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Boat Trip around Hollywood Florida
Boat Trip picture 1 This is one of the boats I went on. This picture is looking north on the Intercoastal Waterway in Hollywood Florida.
Boat Trip picture 2 Manatee area
Boat Trip picture 3 the boat we had dinner on.
Boat Trip picture 4 the boat we went to the party on
Boat Trip picture 5 the boat we went to the party on
Boat Trip picture 6 Me on the boat
Boat Trip picture 7 Me on the boat
Boat Trip picture 8 Cruising down the Intercoastal Waterway toward Miami
Area Pictures around Hollywood Florida
Area Pictue 1 Looking southwest across the Intercoastal Waterway
Area Pictue 2 Looking straight west across the Intercoastal Waterway
Area Pictue 3 Looking north across the Intercoastal Waterway
Area Pictue 4 Looking north. You can see Ft. Lauderdale in the distance
Area Pictue 5 Looking west. The storm had passed us and you can still see it moving west.
Area Pictue 6 Looking south.. The storm is coming in over the ocean
Area Pictue 7 Looking down at the Intercoastal waterway.
Area Pictue 8 Looking north at the Intercoastal waterway and route A1A
Area Pictue 9 Looking west, watching the storm move through.
Atlantic Ocean views at Hollywood Florida
Ocean view picture 2 Looking southeast from the Diplomat hotel
Ocean view picture 3 Looking northeast from the Diplomat hotel
Ocean view picture 4 Jet skiers outside the Diplomat hotel
Ocean view picture 5 Looking at the Atlantic southeast from the Diplomat hotel
Ocean view picture 6 Two sailboats in the distance on a very blue Atlantic Ocean
Ocean view picture 7 Atlantic Ocean with waves coming in.
Ocean view picture 8 Looking at the Atlantic Ocean, southeast from the Westin Diplomatic hotel
Beach Hotels I've stayed at in Hollywood Florida
AngelFish Inn picture 1 This little hotel is very nice
AngleFish Inn picture 2 Very nice little place
Weston Diplomat picture 1 Beautiful building with great views from the balconys
Weston Diplomat picture 2 the convention trade show center at the Diplomat
Weston Diplomat picture 3 Looking down on the pool area and beach at the Diplomat
Westin Diplomat picture 4 Looking northeast, the pool area and the ocean at the Diplomat
Weston Diplomat picture 5 Looking off a balcony of the convention center at the Diplomat.
Westin Diplomat picture 6 More pool area at the Diplomat hotel.
Weston Diplomat picture 7 This pool at the Diplomat hotel lookedn like it was made of glass
Holidayn Inn picture 1 The courtyard at the Holiday Inn
Holiday Inn picture 2 The pool and bar at the Holiday Inn.
Holiday Inn picture 3 The beach and ocean at the Holiday Inn
Holiday Inn picture 4 The beach and ocean at the Holiday Inn
Holiday Inn picture 5 Another view of the pool at the Holiday Inn
Key West Main Page
Key West Famous Landmarks
Key West Landmark pictures 1 This beautiful and colorful Victorian mansion is the continental U.S.'s southernmost house
Key West Landmark picture 2 Truman's Little White House
Key West Landmark picture 3 Ernest Hemingway Mansion
Key West Landmark picture 4 The Key West lightouse
Key West Landmark picture 5 The beginning of Route 1
Key West Landmark picture 6 the Audubon house
Key West Landmark picture 7 Southernmost Point
Key West Landmark picture 8 Southernmost Point
Key West Landmark picture 9 Southernmost Point
Key West Landmark picture 10 Southernmost Point
Key West Waterfront and Mallory Square Sunset
Sunset at Mallory Square picture 1
Sunset at Mallory Square picture 2
Waterfront Picture 1 The docks near Mallory Square
Waterfront Picture 2 The docks near Mallory Square
Waterfront Picture 3 The docks near Mallory Square
Key West hotel picture 1 Best Western Hibiscus
Key West hotel picture 2 Best Western Hibiscus
Key West hotel picture 3 Best Western Hibiscus
Key West Chickens and Roosters
Chickens and Roosters picture 1 wandering wild chickens and roosters
Chickens and Roosters picture 2 wandering wild chickens and roosters
Chickens and Roosters picture 3 wandering wild chickens and roosters
Chickens and Roosters picture 4 wandering wild chickens and roosters
Chickens and Roosters picture 5 wandering wild chickens and roosters
Chickens and Roosters picture 6 wandering wild chickens and roosters
Ernest Hemingway's Key West Home
Hemingway Home Picture 1 The beautiful Hemingway mansion side view
Hemingway Home Picture 2 The beautiful Hemingway mansion side view
Hemingway Home Picture 3 The beautiful Hemingway mansion front and side view
Hemingway Home Picture 4 The beautiful Hemingway mansion front view
Hemingway Home Picture 5 The beautiful Hemingway mansion back view
Inside Ernest Hemingway's Home in Key West Florida
Interior Views Hemingway Picture 1 A few of the many collections of pictures and memorys that fill the Hemingway mansion
Interior Views Hemingway Picture 2 Various portraits of Hemingway throughout his life
Interior Views Hemingway Picture 3 Hemingway and some of his friends
Interior Views Hemingway Picture 4 inside one of the first floor rooms
Interior Views Hemingway Picture 5 One of the chandeliers
Interior Views Hemingway Picture 6 Hemingway's bed
Interior Views Hemingway Picture 7 The infamous "wall of wives"
Interior Views Hemingway Picture 8 The typewriter and desk Heminway used
Interior Views Hemingway Picture 9 The hallway in Hemingway's private apartment
Interior Views Hemingway Picture 10 Hemingway's private apartment
Outside Ernest Hemingway's Home in Key West Florida
Exterior Views Hemingway Picture 1 Second floor porch at the back of Hemingway's house
Exterior Views Hemingway Picture 2 View of the gardens from the second floor balcony
Exterior Views Hemingway Picture 3 Looking down into the back yard
Exterior Views Hemingway Picture 4 View of the lighthouse from the second floor porch
Exterior Views Hemingway Picture 5 view from the second floor balcony
Exterior Views Hemingway Picture 6 tree that Hemingway planted the day he moved into the house
Exterior Views Hemingway Picture 7 secluded areas on the grounds of Hemingway's house
Exterior Views Hemingway Picture 8 swiming pool at the back of Hemingway's house
Ernest Hemingway's Six Toed Cats
Hemingway Cats picture 1 One of the 61 cats that live at the Hemingway home museum
Hemingway Cats picture 2 One of the 61 cats that live at the Hemingway home museum
Hemingway Cats picture 3 One of the 61 cats that live at the Hemingway home museum
Hemingway Cats picture 4 One of the 61 cats that live at the Hemingway home museum
Hemingway Cats picture 5 One of the 61 cats that live at the Hemingway home museum
Sanibel Island Florida
Sanibel Island picture 1 me testing the gulf water on Sanibel Island
Sanibel Island picture 2 me on the beach on the east side of Sanibel Island
Sanibel Island picture 3 View of a bird on the beach at the gulf
Sanibel Island picture 4 View of the beach at the gulf side of Sanibel Island
Sanibel Island Ding Darling Wildlife Refuge Pictures
Ding Darling Wildlife Refuge picture 1 mangrove trees
Ding Darling Wildlife Refuge picture 2 a lookout point at Ding Darling Wildlife Refuge
Ding Darling Wildlife Refuge picture 3 Small "islands" of mangrove trees
Ding Darling Wildlife Refuge picture 4 close up of a small island of mangrove trees
Ding Darling Wildlife Refuge picture 5 Seedling Mangrove trees
Ding Darling Wildlife Refuge picture 6 Close up of the Mangrove tree roots
Ding Darling Wildlife Refuge picture 7 Mangrove trees in a swampy area
Ding Darling Wildlife Refuge picture 8 We spotted this White Ibis
Ding Darling Wildlife Refuge picture 9 closer picture of the White Ibis
Ding Darling Wildlife Refuge picture 10 great bird watching
Ding Darling Wildlife Refuge picture 11 close up of a bird among the mangrove trees
Ding Darling Wildlife Refuge picture 12 bird among the mangrove roots
Ding Darling Wildlife Refuge picture 13 huge creepy spider
Ding Darling Wildlife Refuge picture 14 We found this alligator slithering along off the side of the road
St. Augustine
Main Page
Tolomato Cemetery St. Augustine
Historic Tolomato Cemetery picture 1 Sign with some of the history of the Tolomato Cemetery
Historic Tolomato Cemetery picture 2 The Tolomato Indians had their town on the space that is the cemetery. Their burial ground is where the old town of St. Augustine was built. You can take the ghost tour and find out all about the supernatural happenings around this ancient cemetery.
Historic Tolomato Cemetery picture 3 Tolomato cemetery is one seriously creepy place. I was there in the middle of the day and it gave me shivers... I can not imagine going there at night on one of the ghost tours.
Historic Tolomato Cemetery picture 4When the Tolomato Indians left, the cemetery was started on top of the land that was their home, and historic old St. Augustine was built on their burial grounds.
Historic Tolomato Cemetery picture 5You will hear about many hauntings on the ghost tours, supernatural occurances seem to happen in most buildings and old homes in the historic district.
Historic Tolomato Cemetery picture 6 The first bishop of St. Augustine, Augustin Verot (d. 1876), is buried in the mortuary chapel at the rear of the cemetery
Historic Tolomato Cemetery picture 7View inside the reportedly haunted Tolomato Cemetery. Tolomato Cemetery in St Augustine Florida is one of the oldest cemeteries in Florida
Historic Tolomato Cemetery picture 8During the First Spanish Period, prior to 1763, this site was occupied by the Christian Indian village of Tolomato, with its chapel and burying ground served by Franciscan missionaries
Historic Tolomato Cemetery picture 9The Tolomato Indians had their town on the space that is the cemetery. Their burial ground is where the old town of St. Augustine was built. You can take the ghost tour and find out all about the supernatural happenings around this ancient cemetery.
Historic Tolomato Cemetery picture 10Tolomato cemetery is one seriously creepy place. I was there in the middle of the day and it gave me shivers... I can not imagine going there at night on one of the ghost tours.
Historic Tolomato Cemetery picture 11When the Tolomato Indians left, the cemetery was started on top of the land that was their home, and historic old St. Augustine was built on their burial grounds.
Historic Tolomato Cemetery picture 12You will hear about many hauntings on the ghost tours, supernatural occurances seem to happen in most buildings and old homes in the historic district.
Historic Tolomato Cemetery picture 13There have been many reported sightings of a child playing around a large old tree in the Tolomato cemetary and quite a few pictures can be found on the net of energy orbs, hovering over the cemetery at night
Landmarks and Places to see in St. Augustine
Old St. Augustine picture 1 Walking down the street in old St. Augustine. There is so much to see here, the oldest schoolhouse, lots of shops, the oldest drugstore. Be sure to walk through the old city streets on your trip.
Old St. Augustine picture 2 The Oldest Schoolhouse. Originally, the building was a small homestead belonging to Juan Genoply. Juan Genoply later married and the house became a school, so he added an extra room. The schoolmaster lived upstairs with his family and used the first floor as a classroom. Boys and girls shared the same classroom. The house first appears on St. Augustine's tax rolls in 1716, but it was constructed before then. The building has seen very little changes in the past two hundred years. By examining its construction, you can see how buildings were made in America's colonies. The chains around the house were put there in the 1930's to help prevent the house from blowing away in a hurricane.
Old St. Augustine picture 3 The Alcazar Hotel was built in 1887 in the Spanish Renaissance style, by railroad magnate Henry M. Flagler. It was eventually bought by the city and made into the Lightner Museum and the City Hall.
Old St. Augustine picture 4 The four-story Alcazar, costing about half what the Ponce de Leon did, was smaller and a bit less lavish. Nonetheless it was still a grand hotel. Flagler called it superior. Perhaps the Alcazar's most famous feature was the then world's largest indoor swimming pool. You can still see the once world's-largest indoor swimming pool. But its days of glory are gone. A mini-mall of antique shops sits — literally — in the empty pool. You reach the shops, which line the basin's sides, via concrete stairs at each corner — the same stairs that once led bathers into the water. A small cafe occupies the deep end.
Old St. Augustine picture 5 In December 1885, Flagler broke ground on the Ponce de Leon Hotel, designed to be the equal of any in the world. He vowed to spare no expense in building the hotel. When the Ponce de Leon opened in January 1888 its guests lavished in the newest and the best. The hotel's four-story-high walls were made with the latest in construction techniques — poured concrete
Old St. Augustine picture 6 Although electricity was not widespread, guests enjoyed electric lights powered by four of Thomas Edison's direct current dynamos. It even had steam heat, which was seldom seen in Florida. The boasted furnishings in each room costing a minimum of $1,000. Tiffany designed some of the furnishings, including stained-glass windows. Guests also had the luxury of private baths and toilets. The city's Ponce de Leon Hotel outclassed such famed hostelries as the Palmer House in Chicago and San Francisco's Palace. In 1968, Flagler College, a four-year liberal arts institution, moved into the old Ponce de Leon.
Old St. Augustine picture 7 The beautiful Presbyterian Church was built just under a year and is still used today. Flagler Memorial Presbyterian Church offers a classic example of the Venetian Renaissance style. The building, designed and built in memory of Flagler's daughter, Jennie Louise, who died in 1889. The remains of Flagler and his first wife, Mary, lie beside those of his daughter in a mausoleum within the church. The copper dome of the building, modeled after St. Mark's Cathedral in Venice, reaches some 150 feet into the air. Elaborate capitols of old gold and white terra cotta decorate the base of the dome.
Old St. Augustine picture 8 The Cathedral-Basilica of St. Augustine was founded in 1565. Heavily influenced by Spanish architecture, the Cathedral has seen more than its share of destruction in the form of fires and dilapidation through many years or service, but has been restored to retain the original Spanish flavor. One mile away from the Cathedral, a small but historic chapel marks the site where in 1565, Don Pedro landed and had his Chaplain perform the first Catholic service in North America.
Old St. Augustine picture 9 The Fountain of Youth National Archaeological Park in St. Augustine is the site where Spanish conquistadors first came ashore in what is now the continental United States. On April 3, 1513, in the season of "Pascua Florida" - as Easter Season is known in Spanish (meaning Feast of Flowers) - Ponce de Leon expedition sighted land in the present locality of St. Augustine and named it La Florida.
Old St. Augustine picture 10 1904 - Discovery of the Ponce de Leon recording landmark and accompanying artifacts Dr. Louella Day MacConnell. 1934 - The Smithsonian Institute of Washington DC under the direction of the ethnology department Chief Dr. Matthew Stirling, uncovers the first Christian Indain burials in North America Mission Period interments. 1952 - Three Doctoral candidates supervised by Dr. J. Goggin archaeology department dean, University of Florida uncover additional Christian Indian burials plus Timucuan Indian home/hut foundations and relics. 1976 - Foundations and artifcacts indicate Timucuan Indian occupation for 1000 plus years prior to the Ponce de Leon landing. 1985 - Positive evidence that part of the first sexteenth century (1565 - 1599) Pedro Menendex Spanish Colony occupied this and other portions of the park. The 1976 and 1985 excavations were under the professional guidance of Dr Kathleen Deagan, curator of arachaeology and chairperson, the Florida State Museum University of Florida
Old St. Augustine picture 11 Drawing showing the way the defense gates worked.
Old St. Augustine picture 12 The gate was built in 1739, providing the only access through the defense line. In 1808, the pillars were added
Old St. Augustine picture 13 On the far north end of town you will find the Mission de Nombres De Dios - This Mission, overlooking the intracoastal waterway, was founded in 1565 and is possibly the first permanent mission in the U.S. A 208 Ft. cross stands here and is visible to ships, day and night.
Old St. Augustine picture 14 On this site, September 8, 1565, Pedo Menendez d Avilies landed with a band of settlers to found St. Augustine, first permanent Christian settlement in the United States. Father Francisco Lopez de Mendoza Grajales, Spankish diocesan Priest, offered here the first Mass in the Nations's first parish. The Spanish pioneers named this landing site Nombre de Dios - Name of God - and founded here the first Mission in the United States.
Lighthouse on Anastasia Island St. Augustine Florida
Bridge of Lions picture 1 Crossing the Bridge of Lions into St. Augustine from Anastasia Island
Matanzas Bay and River picture 2 Matanzas Bay and River looking toward the Bridge of Lions St. Augustine
Matanzas Bay and River picture 3 Matanzas Bay and River next to the Castillo de San Marcos National Monument St. Augustine
Lighthouse on Anastasia Island picture 4 While on Anastasia Island there is an interesting site well worth visiting, the St. Augustine Lighthouse & Museum. This is a working lighthouse that serves the nation's oldest port.
Lighthouse on Anastasia Island picture 5 Lighthouse Park is located on the northern tip of Anastasia Island, just inside the limits of the City of St. Augustine, Florida. The northern tip of Anastasia Island has been closely associated with the defense and maritime history of St. Augustine since the 16th century.
Lighthouse on Anastasia Island picture 6 During the late 16th century a Spanish sentry tower was located in the vicinity of Lighthouse Park. From the wooden tower Spanish lookouts observed Spanish shipping and any water borne threats to the security of St. Augustine. From this vantage point, they spotted the approach of English privateers, commanded by Sir Francis Drake, who attacked and burned St. Augustine in 1586.
Lighthouse on Anastasia Island picture 7 In order to allow mariners to establish their location during the day, every lighthouse has unique colors and patterns. St. Augustine's “daymark” is black and white spiral stripes with a red lantern. The lighthouse rises 165 feet above sea level.
Lighthouse on Anastasia Island picture 8 St Augustine Lighthouse Station on Anastasia Island
Lighthouse on Anastasia Island picture 9 In 1824, an old Spanish watchtower in St. Augustine became Florida's first lighthouse with Juan Andreau, a Minorcan, as the first lightkeeper. Originally, the lighthouse used Winslow Lewis Argand lamps for illumination. The US government improved the light's quality by installing a 4th order Fresnel lens in 1855. This light could be seen much farther than the old lamps.
Lighthouse on Anastasia Island picture 10 In the late 1860s, the US government determined that the encroaching ocean was threatening the foundation of the light station. By 1870, the old tower and keeper's quarters were no longer adequate. A new light station was needed. On October 15, 1874, the keeper extinguished the light in the old lighthouse for the last time. Keepers continued to live in the old quarters until 1876 when they moved to the new light station. Just four years later the old lighthouse crashed into the sea.
Lighthouse on Anastasia Island picture 11 This lighthouse is on the National Register Listing. The present tower was first lighted in 1846. It is operated by the Florida Park Service. There is a museum and gift shop that are handicapped accessible. To reach the top of this 167 ft. structure, you have to climb 219 steps.
Lighthouse on Anastasia Island picture 1 Plaque at the Lighthouse
Castillo de San Marcos National Monument St. Augustine
Historic Fort Castillo de San Marcos picture 1 - Walking up toward the fort. The bay and the bridge of lions is just to the right of the picture.
Historic Fort Castillo de San Marcos picture 2 - The Bastion San Pedro overlooks the city of Saint Augustine. From this bastion you can also see the cubo line, which was a kind of wall made from palm trees. The cubo line also helped to protect the city.
Historic Fort Castillo de San Marcos picture 3 - Flag and battlements at the fort
Historic Fort Castillo de San Marcos picture 4 - The watchtower, or guardpost, on the Bastion San Carlos is called the San Marcos tower. You can no longer go up into the San Marcos tower, but you can go inside and look up.
Historic Fort Castillo de San Marcos picture 5 - From the watchtower, or guardpost, you can see the Bridge of Lions, which connects the mainland with Anastasia Island.
Historic Fort Castillo de San Marcos picture 6 - At one time, the Castillo was entirely surrounded by a moat. The water within the moat came from the bay through gates. In the 1840s the moat along the side of the Castillo facing the ocean was filled in. On the filled-in moat American soldiers placed cannons that could fire hot cannonballs at attacking ships. The moat was shallow and it could be drained at low tide. After draining, it was used to house livestock when the town was under attack.
Historic Fort Castillo de San Marcos picture 7 - Another bridge that conects inside the fort.
Historic Fort Castillo de San Marcos picture 8 - At one time, the Castillo was entirely surrounded by a moat. The water within the moat came from the bay through gates. In the 1840s the moat along the side of the Castillo facing the ocean was filled in. On the filled-in moat American soldiers placed cannons that could fire hot cannonballs at attacking ships. The moat was shallow and it could be drained at low tide. After draining, it was used to house livestock when the town was under attack.
Historic Fort Castillo de San Marcos picture 9 - Stone walls inside the fort. The Castillo is built of large blocks of a kind of rock called coquina (koh KEE nuh). Coquina was cut in a quarry on nearby Anastasia Island and taken by raft across Matanzas Bay to the site of the Castillo. Coquina was ideal in one way for a fort--when cannonballs hit, the walls were not broken, but only dented. This happened because coquina is very porous, or full of tiny holes. These holes, however, caused a problem. They let water pass through the walls, making many of the rooms in the Castillo damp. This was bad for soldiers, bad for food, and bad for gunpowder. To solve this problem, the outside of the fort was painted. The paint kept out much of the moisture. Being white, the paint also made the Castillo easier for ships to see.
Historic Fort Castillo de San Marcos picture 10 - Walking around on the top level of the fort. The fort is the oldest masonary fortification in the continental United States
Historic Fort Castillo de San Marcos picture 11 - The Castillo is built of large blocks of a kind of rock called coquina (koh KEE nuh). Coquina was cut in a quarry on nearby Anastasia Island and taken by raft across Matanzas Bay to the site of the Castillo. Coquina was ideal in one way for a fort--when cannonballs hit, the walls were not broken, but only dented. This happened because coquina is very porous, or full of tiny holes. These holes, however, caused a problem. They let water pass through the walls, making many of the rooms in the Castillo damp. This was bad for soldiers, bad for food, and bad for gunpowder. To solve this problem, the outside of the fort was painted. The paint kept out much of the moisture. Being white, the paint also made the Castillo easier for ships to see.
Historic Fort Castillo de San Marcos picture 12 - Here you are looking through the front gate of the Castillo. The gate is in the south wall of the fort. The gate is separated from the ravelin by a drawbridge which was raised when the fort was under attack
Historic Fort Castillo de San Marcos picture 13 - If you were to turn around once you entered the Castillo, you would see a very sturdy wooden grate that slides to shut off this area from the drawbridge. This grate slid closed behind the drawbridge. If attackers managed to get past the drawbridge, this wooden grate, which is reinforced with iron straps, would provide another way to prevent entrance. It would give defenders a better chance against any enemy trying to enter.
Historic Fort Castillo de San Marcos picture 14 - Here you are within the sally port of the Castillo de San Marcos. On either side of this entrance are doors leading to living quarters for guards and officers. From here you get your first look inside the fort.
Historic Fort Castillo de San Marcos picture 15 - These stairs lead up to the terreplein, or gundeck, of the Castillo. The purpose of the hole in the archway that supports the stairs may have been to let light through to the rooms below. Also located under these stairs were the "necessaries", or bathrooms that people in the Castillo would use.
Historic Fort Castillo de San Marcos picture 16 - Inside the fort looking up at the walls.
Historic Fort Castillo de San Marcos picture 17 - This terreplein connects the Bastion San Pablo to the Bastion San Carlos, or St. Charles's Bastion. On this terreplein are several interesting guns that are similar to cannons
Historic Fort Castillo de San Marcos picture 18 - This is the Bastion San Agustín or Saint Augustine Bastion, at the southeast corner of the Castillo. Here you are looking along the terreplein from Bastion San Agustín to Bastion San Pedro, or St. Peter's Bastion. The terreplein is also called the gundeck because the large guns that defended the Castillo were placed there
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