JOIN USAlthough it was my second visit to St Augustine, the magic still lingered. This quaint town, listed as the longest inhabited European town in Florida, USA, has much to offer. Don Pedro Menendez, a Spaniard, established this town on the seafront in 1565.
Castillo de San Marcos National Monument is the pièce de résistance of St Augustine. Spanish engineer Ignacio Daza created a simple and straightforward design for the fort. The fortress is a hollow square with diamond-shaped bastions at each corner, where huge cannons were set up.
The museum, located in the once-bombproof storeroom, depicts the various chapters of a long history of the fort. From the ramparts, one gets a glorious view of the Matanzas Bay. During any conflict the moat that surrounds the fort would be filled with seawater by opening the floodgates. On every September 30 and October 1, a small band of British army personnel in all their full regalia, dress and band, camp at the Fort and the Spanish Quarter. This tradition has continued from 1778 AD, as part of the “British Weekend”. It is a solemn occasion with trumpets sounding, the British flag hoisted on the fort’s ramparts and the army men marching briskly.
I watched the firing of cannons. Gunpowder was placed inside a cannon barrel with great care and everyone was asked to close their ears. I expected a big bang, but amusingly it ended in a whimper.
A tour of the quaint Spanish Quarter in St Augustine is an exciting experience. Some of the houses have been preserved in their original form where volunteer craftsmen work as blacksmiths, carpenters, carpet weavers, embroiderers and tailors. As you walk along the narrow streets, you feel you are walking in a Spanish village hundreds of years old. The town boasts of maintaining the oldest wooden schoolhouse built over 200 years ago, and the Gonzalez-Alvarez House, which is a national landmark built during the early 1600s.
Those who are not afraid of ghosts should take the “Ghost train adventure”, which begins at the Ripley’s Believe It or Not Museum. It is claimed that this is “the most interactive paranormal experience in St Augustine.” For a scary experience, one could undertake a walking tour with a lantern, touching the cemeteries in the town with an experienced guide narrating hair-raising stories for thrills. You may discover the town on foot, horse-drawn carriage, bus, train, motorbike or bicycle.
More than anything, us Indians will have to learn from the Americans on how they maintain heritage buildings, sites and villages. No doubt a fee is charged for seeing the facilities which are ploughed back to maintain these heritage places. Visitors too are responsible enough not to damage historical sites, or scrawl graffiti and litter. There is a festive atmosphere and a genuine attempt to bring back the sights and sounds of a bygone era.