Personal Blog
Five Points is a small “vintage” neighborhood of Jacksonville, with its distinctive restaurants and boutiques. It is also in Five Points that I usually refill with original cards for my special one.
You can find a list of the shops here.
The shop 5 Points Antiques is quite fun:
You can also take a break and observe the squirrels (they are all over Jacksonville!) at Riverside Park.
The Cummer Museum (see previous article) is located near this neighborhood.
Two weeks ago I went with my family visit the Kennedy Space Center, we spent the day there but left before the closing down because of a long way back home but I think that by staying there from 9 am to 6 pm there is possibility to almost do/see everything.
We did not take the tour bus and even though I saw everywhere that it is absolutely recommended, as it drops you off at the Apollo/Saturn V Center, where you can apparently witness the launch of Apollo or touch a real piece of moonstone . The center is not accessible in any other way and so it is the only thing we didn’t see.
After your bus tour, take a tour at Nature and Technology and in the Rocket Garden, guided tours are organized throughout the day.
We then went to see a movie at IMAX Theaters, “A Beautiful Planet”, narrated by Jennifer Lawrence, which shows the daily life of astronauts in the space station as well as images of Earth they capture and the events they attend. It was beautiful and very informative, one of my favorite moments of the day.
Space Shuttle Atlantis.
You can then do a take-off simulation: Shuttle Launch Experience®.
Several animations and exhibitions are to be seen everywhere.
In the last room there are also several simulators and the “Forever Remembered” booth, in memory of the astronauts who were killed in the Challenger (1986) and Colombia (2003), with some of their favorite personal items.
Astronaut encounter, a little movie commented by the astronaut present that day to share his experience and his anecdotes. Possibility to ask him questions and have a photo taken with him at the end. We met John Blaha.
Journey To Mars: Explorers Wanted, a short film/live presentation about NASA’s current events and its interactive exhibits.
Great (and huge) souvenirs shop, “Space Shop”, where I bought a nice mug to my special one and one for myself.
This is kind of a stupid post, but I can not help but share my little crush for this movie theater. In theory this is a big complex and yet our room was like that:
Ok we went to see a more “confidential” movie (Love & Friendship) than the big hits of the moment but I believe that even if the other rooms are bigger they have the same comfort.
It is like in Denmark now, we have to choose a numbered seat at the counter (although obviously there would not have been any big problem if we didn’t respect it).
And, icing on the cake, under my amazed provincial eyes – who had not set foot in the cinema for a year:
❤️
And that detail in the restroom 😄
I finally had the opportunity to spend two (separate) days in Saint Augustine, a charming town 45 minutes/one hour drive from Jacksonville, full of attractions and activities, I will have to go back to see some more thoroughly. It was impossible to see everything in two afternoons, so due to lack of time, I just walked around in the center and went to some touristic places without making a complete visit.
I went to/by:
– The Great Cross
(208 feet high!)
– Castillo de San Marcos / Colonial Quarter
We even saw dolphins, but sorry I couldn’t take a better picture.
– St. George Street
the street you’ll find most of the shops
– and the surrounding alleys / Old St. Augustine Village
I still have to see: the Old Jail, the Fountain of Youth, the Lighthouse & Maritime Museum, Ghost and Vampire Tours…
I went back to Cummer Museum (with my mother but it was her first time of course) and good plan, as a student (officially, I’m not anymore, but my card is valid until 2017!) my entry was free.
Every Tuesday evening (16h-21h), the entry is also free for all.
As we arrived in the morning at the museum and we wanted to embark on a late afternoon shopping in San Marco, we had lunch at the museum café (open all day but closes one hour before the museum itself) and truthfully, I still drool over thinking about this salad. I think it was all in the seasoning but we absolutely enjoyed it – this is also why my plate is already well underway on the photo, I forgot and I rarely am so thrown on a plate!
And this time I saw the gardens! They were closed when I came at night in December. It’s beautiful! At the edge of the river… I want a garden like that one day (well except that I will live in a rotten shack in the forest in the mountains with my husband but it’s not the subject).
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