Day 333 - In St. Augustine, FL

     

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    		The motor yacht "Integrity" The Loop

    Day 333 - Saturday, March 25th: This morning we took a tour of Flagler College.  This is a liberal arts college named for the famous Henry Flagler of railroad fame. Flagler was one of the twenty richest men in the world during his lifetime.

    Flagler built the Ponce de Leon Hotel and spared no expense.  He invited the rich and famous from all over the world to come to the hotel and stay for about $90 per night (early 1900s dollars).  Trouble was, you had to pay for the entire three-month season -- $8,100 total.

    After the Great Depression, the hotel fell on hard times and was eventually turned into Flagler College.  The building is perfectly elegant and was built with all the modern conveniences - even electric lights that Thomas Edison engineered.

    The main building is huge; this is the courtyard:

    This fountain is designed to look like a sword stuck in the pool:

    There are two towers like this one.  They were originally cisterns and held 80,000 gallons of water.  It was smelly sulphur water that the guests complained about, so Flagler built a pipeline and had sweeter water piped in:

    The carvings and other adornments are amazing.  The main entrance is a good example of the ornate structure:

    There are many inlaid mosaics throughout the building:

    This is the floor in the main foyer:

    This cast three-shell doorknob was used on all the doors as a signature item:

    This is the 60-foot high dome in the foyer:

    More scenes around the foyer…

    The famous Tiffany Company made the windows in the ballroom/dining room.  They are appraised at $80 million and are protected from the outside by bulletproof glass.  Sorry the pictures are too dark:

    The elegance continues with the hand-carved dining chairs:

    Flagler complimented his friend Tiffany by using Tiffany blue highlights throughout the building; this elaborate ceiling is one example:

    The woodcarvings added a texture and warmth to the huge room:

    The ladies' sitting room is even more elegant.  There is more Tiffany blue accenting the crystal chandelier:

    The fireplace is carved marble with the "day clock" mounted in the center.  The clock is about 2½ feet in diameter.

    The clock face incorporates the largest single piece of alabaster in the world, according to the tour guide.  The clock no longer works, but repairing it would require breaking the alabaster:

    After the tour of the college, we walked along historic St. George Street.  This street has been turned into a pedestrian mall and is lined with a mix of shops and restaurants.  Ruth's favorite was a restaurant/bakery called "The Bunnery."  They had giant yummy cinnamon rolls.

    Supper tonight was a Looper potluck hosted by Lola and Larry aboard Lola Marie.

Position tonight: N29 53.519 W081 18.561

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