I love the ocean. I had forgotten how much. Smell the sea and feel the sky, let your soul and spirit fly. Today I think I must have just sat and stared at the water for hours. Watching the waves crash on the sand, watching the formations of pelicans flying overhead, and later on, seeing them dive into the water, looking for dinner. It’s so beautiful here. I played in the water a little bit, but I have a real fear of going out too far and not being able to get back.
I really fell in love with St. Augustine. It’s such a beautiful city, and everyone I talk to about it seems to feel the same. I started my day with Rice Krispies for breakfast. I haven’t had them in forever, and they still have that snap, crackle and pop. They were pretty tasty. I was able to do laundry yesterday, so it was nice to have some clean clothes. Unfortunately, I’ve developed a saddle sore. No big surprise, right? I guess I’ve been incredibly lucky not to have one until now. I Googled it, and the advice is, if you get one, stop riding until it heals. That’s not an option, so I’ll just have to ride through the pain.
The Bridge of Lions in St. Augustine is a drawbridge, and as I was stopped in the middle to look at the city, a voice came over the speaker: “Your attention please! The bridge will soon be raising! Move it!” (or something to that effect...) It startled the heck out of me and gave me a small heart attack. I rode to the end, parked my bike, and then found a place to watch the bridge go up, which was cool. I looked at the plate of the car next to me, and they were from Maryland. I motioned for them to roll down their window, which they did, and we chatted about my ride through Maryland. They said riding through Bethesda is much easier on a bike than in a car. They complained about the traffic. As I was walking back to my bike, a young man looked at me with my helmet on, and said, “Hey, did you lose your bike?” I laughed and pointed and said, “No, it’s right over there.”
I rode down A1A, past my friend Doug’s apartment, and on to Crescent Beach. I considered stopping at Viola’s Restaurant for lunch, but I wasn’t really hungry yet. I missed a turn at one point, but it was no big deal. I just stayed on A1A instead, and that was fine. The weather this week has been phenomenal. I stopped for lunch just outside of Flagler Beach, at a little wine and cheese shop. I had some chicken salad and iced tea, and it was very good.
I checked in to the motel at 2:30, and was told that my room was “third from the ocean.” So cool. I went down to the beach, and found some people to hang out with. One of them was wearing a Red Sox hat! They were very sweet and left their beach chair for me to use when they left. I had taken my flip-flops off, and a big wave came and washed over them. When I looked down, one was gone. I was heartbroken. I really liked them, and I bought them in New Orleans last year. I looked all over, but couldn’t find the missing sandal. Frustrated, I gave up, packed up the chair and headed back to the stairs. My sandal was on the stairs. Someone had found it and left it there for me. Happy day.
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