November 2023
Where We Stayed: Hampton Inn & Suites St. Augustine-Vilano Beach
- My best friend, Bethany, had her 40th birthday celebration in St. Augustine, Florida.
- St. Augustine’s major claim-to-fame is that it is the oldest city in the United States, founded in 1565.
- We really only had a day to spend in St. Augustine, but it was really quaint and charming.
- We drove from Orlando to St. Augustine, stopping at a Buc-ee’s along the way. Our first Buc-ee’s experience! I absolutely LOVED it. If WalMart, Homegoods, and Kwik Trip had a baby, it would be Buc-ee’s. 10/10, would recommend.
- Upon arrival in St. Augustine, we went to a local bakery to pick up the cake I had ordered for Bethany. Then we went to their Airbnb to say hi! It was so good to see all of her Maine friends – many of which I had met on previous trips to visit. Sigh… friends are the best.
- Mike and I went to check in at our hotel (Hampton Inn) and then walked around the beach and downtown St. Augustine for a bit.
- Bethany’s party was sweet – fish tacos, swimming, a How Well Do You Know Bethany trivia game, etc. And her theme was the Golden Girls! We all had so much fun.
- Before we knew it, it was time to pack up and head back to Wisconsin. Before we left on Sunday morning, we stopped at the Fountain of Youth — another one of St. Augustine’s claims to fame. It was everything you would expect: a total tourist trap. But we had fun with it!
We stopped to see this Greetings From mural before we left Orlando!
Behold, the Buc-ee’s!
At the bakery to get the cake!
She’s so pretty!
Mike going to great lengths to make the 4 and 0 stay together!
The cake needed a dozen Roses though, don’t you think?
Dan had Bethany’s face photoshopped as Rose!
Our birthday girl who we love so much!
The beach!
My favorite Blanche quote from the Golden Girls
Downtown St. Augustine
The cutest little pink house.
Back to the party!
Walking around early the next morning.
Needed a photo of my Loungefly for this portion of the trip. Let me tell you… the Loungefly rabbit hole is fierce. You fall fast and hard.
There it is. THE fountain.
Learned about blacksmithing, which was really interesting.
Mike, who is genuinely afraid of birds, was not loving ALL THE BIRDS.
Starbucks at the Orlando airport.
The caffeine-free Southwest plane! ;) Really it’s the “Desert Gold” plane – a rarity in their fleet and in honor of Herbert Kelleher, one of the co-founders of Southwest. It was fun to spot this plane in the wild!