MANILA, Philippines - In an ironic twist that could perhaps only happen in America, the country?s oldest city once dangled the tantalizing possibility of keeping its future inhabitants forever young. And we?re not referring to Los Angeles, home to countless ?nip/tuck? clinics that cater to America?s rich and famous as well as the infamous.

Long before the likes of New York, Boston, Baltimore and Philadelphia became beacons of civilization in the New World, St. Augustine, a city in the northeastern coast of Florida, has been quietly carving out its place in American history since 1565 under a succession of colonial rulers, wars, calamities and epidemics.

Due to its storied past, it?s not surprising to see traces of various influences today?from Spanish quarters to Victorian-inspired houses, from Catholic icons to Protestant symbols?in what is otherwise a relatively small and scenic city that once enjoyed the distinction of being America?s winter playground for the wealthy set during the turn of the 20th century.

St. Augustine?s reputation as a ?Newport of the south? was further bolstered when railroad baron Henry Flagler developed the city?s railroad system, eventually connecting it to more populous and established cities in the north during the dying days of the 19th century.

In the city?s heyday, it wasn?t surprising to bump into politicians, tycoons, heirs and celebrities of the day playing the role of winter birds hibernating from violent and unfashionable snowstorms in the Midwest and East Coast.

Alas, with the advent of the jet age and the growth of such cities as Orlando, Fort Lauderdale, Miami and Key West further down south as well as the year-round availability of cruises to Mexico and the Caribbean, St. Augustine eventually lost its premier position as one of America?s favorite winter havens.

Perfect foil

Remnants of its previous life can still be seen in a number of mansions and palatial hotels (pre-Marriott and -Holiday Inn chains, take note) that have been converted to museums, commercial spaces, government offices and even schools.

The huge Flagler Hotel, for instance, once owned by Flagler himself, is now a liberal arts college that still carries the tycoon?s name. A number of buildings and houses that line major thoroughfares and even obscure roads have either been preserved or rebuilt, many of them following the Spanish Colonial Revival style.

Despite the change in its fortunes, however, the city has managed to remain a favorite tourist destination among Americans not only in the winter months. Indeed, apart from the city?s colorful history, its idyllic charms provide a perfect foil and much-needed break to the frenetic kitsch being offered by nearby Orlando (almost two hours away by car) and its numerous theme parks.

And if you dig deeper into history books, St. Augustine?s checkered past is far richer and more interesting than most American cities. And owing to its Spanish heritage, it also offers striking similarities to a walled city in the Far East that was once dubbed the most beautiful in Asia.

Of course, who hasn?t heard about famed Spanish conquistador Ponce de Leon and his legendary search for the so-called ?Fountain of Youth?? According to popular lore, the supposed elixir of life had sent De Leon scurrying from Puerto Rico, where he was then the governor, to St. Augustine to reestablish Spain?s presence there.

Decades earlier, his compatriot, the Spanish admiral Pedro Menendez de Aviles founded a settlement in a sleepy coastal area facing the Atlantic. Since he sighted land on Aug. 28, feast day of St. Augustine of Hippo, he decided to name the place San Agustin and promptly claimed it for the Spanish crown.

Well, for all we know, De Leon?s search for the legendary fountain might have been metaphorical since Spain was then duking it out with England for dominion over a vast territory that literally comprised half the globe.

By being the first colonial power to establish a foothold in what would later be known as the United States, Spain was able to infuse a sense of vigor and vibrancy to its fledgling campaign. But as history later showed, it was almost as fleeting as the magnolia blossoms that line St. Augustine?s inner streets today.

But such was St. Augustine?s strategic importance that the British, despite having established themselves in the East Coast (indeed, one can never have enough), tried in vain to snatch the remote city in the south, not once but twice, from the clutches of the Spaniards sometime in the 17th century.

Well, if it worked in Manila and in other Spanish outposts, it also worked in St. Augustine. Although the British managed to burn the city to the ground, its government and a considerable number of inhabitants remained unscathed as they holed themselves up in Castillo de San Marco, a stone fortress similar to Intramuros.

What the Brits failed to take by force, they finally managed to get through a treaty. In fact, another treaty also crafted in Paris saw St. Augustine reverting back to the Spaniards sometime in the 18th century.

By then, the city, as far as Spain was concerned, had started to lose its strategic importance. By the 19th century, the once mighty ?Mistress of the Sea? handed St. Augustine and the rest of Florida without having to fire a single shot to an emerging power called the United States.

Historic stops

For a time, Florida, like Puerto Rico and Guam today, was a mere United States territory until it became a full-fledged state of the Union in 1845.

But unlike De Leon, you don?t have to search far and wide in your quest for the Fountain of Youth.
It?s actually one of 20 stops in a ?hop-on, hop-off? tour of the city conducted by the Ripley?s Sightseeing Train Tours. (A rival company that calls itself Old Town Trolley also offers similar tours.)

The one-hour train-without-tracks trip is one of the best ways to see the city for tourists in a hurry. Apart from the scenery and the amusing trivia and snippets of history provided by its ?engineer,? the ride allows guests ($19 per adult, $6 per child) to get off at certain stops they wish to explore further.

When they?re through exploring, say, the Ripley?s Believe or Not Museum, passengers can simply wait at a designated stop until the next train comes along and continue with the tour. Trains ply the scenic route from 9 a.m.-5 p.m.

Since we took the last train of the day, we had no time to linger at any of the stops. But we were told that the area surrounding the supposed Fountain of Youth was once a farm planted to oranges. Early settlers may have eventually succumbed to old age, but at least they probably didn?t catch colds easily.

Other noteworthy stops along the way are, of course, the Castillo San Marco (later renamed Fort Marion); Alligator Farm (although our Congress offers one as well); Lightner Museum (formerly Hotel Alcazar); Zorayda Castle; Cathedral of St. Augustine; St. George Street; Mission de Nombre de Dios (where the tallest stainless-steel cross in the Western Hemisphere is erected); and Our Lady of La Leche Shrine.

Although the St. Augustine Lighthouse and Museum isn?t part of the trip, it pays to make a stop at the historic site first before exploring the rest of the city.

But things don?t grind to a halt in the city after dark. In fact, a different, otherworldly kind of journey is offered by Ripley?s Ghost Trains ($24 per adult, $6 per child).

In lieu of the ubiquitous red-and-black locomotive that chugs along the city?s streets during the day, an all-black, hearse-like behemoth peopled with characters in eerie makeup and ratty Victorian costumes take over.

Stops include cemeteries, haunted houses, alleys and corners where supposed vibrations are at its ?highest and most palpable.?

Who knows? On a clear night in St. Augustine, one might even get a fleeting glimpse of the ghost of Ponce de Leon still in search of the elusive Fountain of Youth. Not even LA or the Big Apple could top that.