as average), but I had salmon and it was delicious. Also, we both ordered creme brulee for dessert that was fabulous! Service was excellent.
Cost: $$$. Rating: Recommend.

Florida Cracker Cafe - We grabbed a quick bite to eat in the old town area of St. Augustine after visiting the Pirate & Treasure Museum (it was within walking distance). The place was just average.
Cost: $$. Rating: Nothing special.

180 Vilano Grill - This is a very nice, small restaurant in Vilano Beach that we loved! Both food and service were excellent. Dog-friendly patio if you want to eat outside.
Cost: $$. Rating: Highly recommend.

The Floridian - Amanda and Justine purchased a gift certificate as a birthday present to this restaurant. Famous for fresh and local cuisine, we both thoroughly enjoyed our meals.
John had the Bourbon and Brown Sugar Park Chop (Juniper brined CartWheel Rank Pork Chop, seared and served over aromatic rice and pulled pork "Southern Caviar" made up of blackeyed peas tossed with tri-colored bell peppers, brussel sprouts and sweet onions. Topped with apples and brown butter bourbon glaze, and served with buttermilk cornbread).
I had the Seafood Zucchini Linguine (St. Augustine clams and shrimp steamed in white wine and garlic butter, served with our zucchini noodle "pasta" tossed with bell peppers, sweet onions, and garlic topped with tomato salsa; served with baguette).

Cost: $$. Rating: Highly recommend.

Iron Horse Saloon (Ormond Beach) - Not a destination for good food, but surely a place to check out if you are curious about the biker scene around Daytona. We were here during Bike Week at Daytona. We had a couple of drinks and bought some good barbeque from a vendor there for the event.

Cost: $. Rating: if you're goior food, skip it. If you're going for the experience, highly recommend.

Flagler Beachfront Winery - We stopped here on a whim after playing frisbee with Sadie on Flagler  Beach. This is a lovely location across the street from the beach. It was a beautiful afternoon and a thoroughly pleasant experience. The savignon blanc I had was so good that we bought a bottle to take home. We just had a snack (cheese, fruit, baguette) but it was perfect. Really great service.

Cost: $$. Rating: Highly recommend.

Salt Water Cowboys - This restaurant was very close to cean Grove RV Park (where we stayed) and was advertised as a "southern fish camp" type restaurant. We were not impressed with the food and we had poor service. Nice ambiance with view of marsh lands near the Intracoastal Waterway.

Cost: $$. Rating: Nothing special.

Pizzalley - We stopped in this restaurant because it had a nice patio that was dog friendly.  I had Italian Wedding soup and salad and John ordered pizza. Service was average. The food was good but we both felt sick the rest of the day.

Cost: $$. Rating: Skip it.

Seafood Festival - We checked out the local annual Seafood Festival in St. Augustine.  John had fired shrimp and I had seafood paella.  The lemonade was $5 for one cup! The shrimp was average but the paella was excellent.

Cost: $$$. Rating: Nothing special.

O'Steens - This place is so popular that it almost always has a line. It is a small restaurant that doesn't look like anything special. However, their fried shrimp is really fabulous (and this is what they are primarily known for).  With an hour wait at lunchtime on a Tuesday, we ordered our food to go.  It was excellent. It's lucky we did not find this place sooner or we would have spent a lot more time and money here.  

Cost: $$ Rating: Highly recommend.

Guana Tolomato Matanzas National Estuarine Reserve - 3/09/14

When our plans for a beach walk didn't work out due to the woman's beach volleyball championship at St. Augustine Beach and the resulting traffic we went to plan B.

We instead visited the Guana Tolomato Matanzas National Estuarine Research Reserve - that ended being a real delight. It encompasses approximately 73,000 acres along 30 miles of the coast of Florida near St. Augustine. Estuaries serve as nurseries of the sea providing habitat to produce a wide array of marine life.  We hiked trails from between the Guana and Tolomato Rivers and the coast (Atlantic Ocean). This place is dog friendly, so Sadie had a great time exploring the area with us.

Here are some photos:

And check out this swamp guy we encountered

FAQs about New Lifestyle

Frequently Asked Questions:

Q:  Kathy, can you drive that thing?

A:  Yes, but not through a tunnel. That is terrifying. John does almost all of the driving at this point.

Q:  Are your living quarters too cramped?

A:  Storage space is the challenge. We are good with the living space. We still have too much stuff (like clothing). And it's a lot more living space than we had on our boat (36" Trojan).

Q:  What's a pain?

A:  Emptying the waste and gray water tanks. Actually, John handles this. But currently we have to do it about once a week. We're connected to water and sewage when we're at a campground, but you still have to pull some some handles and wait for it to drain. There are indicators on the interior of the motor coach that show how full they are. We can also see how full our fresh water and propane tanks are.

Q:  Kathy, do you miss your Keurig?

A:  Surprisingly enough, I don't! We have an electric tea kettle that is perfect.

Q:  Is Sadie (our dog) a good traveler?

A:  Yes! She is adjusting to her new lifestyle. I think it was very stressful for her when we were selling all of the stuff in the house. Now that we are all together in the motor coach, she is happy to be with us, go for walks, and explore new things. She has no problem letting us know if she is hungry or needs a bathroom break.

Q:  What's it like to tow the car?

A:  Towing it is no problem. Getting it on and off the tow dolly though is a pain in the a**!  I guess we'll get better at it with more practice.

Q: What problems have you encountered thus far in your travels?

This is a little embarrassing, but here goes...  Once we left the entry steps out while driving about 20 miles (they are supposed to come in automatically!). We were spending the night (boondocking) on the way south and had the generator/heat on when the CO2 alarm went off (thank goodness there is one!). It was very loud and alerted us to open the windows and turn off the generator.  

Q:  What do you miss the most from your previous lifestyle?

A:  Only family and friends in the area.

Q:  What do you miss the least?

A:  Winter weather!!

Let me know if you have other questions and we'll respond in a future post.

kgh