St Augustine & Disney World

Happy New Year everyone! We hope you all had a safe and happy festive season and that your 2020 is superb 😊

First things first: we bid a sad farewell to Ruby who has driven 17,524mi / 28,202km with us from California. Hertz requested us to swap her for a car with lower milage and so we now continue our road trip with Pearl, our new Chevy Equinox.

Introducing Pearl

From New York we flew back to St Augustine, Florida to see the New Year in with our friends Shawn, Mike, Sunshine and Sherman. We have had a relaxing week here soaking up Florida’s warm rays of sun, enjoying the company of good friends and seeing the sights of St Augustine.

St Augustine is the oldest continuously occupied city in the United States. Originally founded in 1565, the city served as a Spanish military outpost. This Spanish heritage is reflected in the architecture of many historic buildings in the city, making St Augustine one of the prettiest cities we have visited.

Old City Gates, constructed in 1808
Ancient City Baptist Church, completed in 1895
Flagler College
Shops along King Street
Flagler Memorial Presbyterian Church built in 1889
Flagler Memorial Presbyterian Church
Castillo de San Marcos. The fort, built by the Spanish from 1672 to 1695 to protect St. Augustine, is the largest and oldest stone masonry fort in the continental United States.
Castillo de San Marcos looks out over Matanzas Bay

We’re dedicating this next portion of the blog to the amazing Southern cuisine we have had while staying with our friends. Mike is a genius in the kitchen and we’re leaving here with a swag of new recipes to bring home. Thank you Mike and Shawn, Sunshine and Sherman for the great week we have had with you, the laughs and your generosity, and the absolute deliciousness you have shared with us.

Chuckwagon beans, slow cooked pulled pork & potato salad
Deviled eggs
Chicken and dumplings
Freshly baked cornbread
Fried pork chops with pea salad, black eyed peas and collard greens
Our Florida family: Sherman, Sunshine, Shawn, Mike and doggies Sig & Lucy
A St Augustine sunset

And so from St Augustine to Disney World which we’re fairly sure needs no introduction to anyone. We were at the Happiest Place On Earth at 7am, raring to go and ready for the day ahead. Three parks, 15 hours and 25,000 steps later, we left Disney World with tired feet, aching legs and happy hearts. Thank you Shawn and Mike for the most brilliant day as you shared your playground with us. And it was a pleasure to meet you Curt! Disney World is now firmly placed on our “places to revisit” list. Mike and Shawn, we promise it won’t be at the same pace we struck today 😂

The Star Wars Millennium Falcon – Hollywood Studios
Star Wars’ Imperial Fighter – Hollywood Studios
Slinky Dog Dash roller coaster – Hollywood Studios
Toy Story’s Woody – Hollywood Studios
Tree of Life – Animal Kingdom
The World of Avatar – Animal Kingdom
At Gorilla Falls – Animal Kingdom
The Himalayas – Animal Kingdom
Donald Duck – Magic Kingdom
Goofy – Magic Kingdom
Liberty Belle paddle steamer – Magic Kingdom
It’s A Small World – Magic Kingdom
Cinderella’s Castle – Magic Kingdom

What an amazing start to our Florida chapter! Off to Cocoa Beach and Cape Canaveral we now head 😊

P&S