Two Big Kids, One Old City
A Re-Exploration of St. Augustine, Florida
I still remember the first and only time I spent time in St. Augustine. I was still young, I couldn’t have been more than eight years old. My mom, sister, brother and I spent a weekend there and it was truly a treat, since growing up family vacations were far and few between.
This time around my experience was much more “grown up.” A quiet dinner at a nice Mexican restaurant replaced with a four o’clock happy hour and a trip to Ripley’s Believe It or Not! replaced with a visit to the locals at the Elk’s Lodge.
Rob, a tag-a-long traveler, and I arrived at the Pirate Haus Hostel early in the day, with a few hours to relax and prepare to explore the tourist filled streets of the nation’s oldest city. Being from Florida, I’m familiar with the daunting task of navigating tourist traps. I knew I needed to conserve my energy.
We made our way down St. George Street, a walkable street with shops and restaurants. With a quick stop to satisfy Rob’s sweet tooth, we continued onto St. Castillo Drive, another large street that runs through St. Augustine, making our way back towards the hostel.
The walk didn’t take more than 30 minutes and was the perfect length to pass time. It was now happy hour at The Chianti Room, a pizzeria located next to our hostel. Quite possibly one of the best happy hours I’ve been to, their special was BOGO everything alcoholic. Literally, anything. I ordered a pitcher of beer and since Rob wasn’t a fan of beer, that meant two pitchers of beer ALL TO MYSELF for a whopping total of $13!
About a quarter of the way through my second pitcher, I was hurting. Luckily, Cory, the guy who checked us in at the hostel, was walking across the street on his way to the store. I flagged him down and convinced him to help me finish.
While we tackled the happiest hour I’ve ever been to, Cory offered a bunch of advice on where to visit during our upcoming night out. By time we were done with our drinks, we had convinced him to join us on our adventure.
Unlike most American Legions, the one in St. Augustine is open to the public. After visiting, I wish they all were. That place was awesome. Cheap booze, great food, and bar games. What else could you want?
We played pool with a few other bar patrons, one couple from Miami and another from about 20 minutes outside of St. Augustine. Games were won and lost on both sides, and a good time was had by all.
After a few rounds, both in pool and on our tabs, the two couples were off to a dance club and Cory back to the hostel. Rob and I didn’t share the same interests, so we decided to take another walk down St. George Street. We had no intentions of finding anything to do, rather we were interested in seeing a boardwalk littered with people during the day as a ghost town at night.
Lo and behold, we found St. George Tavern. A bar claiming to be the oldest bar in St. Augustine. Being “old” in St. Augustine seems to be quite the accomplishment.
With an 11:00 AM checkout and few hours of driving required the next day, we finished our nightcaps and turned in for the night.
All-in-all, I’d have to say I enjoyed myself in St. Augustine just as much as a big kid as I did when I was a little kid.
