I write from my deathbed in Havana, Cuba, where I lie fatally wounded. I know my days on this earth are numbered, as I have been hit in the shoulder with a poisonous arrow. The Calusa Indians attacked my fellow colonists and I, was hit in the middle of the chaos. It turns out I was one of the lucky ones, as many of my men received a worse fate. The physicians are doing all that’s in their power, but the future looks grim. Although I have experienced many dangers over the years, I am afraid that last weeks adventure was the most dangerous risk of them all, and I am unfortunately going to suffer the consequences. Over the years, I have witnessed the dangers of exploration. From my first exploration with Christopher Columbus to my last this past year, I have experienced many horrible nights on the sea. The Atlantic Ocean shows us no mercy, and many lives were lost as a result. Also, the terrible disease known as scurvy took the lives of many of my faithful crew. The life of a sailor is dangerous, but others and I accepted the challenge. When looking back at why I decided to explore, I don’t regret a thing, yet it seems like such a long time ago that I was a young lad, hardened from my battle experiences in fighting the moors and baffled that I was really accompanying the esteemed Christopher Columbus on his journey to the West Indies. Some desired the free shelter and pay of the sailor life. I however, desired glory for my efforts, and desired to be remembered as Juan Ponce de Leon, Governor of San Juan and great explorer of Spain. As I write this, I feel the end coming. I am proud of my accomplishments, and die a happy man. Much has happened since by birth 61 years ago. I have learned and achieved much more than anybody imagined possible from a wealthy boy of Santervas de Campos. Nevertheless, I plan on setting sail in a few weeks for a man with no goals is no man at all.
July 6th 1521
I write from my deathbed in Havana, Cuba, where I lie fatally wounded. I know my days on this earth are numbered, as I have been hit in the shoulder with a poisonous arrow. The Calusa Indians attacked my fellow colonists and I, was hit in the middle of the chaos. It turns out I was one of the lucky ones, as many of my men received a worse fate. The physicians are doing all that’s in their power, but the future looks grim. Although I have experienced many dangers over the years, I am afraid that last weeks adventure was the most dangerous risk of them all, and I am unfortunately going to suffer the consequences. Over the years, I have witnessed the dangers of exploration. From my first exploration with Christopher Columbus to my last this past year, I have experienced many horrible nights on the sea. The Atlantic Ocean shows us no mercy, and many lives were lost as a result. Also, the terrible disease known as scurvy took the lives of many of my faithful crew. The life of a sailor is dangerous, but others and I accepted the challenge. When looking back at why I decided to explore, I don’t regret a thing, yet it seems like such a long time ago that I was a young lad, hardened from my battle experiences in fighting the moors and baffled that I was really accompanying the esteemed Christopher Columbus on his journey to the West Indies. Some desired the free shelter and pay of the sailor life. I however, desired glory for my efforts, and desired to be remembered as Juan Ponce de Leon, Governor of San Juan and great explorer of Spain. As I write this, I feel the end coming. I am proud of my accomplishments, and die a happy man. Much has happened since by birth 61 years ago. I have learned and achieved much more than anybody imagined possible from a wealthy boy of Santervas de Campos. Nevertheless, I plan on setting sail in a few weeks for a man with no goals is no man at all.
February 12, 1521
I have been at sea for a few days now, searching for this so called “fountain of youth”, and frankly, the mere idea of such a powerful force is mouth watering. The simple idea that I may never grow old, that I can live far all eternity in my present form, that I will never be subdued by the limitations of morality, it is all almost too much to bear. Not only will I myself benefit, but just the honor that Spain shall receive through this will be so immense, and that in turn will possibly lead King Ferdinand to increase my own honor, and maybe give me an even higher position of power. I may need such a supernatural force to even complete my work, for I feel it will take an eternity to do all that is asked of me. But, after all this is done with, it will all be worth it for I will be able to retire from this straining business and spend the rest of my life with my loving family, which I miss dearly.
May 16, 1514
Throughout all of my journeys so far, there has been one constant that cannot be dismissed, and is the on factor which people use to achieve their goals and, ironically, is the basis of what they achieve in those goals; and that is obviously money. With my first few voyages, particularly going with Christopher Columbus and funding my journey to Puerto Rico, the wealthy King Ferdinand took care of all of the vast expenses, in the belief that at the end of the day he would profit. Not only would
April 19, 1513
I have had many exciting adventures while I prowled the ravenous seas surrounding this new land, but none of the stories that will be told of my journey can match the things I have experienced and seen here. The various animals that I have encountered interest me greatly, such as many alligators and crocodiles that practically frighten me as much as they intrigue me. There are not just large beasts such as these, but also various little critters that scatter the beautiful landscape, which include frogs, armadillos, and the majestic deer. The native tribes that we have met have not been so inviting, as we are sometimes attacked by members of the Calusa and Timucua tribes, I fear that they may one day be the death of me! The only problem is that they reside by the resources necessary for us to populate the region, so they will need to be disposed of eventually.
April 11th, 1513
I write this from one of my three ships, the beautiful Santa María de la Consolación. My other two ships, Santiago and San Cristoboal sail behind me, as we search for the fabled island of Bimini, and the Fountain of Youth. King Ferdinand himself gave me permission to search for Bimini and the Fountain of Youth himself. The mysterious Fountain of Youth fascinates me, as I learned from the Indians themselves that the springs of Bimini give the person who drinks from it eternal youth.
We left the port of San German in Puerto Rico in early March, in hopes of claiming the island of Bimini in the name of Spain. Doing so will not be easy, as I will depend heavily on the navigation tools I possess, as well as the help of natives. My trusty compass gives me a sense of direction, as it amazingly always points me north. I do not understand how it works, however, I do know that the arrow in the compass acts like a magnet. The amazing astrolabe has become invaluable during my life as a conquistador. Using the information given to me by the astrolabe, I am able to calculate the latitude.
Earlier this week, I claimed land for the great country of Spain yet again. Although I have yet to discover the fabled Bimini, I am happy with my discovery of the land now known as Pascua Florida. I must leave now, as my duties as a conquistador leave little time for reflection.
April 11, 1512
Though my life is not nearly on the way down, I have not suffered much pain or taken many personal losses until this day. Sure, while I was in the military people died left and right, but I came out of the skirmishes just fine. I was stripped of my title by by King Ferdinand due to some political mishaps but was it reason enough? How are we to keep the peace or fully assimilate these people into our culture or way of life if we o not show them reason to fear us? Whatever I do, I do so that they will convert to our religion, doing a generous service to Spain and even more importantly God. No matter, in the end I will have my glory and I shall reap the benefits. I am already thinking of what I shall do to regain my honor, as I have heard whispers among the air of an island with a fountain that bestows eternal youth among all who bathe there, and I intend on finding it.
May 16th, 1511
I write from the island of San Juan de Boriquen, or Puerto Rico as we now call it. As governor, I gave the island its name myself after discovering gold in parts of the island. I am proud of my position as governor of Puerto Rico, however, I often miss the life of a conquistador and even the brutal ocean itself. I am honored to have been presented the role of governing Spain’s territory by King Ferdinand, but I feel as if my time here is ending.
It appears as though Diego Columbus, Christopher’s son, will be presented with my position soon. In that case, I plan on further exploring the new world. The responsibilities of a conquistador fit me better than the role of governor. I miss commanding my sailors and wish to use my knowledge of navigation to discover new territories for Spain and Queen Isabella once again. I long to see my crew again and I long to watch them go about their daily jobs. From sweeping the decks of the ship to keeping lookout, the life of a sailor is not easy. Disease spreads rapidly on the open sea, and sailors must be loyal and brave. However, the crew works hard, and in return, receives free food and shelter along with their pay.
So I write this from my desk, under the name of Governor. But at heart, I will always be a conquistador. Until the day I die, I will live on the sea, for my home is my ship and not my house.
It appears as though Diego Columbus, Christopher’s son, will be presented with my position soon. In that case, I plan on further exploring the new world. The responsibilities of a conquistador fit me better than the role of governor. I miss commanding my sailors and wish to use my knowledge of navigation to discover new territories for Spain and Queen Isabella once again. I long to see my crew again and I long to watch them go about their daily jobs. From sweeping the decks of the ship to keeping lookout, the life of a sailor is not easy. Disease spreads rapidly on the open sea, and sailors must be loyal and brave. However, the crew works hard, and in return, receives free food and shelter along with their pay.
So I write this from my desk, under the name of Governor. But at heart, I will always be a conquistador. Until the day I die, I will live on the sea, for my home is my ship and not my house.
November 8, 1493
My journey has been long and strenuous, but I’m happy to be writing my occurrences down for it signifies that I am still alive. When deciding to go on this journey into the abyss, my main reason for doing so was mainly curiosity, and of course, the idea that I could be even on the same ship as a person as well known as Christopher Columbus was overwhelming. Though the journey has only just begun, we encountered many savages on the island Columbus named Hispaniola. They are known as the Arawak and Carib tribes, and they strike fear into many of the 1,500 men that I am accompanying, but they seem to fear our muskets more than we seem to fear their appearance. As long as I don’t abandon my weapon, I think that I shall remain safe.
November 27th, 1493
Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand of Spain have sent my great captain, Christopher Columbus, on a voyage to the West Indies. I have been given the great honor to attend the great adventure, and I am determined to succeed in the name of Spain. Queen Isabella and King Ferdinand are great leaders, and they are expecting great achievements from Christopher Columbus, as many consider him the greatest explorer since Marco Polo. New spices will be formed on the land
Columbus discovers, and Spain will become rich with gold and spices from the new world. On October 13th, we set off from the Canary Islands, hoping to find Hispaniola, the great Island Columbus discover only a year ago.
We set off in search of the 40 men Columbus left in Hispaniola on his first voyage. On the ship, I learned many tricks about navigation and exploration. The older sailors teach me about the parts of the boat, and I am fortunate enough to even have a few brief conversations with Columbus himself. We saw the shoreline again for the first time on November 3rd. The older sailors have told me that this is an extraordinary accomplishment to cross the ocean in only 21
days, and that it usually takes much longer. We reached the island of San Juan Bautista on November 19th, 1493. Only 3 days later, we arrived in Hispaniola only to learn that the Indians have killed all 40 of Columbus’s men.
I must go now, as I do not want to disappoint Columbus. I only hope that one day, I will be as respected as Christopher Columbus, and lead an expedition of my own.
Columbus discovers, and Spain will become rich with gold and spices from the new world. On October 13th, we set off from the Canary Islands, hoping to find Hispaniola, the great Island Columbus discover only a year ago.We set off in search of the 40 men Columbus left in Hispaniola on his first voyage. On the ship, I learned many tricks about navigation and exploration. The older sailors teach me about the parts of the boat, and I am fortunate enough to even have a few brief conversations with Columbus himself. We saw the shoreline again for the first time on November 3rd. The older sailors have told me that this is an extraordinary accomplishment to cross the ocean in only 21
days, and that it usually takes much longer. We reached the island of San Juan Bautista on November 19th, 1493. Only 3 days later, we arrived in Hispaniola only to learn that the Indians have killed all 40 of Columbus’s men.I must go now, as I do not want to disappoint Columbus. I only hope that one day, I will be as respected as Christopher Columbus, and lead an expedition of my own.
Bibliography
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