The Melting Pot of St George Island Florida

Another weekend and another adventure. This one close to home but in a more northern direction from the usual jaunt to St Augustine. And yet St George Island has just as much history as St. Augustine with rich relics of the native population that inhabited the area and numerous tales of the back and forth ownership between the Spanish, French and British. Couple that with a roaring 20's seaside resort and you have the makings of a really good story. As always, click each photo for a better view.

Nothing embodies St George Island more than the Ribault Club which was a high end resort during the 20's and is now a cultural center for the island. It is on the same stretch of the island as the Kingsley Plantation and has a great view of the inlet.

Entering the main building, you are instantly transported back in time to the era of flappers and grand parties. I could imagine young people back then sitting in these chairs listening to music or some radio program.

Or this long hall, it must have all kinds of stories to tell about conversations that occurred leading to the ball room at the end. One can just imagine great parties and flappers in this corridor.

I could not resist taking a picture of these dark golden chairs that seemed to occupy a special place in the hall. There was something old and beautiful about them in that spot.

The major difference between this region and St Augustine is its emphasis on the native population that inhabited the area along with the British,French, and Spanish. One whole side of the resort is dedicated to the island's ever changing history...

and how the club came to be named Ribault.

The beauty of the place truly amazes you and has numerous spots for you to stop and just take it all in. There is a plaque tribute to a local environmentalist that sits at the base of this oak tree. The tribute invites you to take a moment, sit down on the bench and soak in the calm of the area.

And finally, this little church caught my eye on the drive out. It is a classic example of Carpenter Gothic (steep gable roof, narrow rectangle shape, pointed windows and bell tower) which used local materials and was the preferred form of construction in the area after the civil war until 1924.

But, it is only once you walk a little around the side that you realize just how narrow the church actually is.

And there you have it... St. George Island and the Ribault Club!

Washington D.C. in the Summer

Alex had some personal business to conduct with the Russian Consulate in Washington DC and we decided to make a vacation of the trip. Alex hates to fly so the drive there became and adventure in itself.

We experienced over 200 miles of road sign teasing to stop at what Alex described as the poor man's Universal Studios at the border between North and South Carolina. No joke, these guys have spent a small fortune on road signs to catch some of the traffic up and down the I-95 corridor from Florida to Canada.

Finally upon our arrival in the Nation's Capital we ran into this sight. We never were able to find out the name of the building, but it was truly a sight as it suddenly appeared like a magical castle on the skyline. If anyone from that area knows what it is please comment and tell me because it is beautiful!

Our bicycles came in handy as we set out to do a little sightseeing. There is a good deal of distance between things and the bikes made covering that distance a snap. First stop was the Lincoln Memorial. Just outside was a policeman checking anyone with bags of bulky equipment. what should have been frightening became exciting to watch as the officer offered encouragement to the sniffer dog (that was huge I might add) who seemed more than eager to perform his mission.

After that excitement came the actual Memorial. What struck me was that people from every nation you could imagine seemed to be drawn to the monument. There was a cacophony of languages that seemed to rise through the air.

And then simply turn around and there before you is the Washington Monument and behind that the Capital! It truly is an amazing sight.

















Further down The Mall, as this section is called, is the World War II Memorial which lists the dead from the Atlantic and Pacific campaigns. It is a very solemn kind of place that gently forces one to stop and reflect.










We could not resist the American History Museum of the Smithsonian. But I will admit that getting across the street was a major undertaking. And, we barely escaped getting a huge parking ticket after we abandoned our bikes and tried to park near the location. There was so much to see and I had my heart set on seeing Indiana Jones' hat, whip and jacket. But, it was not meant to be on this trip.










Oh yes, I almost forgot... the Russian Consulate. I wonder if Putin is behind those walls?

My Cherrie amor...

So much has been going on lately that Alex and I decided to take a trip to our favorite place, the San Sebastian Winery in St Augustine, to just enjoy the atmosphere and see what new wines they had in store. As always click each photo for a better view.

It was your usual wonderful Florida day filled with flowers despite the heat.

I love San Sebastian Winery because they change the tours as they introduce new wines so each trip is an adventure.

It also changes with each tour guide because different guides decide to highlight different aspects of the wine production process. This time we got Mike who was a wealth of information in addition to being a fun guy!

I say that because he seemed almost as happy to pour for the tasting as we were to drink. And later when Alex decided to buy a few new bottles, the glow of the last few drops caused me to begin singing "My Cherie Amor" to cast my vote for some of their great Sherry. Alex made his purchase and pushed me into the upstairs restaurant to get a little food and let the tasting wear off.

We later rode our bikes into St. Augusting proper and stopped by the Visitors Center, a place we have passed a million times but never entered. We found out what we had been missing was considerable.

And then Alex caught sight of this little scooter shop.

He settled on this three wheel job and we spent an hour spinning around the City with Alex returning the favor and singing "My Cherrie Amor" with each turn of a corner.

What a guy and what a day!

Give Yourself a Break

Lately it has been one of those instances of “Be careful what you wish for” in that I have landed a number of speaking engagements as far away as Atlanta, done a few stress reduction seminars, and gotten new clients. In other words I have really been busy. And then it came to me that I have been pushing myself and it is OK to exchange some of my rushing here and there for simply giving myself a break.

One thing I hope my previous posts have served to point out is taking a break does not have to involve great expense, long distances, or great planning (despite what planaholic Alex has to say). I hope they have demonstrated that your city or town has something interesting to explore if you would simply take the time to wander around a little to find it.

That said, last weekend to get away from the heat Alex and I threw some food in a cooler and headed for the beach with a little bucket to collect shells (I know Chrissy has now gotten very interested…) and I am including pictures of my haul. Alex likes perfect shells and shapes but I like bits and pieces if they are interesting. As always, feel free to click each photo for a better view.

This first group is pretty eclectic. The only thing they have in common is the lines running through each one. Strange but they remind me of miniature versions of cut away sides of mountains in Colorado.

This next group I simply liked the colors running through each one. They make you wonder how the whole shell looked and maybe what was in it. What is not readily apparent is how each one has been smoothed by sun and surf to make the colors more brilliant.

This final group fits into the perfect shell category. Each one is whole and complete and you can enjoy their features while wondering what might have been growing inside.

From Sprockets to Rockets

I recently had to come out of the closet to my readers and admit that I am a bicycle nut. There is something about wheels turning and the feel of the wind in your face that has always excited and caused me to expand my ownership of different bicycles. It extends from this high end Cannondale that for me means strictly business, Tour De France kind of speed;

to the middle of the road, ride anywhere mountain bike;



and finally to the just for fun work-horse cruiser that was recently stolen:

It was during my search online for parts to replace the stolen cruiser that I stumbled upon this wonderful video on the history of bicycles or From Sprockets to Rockets.