Charleston, South Carolina is rich with this nations history. It's a beautiful city surrounded by water. If you look at a map, it is wedged between the Ashley and Cooper Rivers, protected from the Atlantic by Morris and Sullivan Islands. Forts Sumter and Moultrie served as guards against naval invasion during the war of 1812. The start of the civil war happened here.
The city is loaded with all kinds of architecture and the houses there, some dating back to the 1600's still stand. It is also where you can find the oldest liquor store in America. You can also find alligators, old rice plantations, beautiful beaches and grits. Lot's of grits. And Palmetto trees. Low Country.
Charleston City Market is one of the city's top attractions, where vendors sell all kinds of wares. Sweetgrass baskets, stained glass, jewelry, clothes, souvenirs and pralines.
The food in Charleston is wonderful. When we got to Hollywood, we ate at a place that made egg rolls with collard greens. It was surprisingly good until we ate at Magnolia where their version was incredible. We had Shrimp & Grits, Bouillabaisse, drank good wine and laughed a lot, as the people around us were friendly and more than willing to chat. The experience was great; our favorite for dinner.
On Wednesday, I'm going to a fitting for a neck brace. My head is sinking between my shoulders. The doctor said if I don't stop eating I'm going to drown.
Julie claims we ate our way through Charleston. I guess we did. Richard Simmons is visiting next week.
We spent an overnight at a Marriott and returned to eating our way through Charleston. This time we had brunch at Tempest, which was right in the heart of the City Market.
Tempest has a sister restaurant called Church and Union. We had dinner there the night before. Both establishments are former churches. The Art ofWar is completely written on the ceiling; very cool.
We were there during restaurant week, which showcased the best of what these establishments produce. And they are excellent..
Charleston seemed small geographically, but there was too much to see in two short days. It's a great walking city. The history, old and rich takes its place alongside some of the country's seminal moments. Glad to have learned more than I ever learned in high school.
The architecture is a mixed bag of different styles and periods. If my buddy Phil was with us, he could tell us everything. But as tour guides go, his fees are exorbitant!
Click to play slide show
Buster Knows Charleston
Buster (on the left in the photo), is well versed on how to navigate through the busy traffic that clogs downtown Charleston. His human guided Buster while narrating this historical tour. It was a fun ride and we got to see and hear a lot about Charleston. If you come here, do this; it's fun. Some parts of the city are below sea level.
If you're in the market for real estate, if the hurricanes don't get you, the prices surely will. $9 million gets you a home on the battery with a yard and fence. You can't renovate unless it's approved. Just know your late 1600's home comes equipped with Alexa, who speaks in period tongue.
Debby & Homer
Campgrounds are filled with all kinds of people, each with a different story, background, vocation, financial means, but they all share one thing - the love of camping! So far, we've met some awesome people from a variety of locations.
It's not uncommon for people to ask for or offer help. While in Tabor City, there was a water problem and our neighbors banded together to diagnose and try to repair the problem. That sense of community was refreshing. People coming together to solve a problem. You'd wish that was a lot more common.
We're not sure the rules of the road for camp etiquette, or any rules other than what the campground we're in at the moment requires. And they all have rules. Common sense, however, speaks for most of the people we know. They don't show up unannounced on your doorstep while you're having breakfast, or sleeping because if they did, your first inclination would be that there must be something going on, something wrong and you'd instantly think there was some sort of event or problem. "Is everything okay? Are you all right?"
Well... not everybody shares that same sense of courtesy and awareness. Some people are bold, seemingly unaware of their surroundings. There are times I want to get a job at a busy supermarket. I'd be the grocery cart drivers license inspector. You know the people... clipping your heel as you are pushing your cart. Or the ones who completely block the aisle. Or the little old ladies who give off the appearance of being frail, but zip in front of you at the check out, as if they're Olympic speed walk champions.
"You, pull over there by the frozen vegetables and show me your grocery cart drivers license! No license? Fine, you're not allowed back in this grocery store until you get one. Now get out."
Yeah, that kind of dense.
They're a nice couple, but really don't get that good fences make good neighbors. Or is that, please don't come around with your dog while we're eating dinner. I guess our desire for a little privacy makes us horrible campers and we should put out an open house sign!
Nah.
Julie had Monday as a day off and we went to buy her a pair of sneakers. We drove some 30 miles to a specialty sports store that carries the brand and model of walking shoe she likes. We thought it's a nice day for a ride, the stores web site says they have the shoes in stock and in her size. Perfect! We get there, the teenaged sales girl has no idea what we're talking about... they don't have that shoe, they don't know what the shoes are used for and don't know how it stacks up against other brands and "probably" the other stores are out of stock too. I wonder if she has a dog and lives in a camper.
We wind up at Magnolia Plantation and Gardens a few miles from where we're camping. We walked the property and only saw a fraction of it. We took a train tour and learned a lot about what they did there and how and why the plantation morphed into what it is today. It's beautiful and the pictures don't do it justice. A terrific place to visit and learn a lot about what life was like back in the late 1600's. Its on the National Register of Historic places and is among the nations first public gardens.
Julie is standing by a 400 year old oak. It featured a fireplace that was used over 100 years ago. The tree's center was carved out as it was dormant. The tree continued to grow, although the fireplace was no longer used. Cabins where slaves lived are preserved on the property. It's a stark contrast to the beauty of the place, while knowing how people back then suffered terribly there.
We stopped at a place we had spotted days before. It's called Pearlz It advertises fresh seafood and oysters and it lives up to its boast. We sat at the bar, while we watched the guy shucking oysters. The food was delicious. Julie had Red Porgy, a local white fish. I had fish and chips. All of it was good. We got home about 7:00 pm and we were tired. Julie decided to put on her PJ's and we'd veg and watch TV. There was a knock on the door and I realized it was Debby and Homer. That was when I turned to Julie and told her to pull her pants up!
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