CODA BAHAMAS BOUND 2024-2025 (50)

 CODA : Day 2 in Saint Augustine

16 November 2024

St. Augustine Municipal Mooring Field (Menendez), St. Augustine, Florida  

This turtle catches the spirit of St. Augustine (taken at local gallery).

Marc-  Today was a day to relax and explore the city.  The first order of business was learning to summon and take the free shuttle (otherwise known as a free launch) to the marina central dock.  It runs every two hours starting at 10:00 but only if you make a request via VHF radio on channel 71.  The Spanish architecture in the place is very enchanting (seen nowhere else in Florida to this degree).  The San Marcos Castle guarding the harbor has never been defeated in battle and is still standing.  The Colonial City Hall also remains and many other Spanish period buildings. Others like the Ponce de Leon Hotel, the Casa Monica and The Flagler College building are Spanish inspired architecture of a more modern era.  

We walked a bit around town and then headed off to get groceries and then back to Coda for lunch.  Later we strolled around the waterfront taking in the Christmas decor that will be in full bloom here in a few days when they turn on over 1 million lights for the Holiday season.  We attended Mass at the Spanish Cathedral.  The interior is fascinating and the priest's sermon was definitely Dominican.  He explained in no uncertain terms that the Bible is not to be taken literally but rather symbolically.  He did have to deal with the apocalyptic teachings of Saint Marc's Gospel.   

I made a new friend today when coming ashore.

Part of Flagler College.

Part of the Ponce de Leon Hotel.

View of the Cathedral bell tower and City buildings from the Marina.

Commercial fishing is still big here.

There are a lot of National Park places in Florida.

It's Christmastime in the City.

Twilight fast approaching.

View from our AIS App.  Can you find Coda?  And the Castillo San Marcos?

The Menendez Mooring Field.

Unbelievable colors.

Sunset has arrived.

Lou- The roof of the church was bright red and painted with gold stars. Very cool! 

The Mass put me in a meditative headspace. It's nice just to sit quietly with other people.

The priest was young and charismatic, robed in vibrant pine green vestments. I wonder how he came to be a priest. As a kid, all the priests I saw were much older. My favorite was Father Bob who was good at connecting the readings to real life. The priest today was trying to do that, and did a pretty good job, but it felt a little forced. Like when a student writes an essay, and it's well written and the argument's ok, but you get a sense the writer hasn't convinced themself. The heart and the conviction isn't quite there. But the essay's still pretty good.

That said, it must be hard coming up with a new sermon every week! Especially when you're just starting out. 

We had to sneak out during communion and sprint back through the city to catch the last boat shuttle back home to Coda! The shuttle's great, but if you miss the last one at 6, you're stuck on land all night! Unless a boater at the dinghy dock takes pity on you. "I've heard all sorts of sob stories," the mustachioed shuttle captain told us with a grin. He's great, by the way, and seems to enjoy gossip, though he keeps it very professional.

Mostly today we ran around getting supplies. I really enjoyed this one marine supply store called Sailor's Exchange!

Dad was a bit disappointed because he didn't find the water pump he wanted and he found things were a bit overpriced, but he told me last time he went there he found great stuff and was able to haggle! Apparently, if you show off your boating know-how they give you a deal. (Dad got 40% off.)

Dad says it also helps to look like a boater, so he made sure to wear a polo from Point Bay Marina.

I ran around like a kid in a candy shop, taking photos. Everything looked like treasure! It reminded me of walking around the workshop in my grandparents' basement as a kid, ogling all the pieces of wood and little metal bits and bobs, feeling the power of all the possibilities in those materials.

I'd definitely love to come back to St. Augustine sometime! I'd enjoy just a day of walking around the streets aimlessly. There's a good vibe and a lot more to discover!

But alas, we've gotta go! Until next time, twinkling tourist dream!

A shelf at Sailor's Exchange.

A huge bin of metal bits and bobs.

People really seem to enjoy digging through this stuff...  like looking for some hidden treasure.