TheTravelin'Joe

December is one of the coldest months to visit Florida and the weather can change seemingly every 20 minutes. It’ll be sunny and clear, then the dark clouds will drift over, rain will fall, then it’ll be sunny, then one more time, the rain will fall, this time as a heavy downpour. I’ll take it over snow any day, though. That’s why I leave Denver during the winter holidays. To escape the white stuff for ocean water and sandy beaches.

This holiday trip most of my time, as usual, was spent in Ormond Beach enjoying downtime with family, the town’s slower pace of life, and those incredible Donnie’s Donuts. Those treats are always a must. Always. But as soon as I saw a longer break in the weather, I decided to hop in the car with the family and head north to take in the sights around St. Augustine. After a quick trip to the beach, we drove downtown to explore the city’s Historic District.

The brick streets of St. Augustine’s Historic District are narrow and walkable, lined by restaurants serving up delicious Southern and Spanish fare, touristy shops, and building facades representing the height of Spanish Colonial and Spanish Renaissance Revival architecture. For three hours we walked around, taste tested local vodka, moonshine and rum at City Gate Spirits, devoured macarons at Le Macaron, and enjoyed the famous holiday lights giving the city yet another spectacular view to enjoy.

Here are a few images from my short time taking in St. Augustine. Cheers!