Picture This.

We just returned from a photo shoot at the Ponte Vedra house where we had the opportunity to work with another great photographer, Scott Smith. It is really fun to meet all of these talented artists and I can’t wait to see his work.

Frank Rodgers, the general contractor and I were editing each shot as we went along.

It’s a lot of work to try to catch every little cord that’s out of place. Frank was eagle eye!

Scott told us about Art Walk that was being held at St. Augustine that night and we had planned to go but after a 9 hour shoot I could barely drag myself to our favorite little local seafood place before I crashed. I think I mentioned Barbara Jean’s last time.

If you are ever in the Jacksonville area head over to the intercoastal waterway and check out their she crab soup and bread basket. Yum.

Enjoy a beverage as you watch the locals ski past your table.

Saturday morning we had some work to finish up in preparation for phase II but it was such a pretty day we decided to drive on over to St. Augustine and check it out and boy, am I glad we did. On the way into town we stopped for lunch at Kingfish Grill on the marina. They had some tiny little boats like the one seen behind me anchored there.

As we enjoyed our salad and grilled Mahi Mahi sandwich some real fisherman came in straight off the boat and handed our waitress their catch. That was cool. They told her exactly how they wanted it prepared and she took care of it. Now that’s service. I would go back there also.

Back on the road we passed this delightful vintage carousel that anchors the city park on our way to the historic district.

What a gorgeous little city with such a rich heritage.  The oldest European settlement in the continental  United States it received a remarkable gift when Flagler, an oil man, put his architectural stamp on her.

My mouth is still hanging open from the sight of the museum and Flagler College(where Scott went to school). Get a load of this:

We walked through the museum corridor hung dramatically with these lights to reach the college.

The courtyard was like a lush tropical island with a charming old stone footbridge.

These little- or rather, BIG -guys swam lazily underneath.

Lovely corbels supported the groin vault.

After seeing a charming train/trolley drive closely by allowing everyone an up close look at this beautiful structure I could stand it no longer. I had to get there!

The entrance gate alone is worth seeing.

Apparently you have to ride a really cool bike to go here. haha

And then… we stepped inside. This is what used to be the old Ponce de Leon hotel but is now the…ahem… girl’s dormitory. Are you even kidding me!!! Now I loved my dear old Helen Keller Hall at Auburn but this is a different level ya’ll. Of course we didn’t have to put up with tourists walking around all the time though either.

Speaking of tourist we met these interesting people reading one of the information boards. Mr Horst Jaritz and his wife Ursula are from France.

His degree is in architecture so he was as enthralled as I but he has spent his entire professional life working as an archeologist in Egypt. Wow. They were here visiting dear friends whose names we didn’t get. “Dear friends” please contact me and tell me your names. LOL I am sorry.

You leave this building through another lovely garden filled with fountains.

I so wanted to take these little guys home with me. Loved the whimsy.

Even the downspouts were jaw dropping: koi carved into terra cotta.

We were having a blast and just getting started when this happened.

As we ran for the car I snapped this “happy”. She giggled.

Bummer. The bottom absolutely fell out and we had no rain gear so there was only one thing to do but I grabbed these shots from the car on the way out of town. The downtown area feels very much like New Orleans.

This bridge takes you by the old fort on the way out of town.

We will go back! I hope you enjoyed your visit. I know I did. As we were leaving the college this was the last thing I saw and it reminded me of how blest I am to be able to share life with my best friend.

If you would like to say, “That was fun!” at the end of your project contact us at www.cindybarganier.com.