The Fountain of Youth in St. Augustine, Florida

Today we headed toward the oldest continuously occupied European-established city in the United States, St. Augustine, Florida.

This city is the home of Ponce de Leon's famed Fountain of Youth.

After leaving office as first governor of Puerto Rico, Juan Ponce de Leon discovered Florida while searching for the famous healing waters in 1513.

This animated globe stands two stories tall and illustrates the discovery of The New World.

The Planetarium at The Fountain of Youth lets you view the night sky as the discoverers of America did more than 500 years ago.

Marlon grins and bears it as he samples water from The Fountain of Youth on a good day when the smell of sulfur is not so bad.

Timucuan Indian remains have been found on site at The Fountain of Youth park. The item below was a smoker used by Timucaun Indians to not only smoke meats, but also to smoke enemies' scalps for preservation as trophies.

In the 14th century, peacock such as this were only owned by the rich and powerful. This one was wandering freely through the grounds at The Fountain, enjoying its retirement from NBC.

No, this is NOT The Fountain of Youth. The Fountain is now actually an underground spring.

For more pictures of The Fountain of Youth, click HERE pictures 1-63.

To be continued...

Ormond Beach & Daytona Beach Pt 3

For lunch in Daytona, we headed to Cruisin' Cafe on Atlantic Avenue. This restaurant is a museum of Daytona 500 artifacts.

Retired race cars have been converted to big booths for your dining pleasure.

Many different companies are represented on the signs and race gear. Doug's mom, Jean, worked at one such company-Exide Batteries.

Marlon takes a break and enjoys a drink before eating his soon-to-be-delivered steak sandwich.

Each booth features a different driver...ours featured Bobby Allison.

The bar area features hundreds of pictures of the Daytona of yesteryear.

Here's a picture from 1905 of a classic car owned by a Vanderbilt...a 90 hp Mercedes.

In the '50s the Daytona races were run partially on the beach and featured stock cars racing 200 miles.

Lifeguard headquarters on Daytona Beach

For several hours while we there, lifeguards and other rescue workers combed the water for a missing 19 year old.

Daytona Pier features a skyride out over the water.

Doug and Marlene got a chance to do a little surfing.

We just happened to visit Daytona on the night of the 2nd Annual Bayou Boil festival with crawfish galore (as the sign says).

We passed on the crawfish galore, but thought this little puppy looked kind of cool.

This beach rescue vehicle is built on a golf cart chassis.

This monument memoralizes the motorcycle racing on Daytona Beach which took place from the '30s to the '60s.

The amphitheatre located on the Daytona Beach Boardwalk was built by the WPA (Work Progress Administration) in 1938 entirely of coquina rock quarried from the Atlantic Ocean.

Similar to crop circles, these writings left by aliens can often be found in the sands around Daytona Beach and the world.

Just before dusk birds take over the beach after a long tiring day of flying.

A video of many of our sights in Ormond Beach and Daytona Beach can be viewed below.
For more pictures of our time here, go to http://public.fotki.com/Marlonfleenor/1/2008/april/ormond-beach-and-da/ pictures 70-134.

To be continued...

Ormond Beach & Daytona Beach Pt 2

Continuing our sightseeing in Ormond Beach, we drove the Ormond Scenic Loop. There are many of those $950,000 lots on this driving tour, most inhabited by houses such as the following.

We've seen fountains like this in Kansas City on The Country Club Plaza. We've never had one in our front yard though.

If you don't have enough land for a horse at your vacation home, you might as well have one from your favorite carousel.

We were not expecting to get culture on this driving tour...but here's some art.

This is one of many parks along the drive that provide access to The Halifax River and the Atlantic Intracoastal Waterway.

Hate it when you have to wait for one of them yachts to go by.

The dusty, narrow, washboard road to Bulow Plantation Ruins State Park is worth your time.

Someone we don't know was canoeing at Bulow Plantation Ruins State Park.

Be forewarned in Florida. Signs are aplenty warning of the vast abundance of the dreaded insect, The Tick.

There are them there ruins now...surrounded by tons of tick hiding places.

The plantation operated from 1821 to 1836 and grew sugar cane, cotton, rice and indigo. The sugar mill pictured here was the largest in eastern Florida at the time.

Marlon poses while wondering "Is that a tick I feel burrowing itself into my head?"

The plantation was attacked by the Seminole Indians during the Second Seminole War of 1836 and never recovered, with owner John Bulow moving to Paris and passing away that same year at the ripe old age of 30.

A surviving well of the Bulow Plantation...it was surprising, but Marlon wasn't thirsty enough to sample the water.

Do not drive a motorhome down this stretch of The Old Dixie Highway.

We're hungry...time to head for Daytona.

For more pictures, go to http://public.fotki.com/Marlonfleenor/1/2008/april/ormond-beach-and-da/ pictures 45-69.

To be continued...

Ormond Beach & Daytona Beach Pt 1

Time to see stuff in Ormond Beach.

Just about one block past the Granada Bridge entering Downtown Ormond Beach, you will find the Ormond Memorial Art Museum & Gardens. The Museum was closed preparing a new exhibit, but we were here for the Gardens.

After sitting next to this waterfall, Marlon soon had to find a bathroom.

This was a very tame wild alligator.

This is a rare species of turtle known as the Whale Turtle. The Whale Turtle evolved when cross breeding was attempted with the blue whale and the box turtle.

They can now be found at various lawn and garden retailers.

Sandy's Garden is a memorial to a long time friend of the museum.

The wall in Sandy's Garden.

The walking path at the Gardens.

Like a Bridge Over Turtled Waters

He's TRYING to catch that water in his mouth.

Lots of turtles just below the surface...every once in awhile a head pops out.

Leaving the gardens.

Fotunato Park is located under the Granada Bridge which heads into Downtown Ormond Beach.

Houses on the shoreline go for a pretty penny. One sign we saw proclaimed "Reduced to $950,000" or some such amount.

The rest of the sign said "120 by 300 foot lot". Yes, this was JUST a LOT.

This was a perfect place for fishing.

The park boasts the original Cupola from the Historic Ormond Hotel. What exactly IS a cupola? Look here... http://education.yahoo.com/reference/dictionary/entry/cupola .

The Ormond Hotel lured such names as the Rockefellers, Vanderbilts, Henry Ford, Will Rogers, and Al Capone.

Unfortunately, the historic structure was demolished in 1992 (only 12 years after being placed on the US National Register of Historic Places) in favor of...yes, a condo.

For more pictures, go to http://public.fotki.com/Marlonfleenor/1/2008/april/ormond-beach-and-da/ pictures 14-44.

To be continued...