A Moonlight Christmas Stroll in St. Augustine: Part I

It's Outdoor Wednesday again at Susan's blog, A Southern Daydreamer , and I thought I would take this opportunity to take you on Part I of a moonlight stroll in St. Augustine. For those of you who don't know and for those of you who do, I have a little friend visiting me from England who has traveled all across the United States. Her name is Stella, and she is a female version of Flat Stanley. You can trust me when I tell you that there is nothing FLAT about Stella's personality (more on that later)...



Since she is now so well-traveled, she was just dying to take a little stroll to see some of the lights in St. Augustine. But before we even left the house, she became intrigued with this Colonial Candle Lantern and candle I won in a drawing from every one's favorite tablescaper, Susan of Between Naps on the Porch. Thanks, Susan! :-) As you can see, the candle lantern goes perfectly in its new home...



So Stella and I hung the lighted lantern outside on the shepherd's crook [for picture purposes only ;-0], and it held up well in the windy night...



Then we set out on our tour...



Be sure to watch your step. It's dark out here, and Stella is going to run back and blow out the candle to be safe...



Stella had heard about all the bed and breakfasts in town and wanted to see how they decorate for Christmas. We checked out the trees at the Kenwood Inn, one of the oldest inns in the city (operating as such since the 1800's)...



Stella really wanted that pink Christmas ornament as a souvenir of her travels, but I convinced her not to "borrow" it...



Across the street, Stella was attracted by this famous gate that lots of artists have painted and where brides and models are sometimes photographed...



We were headed down this way next where you can see the lights downtown...



But Stella got the bright idea she was going to knock on this door...



So we hightailed it a few streets over to seek sanctuary at the convent's O'Reilly House, parts of which are even older than the "oldest house"...



Here's a view down the street with Stella...



And another view further down the street... with... er, uh, I mean without.... oh, Stelllllllaaaaaa, where are yoooouuuuu???



Whew! Here she is at the gate of the Casa de Solana, another inn...



She wanted to be sure and show her mother the Union Jack in the background, flying from the balcony...



Thank goodness for some lights. These were blinking on a fence...



And you can see their reflection in this shop window across the street...



This shop's windows were brightly lit...



And look! Here's a painting of the scene down the street from where Stella just posed in front of that gate...



This was a fun pottery gallery with a video in the window...



And the same for this leather shop which has been going strong for about fifty years...



Here are some icy blues...




And a little red berry Christmas tree with a fat gold bird to the left. Stella loved him...



And some red birds, too...



And here are some teapots ready to be painted...



And some St. Augustine honey for sale...



But we couldn't leave this area without visiting the shop window we love to stalk, and Stella was crazy about this necklace and belt...



Move over here, Stella, and let's get your picture...



Well, would you look at that! It's a tree frog who is doing some window shopping of her own...



And it looks like she has her eye on this...



Stella and I don't blame her one bit! As a matter of fact, when it's daylight hours, I might tell Santa to pay the shop a visit if the tree frog doesn't tell him first. That's a very shiny object, indeed, and their prices are good. Besides, I think Miss Tree Frog would look simply stunning in that pin/pendant...



It's late so we're calling it a day. I hope you enjoyed this part of the tour and will come back to see the "Nights of Lights" display among other things. Stella and I enjoyed having you with us, and I hope you will join her as she visits Lisa and other Florida friends along the way. You can follow her from sidebar links on her mother's blog, The Cross Stitch House. You can get there by clicking HERE .



In the mean time, please join sweet Susan and all of her friends for more Outdoor Wednesday posts by clicking right HERE .



Happy Outdoor Wednesday! I look forward to seeing you soon!

Warmly,

Mrs. Magpie and Stella :-) :-)

P.S. If you or someone you know are on Facebook, PLEASE go vote for Susan (Between Naps on the Porch) to win this tablescape competition. You can get there by clicking HERE ! Thank you so much for helping her win! You're the best!