Showing posts with label Florida hotel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Florida hotel. Show all posts

Saturday, January 14, 2012

Amelia Island and Fernandina, Florida

Love this lobby shot...
The G-man & I stayed at the Hampton Inn in the 
historic downtown area of Amelia Island.





The view from our window was of the Marina
and it was pretty & serene in the 
early morning light.


Historic downtown on Amelia Island

Old train station, now the Visitor's Center.
This is where the first trains ran from
the Atlantic Ocean to the Gulf of Mexico.
The freight trains still run and the whistle
can be heard throughout the day & night.
 
Pelican resting along the marina.

Creek and greenway

Thursday morning we walked along the Egans Creek Greenway
that was opened to the public in 2001.
Amelia Island lighthouse

Along the Egans Creek Greenway
 Nestled among the trees were homes
and most had docks on the creek.


Male & female Buffleheads were swimming
about in the creek.
We also saw a Great Blue Heron, Tri-Colored Heron,
and a White Egret, but they were too far
away to get a good photo.
 The Island lighthouse in the distance.


 The G-man & I walked along the Egans Creek Greenway
and only saw two birds.
One was a Least Grebe and the other an unidentified
bird flitting around in the bushes.

 The people who live along this greenway
are very lucky.
It is beautiful and a well kept walking area.
We saw many people out for walks or jogging
and a few walking their dogs.

Sunset over harbor
I took this sunset photo from the balcony at our hotel.
Clock tower on old courthouse at sunset.
 In 2011 Fernandina, FL celebrated its bicentennial.
It was established in 1811 and is a lovely town.
We ate at the Marina Restaurant the first night
and enjoyed great seafood. This is a family owned
restaurant that has been there for 43 years.

For lunch we ate at the Happy Tomato, 
a casual outdoor cafe serving good salads & sandwiches.

We ate at Espana, a Portuguese~Spanish restaurant.
The owners closed their Miami restaurant
and moved to Amelia in 2003.
I had Paella Valencia, a combination of
seafood, chicken & Spanish sausage over rice
and the G-man had a Grouper dish that he raved about.



 There are many cute shops, bookstore, art galleries
coffee and ice cream shops, and a myriad of
fabulous restaurants.




29 South Restaurant at night, serving American cuisine.
 The windows on this restaurant just begged me
to take a photo of them.
It is just one of the lovely restaurants in the
historic part of town.

Amelia Island is definitely on my list to visit again.
There are still many things to see and explore
on the beaches and waterways.
Marina sunset

Friday, October 8, 2010

Morning Walks

Yeah, yeah, I know it's a resort and it's supposed to be pretty. Heck they charge enough, but I just couldn't help but snap some shots on my morning walks around this Sawgrass Resort in Ponte Vedra Beach. It is a magnificent setting with great oak trees, Spanish moss, lovely waterways, nice grounds, pretty birds, alligators. Of course there are alligators and I saw a couple... nothing new... where there is water many times there are 'gators.


The wife of one of my husband's friends came along on the trip and she & I ran into each other on morning. From then on we took our early morning walks together and had breakfast at a cute little cafe (Elizabeth's Cafe) near the hotel. I'm not too big on hotel dining and this was a cute little breakfast ~ lunch place frequented by regulars and visitors alike.




It turned out that Velma loves the beach too, so she & I would go for a couple of hours each day. We'd sit in the surf, walk, read, chat and just enjoy looking out at the Atlantic Ocean. It's not often that I get to spend time at the beach. Neither of our husbands particularly like the ocean so it was nice that she & I met up.



So far this place has been my favorite golfing destination. I enjoyed the golf, but most of all I enjoyed the surrounding area. There was great food, surf, birds, and sun. Thirty years ago it would have been sex, drugs and rock & roll (well not really); now it's nature, serenity, companionship... the good things in life... priceless.


Along the trail

Monday, September 13, 2010

Sparkles!!!


Sparkles in the Atrium of the
Renaissance Hotel at the
World of Golf
near St. Augustine. Florida


It just seems like a day for sparkles!