A Romp in St. Augustine

We have been to St. Augustine many times for short trips, but this trip was probably the most memorable. Part of the joy came from the people we encountered, from the wait staff, concierge, docents—everyone seemed to be in a cheerful mood. And we limited our touring so that it was a relaxed and easy expedition.

The first morning, we decided to go to IHOP for breakfast, and saw a show for our efforts. We were seated by a very cheerful waitress; a few minutes later, a big fellow came rumbling in and called out to the waitress, “I thought they fired you!” She called back, “They did, but I’m just like a bad penny- I keep showing up.” Their kidding each other was so warm and friendly, and I finally looked over at the fellow and we grinned at each other. Later their conversation turned more serious, but the show was great fun.

After breakfast, we headed into old St. Augustine and found a parking lot. The lady who staffed it was, again, very friendly and was delighted to give us walking directions to the Governor’s House. (She was a little confused at first, but once she could look out and see the sea, she was fine.) Rather than buy an all-day ticket to the trolley, we decided to wander on foot, and I’m glad we did; the overcast weather kept down the temperature, and we admired the old architecture along the way.

Once we found the Governor’s House, we entered an amazing art collection. Many of the paintings were from the 1800s, and some of the frames of the art were as beautiful as the pictures. The guard, who was delightful (you knew that was coming), doubled as a docent and explained some of the more famous pictures. A major collection there had been donated by a couple from St. Augustine:

In 2020, Samuel H. and Roberta T. Vickers gifted their extensive collection of Florida-themed art to the University of Florida's Harn Museum of Art. An exhibition of selected works from that collection is on display at the Governor’s House Cultural Center and Museum at 48 King Street in St Augustine.

The items chosen for this exhibit are works of art created by artists who painted in St. Augustine during the 19th and 20th centuries. Many views are easily recognized renditions of the City Gate, the Castillo, and buildings on Aviles Street painted more than 100 years ago. In addition to the obvious landmarks, themes include St. Augustine's coastline, waterways, and courtyards. The exhibit presents a lovely visual record of St. Augustine from one century into another.

The guard/docent told us that Vickers himself had a fascinating story. He had developed a way to make asphalt and a container for shipping it that kept the asphalt soft until ready for use. He not only sold it in the U.S., but to islands nearby. Although others tried to duplicate his technique and container, no one ever did. Vickers had come by just a week ago to check on the maintenance of the collection.

Next, we came across a beautiful church called Trinity Church with two signs outside saying, “Come Visit Us!” We decided they must be speaking to us, so we went in. Two people who were members of the church were serving as docents; the gentleman approached us and warmly explained the history of the church. We were fascinated by the 28 stained glass windows, some of them produced in Europe, others by the famous Tiffany glass company. We learned that some of the windows from Europe were specifically designed to include a contemporary item that clearly could not have been from Jesus’ time: one window showed a bible; the other showed a child wearing a cross. I can’t remember the purpose of the discrepancies, but it was fascinating nonetheless. The docent told us that his brother, an Episcopal priest, decided to explore his family roots in what used to be Bavaria. He had difficulty finding the location and learned that borders had been moved after World War II. He finally found the area, and came upon a priest in this little village (300 people) who was able to show him not only the church that his family had attended, but their original home. The brother was thrilled, and I could tell our docent enjoyed telling us the story. He also told us that we picked the perfect time to visit; they had only decided recently that they’d try offering tours on Thursdays (which were still slow), and September is usually their slowest month. So we had a private tour!

Finally, we had a lovely dinner about 24 minutes from central St. Augustine. I figured out that they thought we were locals, since they didn’t ask where we were from; it looked like locals frequented the restaurant, which served wonderful Sicilian food. Yum!

There were many other enjoyable moments, too, but I just wanted to give you a taste.

I love history, and walking and learning, so St. Augustine fit the bill.

Sometimes just taking a few days for a change of scenery is just what the doctor orders.