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Food

Snowbirds Love to Meet, Eat and Drink!

Posted on March 2, 2018March 1, 2018 by Easin' Along

There’s a lot more to travel than just seeing the sights of new places along the road less traveled. Don’t get me wrong, I love to explore, and although I’ve been around the block a few times, I have seen far too little of this great country of ours. Hopefully, Helen (adorable wife) and I can tow Gracey through a lot more of it before we settle in at the Relief Home for Old Soldiers and Sailors.

Of the many aspects of travel that appeal to me, I would put food and drink near the top. In fact, it might be at the top if I were honest about it. I love to eat, and I love to sample great wine. Furthermore, with the explosion of craft beer in this country, there is always something new to try in every place we visit. All of the food and drink experiences we shared on our snowbird tour added greatly to this journey.

Our next stop after we departed from the Mayport Naval Station near Jacksonville was Melbourne, Florida, to spend two nights with my sister, LeAnn, and her husband, Marty. We were eager to arrive. My sister is a lot of fun, and we always have a great time together. Marty is one of the greatest guys I’ve ever met, and I enjoy his company tremendously. Also, this would give us a chance to give Gracey some downtime while we slept in a real bedroom for a change.

We arrived late in the afternoon and spent the evening catching up over a lovely dinner prepared by my sister. LeAnn and Marty own a large motorhome, so we spent much of the dinner talking RV and planning some future trips together. It wasn’t long after dinner that I took advantage of my sister’s hospitality and checked out for the night…we had a full day of driving behind us. The next evening would give us a chance to sample the local culinary offerings and libations.

Before we left for dinner, my sister took the time to pull some Spanish Moss from her Live Oak tree. We had promised to bring my mother some to use in flower decorations. There was no way my sister was going to disappoint our mother. She filled a bag with the stuff, and it traveled with us for the remainder of the trip.

Hell N’ Blazes, a craft beer pub was a great place to begin an evening of local sampling. According to Marty, this pub was growing in popularity and always providing customers with new additions to its lengthy list of craft beer choices. The waitress was very helpful in making our selections, and, being a lager fan, I came up with a four beer sampler that included such offerings as Spank Me Red, and Lights Out. Helen’s preferences tended toward the darker side and ordered a sampler that included Black Jack and Raspberry Beret. I can’t remember what LeAnn and Marty ordered, but they said they enjoyed them and they also posed for a picture with their selections.

After Hell N’ Blazes, we drove the short distance to The Dockside Grill for some seafood. This cozy restaurant seemed void of tourists and filled with local patrons which is always a good sign. Everyone was hungry and so much so that the food disappeared before I remembered to take pictures for Easin’ Along readers. I chose the special, and because it had been a popular selection for the evening, it arrived a little after the other meals. I was able to capture it on my camera. My choice was Blackened Snapper covered in a yellow pepper sauce with black beans and sweet plantains as side dishes. It was magnificent. Everyone enjoyed their meal as much as I did. We owe much to LeAnn and Marty for a splendid stop on this trip.

The next day we towed Gracey across the state to Palm Harbor, Florida. Our original reservation was for five days, but for some reason still not clear to me, two nights at Caladesi RV Park unexpectedly were canceled. Unfortunately, we could not find another place for Gracey and would leave after three nights. We still looked forward to our visit and the chance to meet up with my lifelong friend and college roommate, Jack, and his charming wife, Jewel for a day trip into the “Old Florida” town of Dunedin.

Jack and Jewell came to the campground and took a tour of Gracey (didn’t take long) before we left for Dunedin and lunch at an open-air restaurant named The Living Room. Although I would have loved to sample the wine list and the Bloody Mary offerings in The Living Room, I passed since it was still early in the day. Jack and Jewell passed as well since it was an hour drive back to their home in Clearwater. We were there for lunch only, and it was delicious.

Jack chose the winner for the day with a scrumptious looking meal of Shrimp and Grits. The accompanying picture says much about his selection. Helen selected one of the many flatbread choices and picked a Seared Yellow Tuna Flatbread Grilled with tomatoes and onions. Jewell chose an Adriatic Fig Flatbread and, as you can tell from her picture, she was very happy with her selection. I settled for a Waygu Beef slider. Everything was incredible. We took a long walk after lunch, then drove back to Gracey for an afternoon of fun conversation talking about old times. It was all too soon when Jack and Jewell had to leave.

**Lunch in The Living Room, Dunedin, FL**

As mentioned above, these stops were not for sightseeing, but more about meeting friends and family, eating local foods and consuming interesting local drink selections. I can’t think of much else I had rather do–especially when we’re just Easin’ Along.

Fun

Dear St. Augustine, Old Looks Great on You

Posted on February 23, 2018February 22, 2018 by Easin' Along

We were in the second week of our snowbird trip through Florida and Georgia. Mayport Naval Station near Jacksonville, Florida was our home for the week. The weather had improved tremendously, and we were enjoying our stay very much. Nevertheless, by the third day there, we were ready to spread out a bit. It was time for a day trip.

Helen (adorable wife) had decided that we would go to St. Augustine, about a one-hour drive south by way of highway A1A. We both had been there before to visit friends, but neither of us had spent any time touring the sights. We planned to grab a trolley and take an in-depth tour of the historical district…then eat seafood.

With the weather cooperating nicely, the drive down A1A was delightful. The ocean was in our view for a large portion of the drive and the time passed quickly. Helen spent some time on Trip Advisor as well as the AAA Guidebooks to obtain information on sights to visit, and by the time we arrived had determined that we could get a great feel for the area on the trolley tour. Soon the Castillo de San Marcos came into our view, and it was time to go exploring.

After parking Bert (Gracey’s tow vehicle) and walking a few blocks, we purchased tickets for Old Town Trolley Tours at a sidewalk booth adjacent to the trolley stop. We did not have to wait long for the trolley, but I did have time to take a few pictures of the activity in the historical district. It was busy for a mid-week day.

We boarded the trolley in the middle of the tour route and, after a few safety instructions (don’t jump out of a moving trolley) we were off. The trolley guide was an amiable sort, and it was obvious that this was not his first tour. The wind immediately picked up, and I was glad I had a jacket on. Thankfully, the sun was warm.

One thing became apparent almost immediately. St. Augustine has stunningly beautiful architecture. As the oldest continuously occupied European settlement in the United States, it’s architecture has many European influences, particularly Spanish, but also English and French. It was the French architecture that captured us first as we passed Memorial Presbyterian Church, built in 1889 by Henry Flagler, co-founder of Standard Oil and given much of the credit for the development of St. Augustine as a tourist destination.

Mr. Flagler’s contribution to the architecture of the area was evident everywhere, and one tour stop after another featured buildings commissioned by him at the turn of the 20^th century. Since I’m not an expert on architecture, I’ll let pictures, accompanied by a few words, tell the story of Flagler’s contribution.

Ponce de Leon Hotel, built in 1888 and constructed of poured concrete and coquina stone. Thomas Edison wired the hotel for electricity. The Ponce de Leon has been the home of Flagler College since 1968.

The Alcazar Hotel completed two years after the Ponce de Leon, and also built by Henry Flagler, is now the Lightner Museum.

Other architectural styles were just as impressive to this retired homebuilder, including Gonzales-Alvarez House, built in 1723 and is considered St. Augustine’s oldest house.

I loved the many Victorian homes along our route.

The oldest drug store was built in 1739 and moved several times. It is now a museum and free of charge to the public.

The Bridge of Lions, built in 1925 during the development boom, is a marvelous structure by day, but we understand that it is dazzling at night during the Night of Lights festival held each year. The picture below portrays it well.

The Bridge also leads to O’Steen’s Restaurant, a place recommended by almost everyone we spoke to about the best places to eat in St. Augustine. Once we completed our very enjoyable trolley tour, we jumped into Bert and drove across the bridge. By now, it was mid-afternoon and well past lunchtime. O’Steen’s would be both our lunch and dinner stop.

Our friends had warned us that there is always a wait regardless of the time of day, and sure enough, there was a line at three o’clock, our arrival time. Helen placed our name on the waiting list. The hostess suggested that we walk next door to the Bizzare Bazaar and browse through the flea market while we waited. A loudspeaker for the restaurant is inside in the building, and we should hear a call within fifteen minutes for seating. Readers know that flea market browsing is our thing. I purchased an old James Bond DVD for Gracey for a dollar.

O’Steen’s specialty is fried shrimp and hushpuppies, and we each ordered a dozen. We were not disappointed. The shrimp came fried in an extremely light batter without a hint of the greasy taste that some can have. The hushpuppies were large and served very hot and very good. For sides, I had green beans which were just ok, and a macaroni salad that was the best I ever had. By the time we finished this meal, we were too stuffed for dessert, but the pies served to the guests around us were very tempting. We thought about it but passed.

Before returning to Mayport, we made one stop at the Castillo de San Marcos, a fort built in 1672 by the early Spanish settlers which enabled them to hold St. Augustine for many years. The view of the river from the top of the fort was beautiful and, once again, we were impressed by the architecture. The fort is now in the hands of the National Park Service, and our National Park Senior Passes were all we needed to enter.

At the end of our walk through Castillo de San Marcos we stopped to hear a portion of the lesson given by a Park Ranger. We would have loved to hear more, but it was time to drive back to Jacksonville. Our side trip had been a success. We left comforted with the knowledge that it is still possible to grow old and look good…time to be Easin’ Along.

Fun

Easin’ Along Makes Port in Jacksonville

Posted on February 16, 2018February 15, 2018 by Easin' Along

**Mayport Naval Station, Jacksonville, FL**

After a relaxing three days in St. George Island, Easin’ Along moved our snowbird camp to Jekyll Island, Georgia for two days. At that time, we could only reserve two nights, but we had always heard that the area was a lovely place to visit so Helen (adorable wife) booked the two nights. While there, we were able to secure three more nights at a later date and returned during some great weather. We will save both visits for a later post on Easin’ Along.

Our destination after Jekyll was Pelican Roost Campground operated by Mayport Naval Station in Jacksonville, Florida. Our drive down Interstate 95 took only two hours. We arrived in mid-afternoon and were assigned a great campsite near the end of the RV Park with a great view of the bay in front of us. By walking a few steps toward the street, we could see an aircraft carrier resting alongside the harbor (above). Mayport was going to be an excellent place to spend the next five days.

On this trip, we’ve learned that snowbirds are active people and active people organize activities. The campground at Jekyll Island had plenty of events to keep campers busy, and Pelican Roost was no different. On two Saturdays each month a group of campers organizes a pancake breakfast as a way to meet and greet. Our first morning was a Saturday, and no one loves pancakes more than me so, I was all in.

The breakfast was well underway when we arrived, and the meeting room was full of chatter. Most of the campers appeared to be in our age range. I can’t recall the charge for breakfast, but it wasn’t much. I asked the lady collecting money how she used the funds, and she told me that she used it to purchase the food so that the breakfast was self-sustaining. All of the workers are volunteers.

Jeff and Barney, two brothers and Army retirees from near Buffalo, NY, always cook the pancakes. We met them shortly after we checked in. Both serve as campground hosts and helped us connect the cable TV provided by the campground to Gracey (our trailer).

I enjoyed meeting them. Jeff and Barney have spent several winters volunteering at Mayport while escaping the harsh winters back home. They make great pancakes too.

After the hearty breakfast of pancakes and bacon, Helen and I decided that we needed to stretch our legs. She did a little research in the AAA Guidebooks and learned that the Riverside Arts Market is held every Saturday near the center of town. Browsing is one of our favorite activities so, off we went.

The Riverside Market was more of an art and food market with two long rows of booths set up on a paved surface. The Market site is under a downtown bridge and was bustling with activity when we entered. Several of the vendors catered to pet owners, and dogs of every variety nosed up to the booths looking for the latest in pet treats. We have no pets, but I did purchase one treat for me…a loaf of fresh cheesy-bacon bread from one of the artisans near the end of the second row. It was a great addition to Gracey’s pantry and didn’t last long once there.

After a few days of lazy beach walks and a trip to St. Augustine (later post), I realized that we had not found a single shark’s tooth to add to our collection. It was time to correct that. The day began with a fairly dense fog, with the sun peeking through on occasion. The beach, a short walk from the campground, is very wide at low tide and somewhat deserted. Helen took the opportunity for a long walk, and I almost lost her in the fog. I, on the other hand, made finding a shark’s tooth my sole purpose. Luck was with me on this day, and after some heavy eye strain, I uncovered two inside of a pile of tiny shell fragments. On her return, Helen told me (tongue in cheek) how proud she was…it’s the little things that make life fun.

As we left the beach, we came upon several folks carrying a Pelican in a laundry basket. We had to know what was going on. The Pelican had been spotted at the water’s edge splashing wildly. A beach walker noticed that it had two broken wings and had returned to the campground to get help in rescuing the bird. Two campers came to the aid of the distressed Pelican and were on their way to leave it with a veterinarian. The Pelican sat quietly in the basket and appeared grateful.

Our time in Jacksonville ended all too soon. Pelican Roost was a great stop on our snowbird tour, but it was time to hook up Gracey and head south to Melbourne for a visit with my sister and brother-in-law. After a cold start, we were almost to the halfway point in this journey but ready to proclaim it a success. The people were friendly; the sun was warm, the pace was slow, and we’re just Easin’ Along. Retirement is the best gig going.

Note to our Military Living readers: Pelican Roost and nearby Osprey Cove campgrounds are excellent facilities and we heartily recommend them for vacationing military personnel. The well-maintained sites have full hookups for RVs, both large and small. The showers are clean, and the laundry facilities are free. We encourage you to check them out at militaryliving.com.