The Wandering Disciple

Our nation's oldest city, St Augustine has its fair share of haunted history. But on a sunny Wednesday afternoon it was the paranormal haunts that made St Augustine a ghost town, it was the lack of tourist and locals walking the streets as the nation practices social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic. CDC guidelines and orders from the President and Governor had people staying at home in an attempt to flatten the curve of infected patients. (Photo: March 18, 2020)

The invention of the automobile and the later invention of car camping led to an explosion of growth for the nation's oldest city. Known as tin can tourists, these campers would roll into town and live out of their campers. It popularity led to St Augustine and the rest of the state of Florida becoming the tourist hot spot it is today. (Photo: March 17, 2020)

What better way to cap off a busy day of exploring the ancient city than by taking a moonlit stroll through town. The old city takes on a new look under the light of the moon and the night lights of the city. From the brightly colored stain glass of the churches to the glowing historic structures along the historic district, the city looks much different when the sun goes down. (Photo: March 17, 2020)

Way before we had major pharmaceutical companies to mix up medicine to cure our ailments, the sick and injured required the needs of an apothecary to mix up a cure. A good example of this early art of medicine can be found at the Spanish Military Hospital Museum in St Augustine. Here you can see an 18th century apothecary and learn about how plants were used to help heal soldiers during the second Spanish occupancy of St Augustine. (Photo: March 17, 2020)

The Axis of Evil stand shoulder to shoulder across the aisle from their Allied counterparts. This isn’t a peace convention during World War II but an exhibit at the Potter’s Wax Museum in St Augustine. The nation’s oldest wax museum, Potter’s helps to bring the pages of the history book come alive with life like wax replicas of politicians, military leaders, government official, inventors, music and literary icons and even television and movie actors. There are over a hundred figures spanning the generations all on display within this historic facility. (Photo: March 17, 2020)

The Schooner Freedom sails across the Mantanzas, giving a glimpse into the past and what early St Augustine residents saw when they looked out on the harbor. The Freedom is an authentic replica of a 19th century blockade runner. The main sail rises 62 feet above the ship and helps steer the ship along the coast of the ancient city. The Freedom is the only schooner charter from Charleston to the Key and you can catch a sail on your next trip to St Augustine. (Photo: March 17, 2020)

A police officer patrols the streets of the oldest city in the United States. The St Augustine Police Department has the responsibility of protecting the city, its citizens and the rich cultural icons located with the city. It’s officers have been at the forefront of history and continue to evolve to face threats in an effort to keep the city safe. (Photo: March 17, 2020)

Come on in, do I have a deal for you. A new product that is guaranteed to fix any ailment you have and even ones you didn’t even know you had yet. Don’t you want to live your life ailment free, good so do I. How many can I get you? The fast sale pitch of the general store comes to life at the Oldest Store Museum where you turn back the clock to experience a shopping experience unlike today’s mega stores. And it gets even better when you reach the warehouse and see what goods are coming up in the early 1900’s market. (Photo: March 17, 2020)

No air conditioning, no windows to keep out critters, no indoor plumbing. This is what inmates today would consider cruel and unusual punishment as well as a violation to their civil rights. However this was life for an inmate of the old St Johns County Jail. Don’t let the mansion appearance fool you, this was far from luxurious accommodations. From working in the heat all day long to sharing a cell with over six fellow cons. In fact the 2 ½ story jail housed 72 male and 12 female inmates at once. The Old Jail remained in operation until 1953. Today you can tour the jail and see what life was like behind bars. (Photo: March 17, 2020)

The St Augustine Lighthouse shines her light over the Atlantic Ocean, lighting the way for ships out on the sea. Towering 165 feet over the water, the light from the tower can be seen up to 21 miles offshore. This is the second lighthouse built on Anastasia Island, the first suffered from beach erosion. This tower was completed in 1874 and went into service with a first order Fresnel lens. The original lens continues to light the night sky today just as it had in 1874, the only difference is the light is now automated. (Photo: March 16, 2020)

Over the course of operations of the Old Jail in St Augustine, many inmates met their death under this live oak behind the jail. Sheriff Perry had him a knack for hangings, making them public events and even scientific experiments. The gallows of the jail saw 8 hangings in an 11 year span including a triple hanging in 1912. You can hear about these hangings and those that might still be hanging around the jail during the Ghost and Gravestones Tour or if you’re not up for the ghostly tour, they offer a daytime tour that focuses more on life as an inmate. (Photo: March 16, 2020)

A male Indian Peafowl poses for a photo along the fence line at the Fountain of Youth in historic St. Augustine. The peafowl, more commonly known as the peacock, roam freely throughout the 15 acre waterfront attraction. They boast a flock of over 30 peacocks including males, hens and even white peacocks. (Photo: March 16, 2020)

A baby crocodile clings to its mama’s back as it moves across the habitat at the St. Augustine Alligator Farm Zoological Park on Anastasia Island. A mama croc can usually be seen with her young taking a ride on her back. This little guy is a baby African Slender Snouted Crocodile. The park is home to a wide variety of alligators and crocodiles. In fact, the St Augustine Alligator Farm features every living crocodilian species on Earth. (Photo: March 16, 2020)

St Augustine, Florida:   After skipping our annual road trip last year because of transitioning to a new job, I was really looking forward to this year's trip.  We had originally planned on Charleston for the trip, but we were still recovering from an extended time without pay during the transition so we decided to stay a little closer to home.  The choice for this year's trip was St Augustine. We were in St Augustine a while back but left with only scratching the surface of what the city has to offer.  So during this trip, we decided to experience more of what the Old City has and by doing this we used the Old Town Trolley and Historic Tours of America to enhance our exploration of the city. As the trip came closer, the world and the country began to spiral out of control with the COVID-19 pandemic.  Disney closed, Universal closed, Busch Gardens/Sea World closed, much of Florida and the country was closing.  We were concerned that the trip wouldn't ...

Forever resting in formation, the heroes of our nation are laid to rest and honored for their service in national cemeteries around the country.   For their bravery and sacrifice for our freedoms, these brave men and woman will forever be honored and respect both in life and after.   (Photo: November 13, 2011)

A long set of spiral stairs leads to the top of the St Augustine Lighthouse.  219 steps take visitors to the top of the 165 foot lighthouse for a panoramic view of St Augustine.  (Photo: November 13, 2011)

The last line of defense Castillo de San Marcos was one of several forts that helped protect St Augustine from enemy fighters.   The fort is the largest and oldest masonry fort in the United States and has protected the city from 1672 until 1900 under five different flags.   (Photo: November 12, 2011)

Port Royal was a wild place for visiting pirates.  This port in Jamaica was close to many of the shipping lanes and became a popular place for Pirates.  As a result, it was known for Pirate shenanigans as the swashbucklers visited port for booze and booty.  Today you can learn more about life as a pirate and Port Royal at the St Augustine Pirate and Treasure Museum.  (Photo: November 12, 2011)

Long before the Civil War era Underground Railroad, there was a slave asylum located along a salt marsh in northern Florida.  In the late 1600's, Spanish government offered asylum for slaves if they go to Florida, convert to Catholicism and four years military service for men.  As a result, Fort Mose was born.  The men that came here were the first line of defense for the Spanish city of St Augustine.  Remnants of the fort were discovered in an archaeological dig in 1986 and today the land is protected as part of the Fort Mose Historic State Park.  (Photo: November 12, 2011) 

St Augustine is known for its unique architecture and its haunted history and the Villa Zorayda has both under its roof. The palace is believed to be extremely haunted and as a result, no two windows in the building are alike. A superstition states that if the windows are all different, the spirits would not be able to find their way back into the house. Based on the haunted history of the Villa Zorayda, the theory may not be that helpful. UPDATED: I have been corrected on the history of the Villa Zorayda. The story about the haunting and window/door sizes were told on three separate tours of St Augustine both haunted history and sightseeing. Prior to writing this photo, I also did an online search as well and came across some of the same stories. However after posting the photo, the staff of the Villa Zorayda Museum reached out to correct the history and help put an end to the false history being given out by the tour guides. The architectural style of the Zorayda is based...