Wednesday, December 2, 2015

St. Augustine

After breakfast we walk to Flagler College for a tour. Flagler College is in the former Ponce De Leon Hotel, built in 1888 as a luxury hotel, built by Henry Flagler, oil magnate and railroad pioneer.
 
Flagler College

 Flagler made his fortune with John D Rockefeller and Standard Oil. He built railroads in Florida, all the way to Key West. We later walked to “Sailor's Exchange” a used marine parts store. Very entertaining place.
 
Linda finds a replacement shower nozzle, for the one I broke

Later in the afternoon we walk to Cafe Alcazar in part of the Lightner Museum. Both are housed in the historic Hotel Alcazar. The cafe is in the bottom of the largest indoor pool in the world, when the hotel was built in 1887, also by Henry Flagler. Had a fabulous lunch with a musician playing guitar. 
 
 Cafe Alcazar
 
Original Pool, 1907
We then went to the Lightner Museum an eclectic mix of turn of the century “stuff” from the Gilded Age. The hotel closed in 1932 and Chicago publisher, Otto C. Lightner bought it in 1947 to house his collection for Victorian pieces. Basically it is a huge Victorian pawn shop, pieces he bought cheaply after the 1920 stock market crash.

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