Wednesday, July 19, 2006

Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida






After spending two nights in St. Augustine, it was off to Ponte Vedra Beach which is in the same county but just a little up the road. It is pretty much a golf resort community and the hotel I stayed at, the Marriott Sawgrass, boasts 2 championship golf courses. The PGA headquarters is also here. The hotel was really nice, set among lots of trees and lagoons, with turtles, fish and birds in abundance. We were treated to a full-body massage at their brand new spa which was great. But the best part was the last morning, the whole team of writers got to go kayaking on the river. It was simply beautiful and now I have caught the bug of soft adventure travel.

Saturday, July 15, 2006

St. Augustine, Florida






So I went to St. Augustine, Florida on July 10 for a press trip. It is considered the oldest city in America pre-dating Jamestown by more than 40 years. It is was a Spanish settlement with a lot of history, much of it bloody and violent. But yet there remains a certain charm and beauty to this place that is rarely seen in America. Many of the buildings are centuries old or restored to their original glory so that the downtown historic district has the feel of a Spanish harbor town of the 17th century.
My hotel the Casa Monica was a designed in a Mediterranean revival style that was simply gorgeous. Here are some pics of the sights of St. Augustine.

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