Under-Way In A New Year

A more blessed holiday, we've never had.  We celebrated in Ponte Vedra Florida, before the holiday, with my 92 year old father and his wife, Keith.  Still living on their own, they continue to amaze us.  We spent Christmas in New Orleans where our daughter, Ryanne, and her fiancé, Andrew, hosted us in their new home and new city.  Our son, Bobby, and Chelsea also joined us.  Truly, a holiday visit we'll always remember.  Finally, we traveled back to Annapolis for a New Years celebration with family and friends.  A glass was raised with close friends, family, Justin, our daughter in law, and two granddaughters.  The joy and warmth of these visits, should sustain us for a long time.

But, we have now returned to our voyage south.  Embarking back onboard Second Wind in Jacksonville, we steered south through Saint Augustine and now we are docked in Marineland Florida.

Saint Augustine was founded in 1565 by the Spanish. It was named "San Agustín", for the feast day the Spanish settlers celebrated when they first sighted land in Florida.  The city served as the capital of Spanish Florida for over 200 years, and remained the capital of East Florida when the territory briefly changed hands between Spain and Britain. It was designated the capital of the Florida Territory until Tallahassee was made the capital in 1824. Since the late 19th century, St. Augustine's distinct historical character has made the city a major tourist attraction.  We docked at the city marina located in the heart of the historic district, just south of the "Bridge of Lions".  Docking was complicated by some of the strongest cross currents we've had to maneuver against.  Once docked, we went ashore to walk the historic streets of the city.  We walked by the Castillo San Marco, Cathedral, Flagler College, the old city, and the numerous historic districts that surround the city.  In the evening we enjoyed the St Augustine lights, a beautiful holdover from the Christmas holiday.

Wednesday, we  again got underway. This time we headed to Marineland, Florida.  In June 1938, "Marine Studios" (the name "Marineland of Florida" would later be adopted) began operations as a film studio, including a main attraction of trained bottlenose dolphins open to the public.  With its popularity, the studio gave way to tourist marine shows, with attractions and dolphin shows expanding through the 1950s and 1960s. Both of us remember going to the shows as children and taking our children there in the 1990's.

Apparently, by 1999, when major Hurricanes impacted the coast, the infrastructure of Marineland was near collapse.  In 2003 and 2004 demolition began on the original 1938 oceanarium and the age of the original dolphin show at Marineland ended. Today the park has reopened as a hands-on educational facility.  In January 2011, Marineland was sold and it is currently being operated as a subsidiary of the Georgia Aquarium, offering several dolphin programs as well as educational programs.

We are enjoying a few days touring the facilities, hiking the adjacent nature trails, and taking advantage of the educational programs offered before we continue south again.  We also plan a short sojourn across the state to St Petersburg Florida to visit with Cece's mother for a few days.  All in all though, we are glad to be under-way again.