BRUNSWICK, GA

We are now out of Florida and have found the cooler weather.  On our way to Brunswick, GA and our tour of Jekyll Island we stopped in route to visit the Okefenokee Swamp which is a National Wildlife Refuge.  We had lunch and then boarded our boats for a swamp tour. we saw several alligators but I think most of the other wildlife was in hibernation.

Jekyll Island is a barrier island off the coast of south Georgia.  A portion of the island was purchased by a group of millionaires (the Jekyll Island Club) in the late 1800's so they would have an exclusive area to spend their winters.  This was in the pre-Florida era.  The "cottages" were individually owned but some didn't have kitchens since everyone was expected to eat their meals at the hotel. The cottages had interesting names as seen in the pix below and the hotel still operates.  They normally have a Sunday brunch for guests but put on a special "Thursday" brunch for us.  It was wonderful and was enjoyed by all.

Interestingly, the rest of the island is underdeveloped which we find unusual.

OUR BOATS AWAITS

VIEW OF THE OKEFENOKEE SWAMP

AN EGRET

BRENDA LOOKING FOR THE SUN

DUCK DYNASTY? NO, IT'S CAPTAIN DAVE

CINDERELLA'S CARRIAGE

RED BUG - THE FIRST DUNE BUGGY

A LIVE OAK TREE

JEKYLL ISLAND HOTEL

EATING AGAIN!

LOTS OF ROOM ON THIS BEACH

SAINT AUGUSTINE, FLORIDA

Our visit to St. Augustine was very interesting.  Our guide, Gary is a historian and gave us some history on the area including the fact that it predates Jamestown, VA as the oldest city in the U.S.  by at least 50 years.  St. Augustine was founded in 1565 as a Spanish settlement while Jamestown was English.  It is also the site of the first Catholic mass in the new world.  Of course since it is the oldest city it makes sense that it is the site of the oldest house, the oldest school and the oldest street; and we visited them all. 

The site of Ponce de Leon's Fountain of Youth is an archeological park where they have found the walls of the first city.  The native inhabitants were the Timucuan Indians but, unfortunately there are no more of them living.

More modern history includes the fact that Henry Flagler (co-founder of Standard Oil with John D. Rockefeller) made it the winter home of the "rich and famous" in the late 1800's by building 3 hotels to house his millionaire friends during the cold winter months.  One remains a hotel, one is the Lightner Museum and one now houses Flagler College. He also built the Memorial Presbyterian Church as a memorial to his daughter who died as a result of childbirth.  The family is interred in the crypt.

OUR GUIDE GARY

SAINT AUGUSTINE LIGHT HOUSE

REPLICA OF A SPANISH GALLEON

RIPLEY'S BELIEVE IT OR NOT

SITE OF THE FIRST CATHOLIC MASS IN THE NEW WORLD

A CHAPEL ON THE MISSION GROUNDS

CAN YOU SEE THE GHOST AND WHO DOES IT LOOK LIKE

ALL SPANISH CITIES HAVE A PLAZA

MEMORIAL PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH

LISTENING TO THE DOCENT IN THE CHURCH

ENTRANCE TO THE FLAGLER FAMILY CRIPT

THE CASTILLO DE SAN MARCOS

THE FORT AT SAINT AUGUSTINE (CASTILLO DE SAN MARCOS)

ST. GEORGE ST (THE OLDEST STREET)

RAY TAKING A BREATHER

BOB TAUGHT HERE. YES HE IS THAT OLD

SITE OF THE FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH

KATHY GETTING THAT FOUNTAIN OF YOUTH WATER. DOES SHE REALLY NEED IT

A NATIVE AMERICAN (TIMUCUAN) DEMONSTRATION

AT THE LIGHTNER MUSEUM

THE OLDEST HOUSE