No amount of coaxing can make my kids warm up to the idea of writing a post about this stop. St Augustine had the worst sand of any beach I have even seen, but the old city was beautiful, and the Castillo amazingly well preserved. It was well worth the 6$ it cost to visit!
The Castillo was built by the Spanish in the 1500s and was occupied in turns by the English and Americans as well, making it one of the longest used forts, rebuilt and fortified by each successive regime. There were interior and exterior walls built in star-shaped formations to allow for better protection, there was a moat, and the walls were thick and angled . We were lucky enough to see a cannon firing demonstration and dressed interpreters, and were able to visit where the soldiers slept, ate, and stored munitions. Some of the small storage spaces were damp and moldy-smelling, and more than a little creepy.
One of the things that was very noticeable was the decoration - the cannons were Italian and Spanish, and were very ornate, and the sculpting of the crest above one of the doors was well preserved.
The old city was beautiful as well, with the Spanish heritage evident in the architecture and the gardens. Well worth the visit!
