My Summer Vacation

I don't take many vacations, but when I do have the time one of my favorite cities to visit is St. Augustine, which is where we went this week.

Founded back in 1565 by a Spanish admiral who would become Florida's first governor, St. Augustine is pretty ancient (as far as US cities go, anyway.) The architecture of the many churches in the city, like the poured concrete structure of Grace United Methodist church, built by Henry Flagler, is unusual and often stunning.

We had dinner at my favorite restaurant, The Colombia, which is basically heaven for anyone who likes Spanish cuisine.

It's definitely a touristy town, but still lovely, with countless little alleyways and gorgeous spots.

You can see most of the old town in a day on foot, or take a trolley ride around to look at the historic buildings.

Not a bad way to spend a day with the family. :)

Comments

Maria Zannini said…

Greg was born in Florida and went to university there, but he took me there only once on what was probably the rainiest week in history. But I've always wanted to visit St. Augustine. Someday.

July 20, 2023 at 7:05 PM

Holiday Prep

For Thanksgiving this year we've invited some guests from Oliver's mom's side of the family, so I have to start prepping now to get the house in shape for the big day. The first major thing is having the carpets cleaned, which we've scheduled for next week. This weekend I'll be cleaning out four rooms to get them ready for that. I started with my front dining room, which I use as my sewing room. It was kind of a mess already, so it felt good to get everything cleared out. We'll be having ten people at dinner plus two babies, so this will give me a chance to figure out how to arrange two tables in this space. I think this will be my last time hosting a big Thanksgiving gathering. Mike has started his family with a lovely girl who has a huge, close-knit family of her own, while Katherine will likely be off at grad school out of state for the next several years. I'm also not getting any younger. My guy and I will always celebrate Thanksgiving, but ...

T-minus Day

This was our little Thanksgiving dinner last year, when it was just the three of us. Time keeps whittling down my favorite holiday; this year it will be just me and my guy, and we likely won't even have a turkey.* That will be a first in 35 years. I feel about Thanksgiving the way other people do about Christmas, and while it's a lot of work it's my favorite holiday. Of all the Thanksgivings I've had in the past sixty years, only three were truly terrible: one when I was a kid that I don't talk about (#1 most miserable); the time I roasted two turkeys together and hosted fifteen people whom I cooked for and served with zero help (the largest and #2 most miserable); and the one I spent in basic training (the #3 most miserable.) I have no pictures of any of those, thank heavens. In addition to doing all the cooking I'm the one who takes all the pictures, washes all the dishes and puts away all the leftovers. I suppose no one else cares because to them it...

Fell Off the Wagon

I did cut up that plastic dollar tote to make into something stronger, but got caught up with work and set it aside. Then last night some hand-dyed silk and pretty threads called my name, and, well . . . Felt SO good to do some handwork, except my neck began hurting about an hour into it. I tried changing the way I sit and work, but it's pretty obvious that the doc is right.

Valerean

Search This Blog