St. Augustine, America's oldest city: visions of vintage Spain lure wayfarers to northeast Florida … and don't forget the beaches - City Of The Month

Travel America, Jan-Feb, 2003 by Paul Franklin

A RAUCOUS SCREECH DREW MY ATTENTION DOWNWARD, over the railing. Far below, a flock of impossibly green wild parrots glided above the forest canopy, wheeling suddenly and settling invisibly into the tree-tops. From 165 feet above the ground, the view from the top of the St. Augustine Lighthouse reveals much about what makes this relatively undiscovered northeastern corner of Florida one of the state's most fascinating destinations.

The lighthouse stands on Anastasia Island, a strip of barrier dunes that shelters historic St. Augustine from the force of the open Atlantic. From the top, the view sweeps across the vibrant green expanse of tropical forest and fine homes, ending abruptly at the brilliant white ribbon of the island's sugar-fine sand beaches. Beyond sand and surf, the turquoise-and-sapphire-blue vastness of the Atlantic stretches to the horizon, dotted here and there with the white sails of pleasure yachts. Walking around to the other side of the lighthouse, the view reaches to the blue waters of Matanzas Bay and beyond it the red-tiled roofs of America's oldest city--that rich stew of history, charm, and Spanish soul that is St. Augustine.

Founded by Spanish adventurer and explorer Pedro Menendez de Aviles in 1565, St. Augustine has been around long enough to perfect a culture that is both richly sophisticated and deliciously laid back. This is a town where horse drawn carriages clip-clop down narrow cobbled streets--a town of graceful stucco buildings and ancient stone walls whose arched gates offer tantalizing peeks into hidden courtyards and cool, green gardens.

St. Augustine is perhaps best known as the site where, in 1513, adventurer and former Puerto Rican Governor Don Juan Ponce de Leon and his hardy crew came ashore, lured by legends of the fabled Fountain of Youth. He proclaimed a local spring to be the genuine article, and in passing, claimed the land he had discovered for Spain, naming it "La Florida," land of flowers.

Fifty-two years later, Menendez and 1,600 settlers and soldiers landed here, with the goal of claiming Florida for Spain and establishing a colony. That was 42 years before the English founded Jamestown and 55 years before the pilgrims stepped ashore at Plymouth Rock, making St. Augustine the oldest continually inhabited European settlement in North America.

Today, the town boasts more than 60 historic sites, most of which are contained in the 144 blocks of the Old City. This is a relatively compact area, perfect for exploring on foot.

A great place to begin is at the Bridge of Lions, the elegant Moorish-architecture bridge that spans Matanzas Bay between St. Augustine and Anastasia Island. The bridge, named for the large stone lions that guard each end, is one of the city's most beautiful and enduring landmarks.

From the Bridge of Lions, you can stroll along the waterfront walkway that traces the shore of Matanzas Bay. A part of the intracoastal waterway, the bay is lovely, and the benches along the waterfront offer a front-row seat for the endless parade of yachts that pass by.

At the other end of the waterfront walkway stands the massive stone Castillo de San Marcos, the impressive fortress built by the Spanish in 1672. Inside, you can explore guard rooms, powder magazines, the chapel, shot furnaces, and underground storage chambers. You can also climb the steep stairs to walk along the parapet walls where several original cannons are still mounted and get a Spanish-eye view of the channel and the town.

The fortress was vital to St. Augustine's survival in the hard early years of Florida's development. The town was attacked by the English corsair Sir Francis Drake in 1586; an attack in 1668 by pirate Captain John Davis left 60 people massacred in the streets.

But pirates were only part of the town's challenges. Disease, Indian attacks, hurricanes, and war also took their toll. In 1702, St. Augustine residents took refuge in their newly built fortress and withstood a two-month siege by troops led by Carolina Governor James Moore. In 1740 they fended off an even more determined attack by British General James Oglethorpe. But it was politics, not firepower, that finally ended the Spanish rule of Florida. In 1763, with the stroke of a pen, Spain ceded Florida to Britain in exchange for the newly conquered Havana. In 1783, Florida was returned to the Spanish, but the second period of Spanish rule lasted just 37 years. In 1823, the Spanish, unwilling to invest in Florida's defense against a land-hungry America, sold the territory to the United States and took their final leave.

Just inland from the Castillo lies the cornucopia of colorful shops, galleries, and restaurants of St. George Street, a pedestrian walkway that winds through the heart of St. Augustine's historic district. Many of the buildings date to the 17th and 18th centuries. A favorite destination on St. George Street is Spanish Quarter, a historic mini-village that presents St. Augustine as it existed 250 years ago. Costumed interpreters bring old St. Augustine to life, portraying blacksmiths, carpenters, cooks, and various villagers going about the daily business of life, circa 1740.