Downtown Charleston

The day dawns - not foggy!  And a forecasted high of 78, and lower humidity.  So, shorts and a tank top, pack everything in my new camera gear knapsack that I need for the day, and hop in the hotel shuttle (that way I don't have to find parking, and it's free).  The shuttle drops the passengers at the Market, which looks very interesting. The market is open till 5, the horse-drawn carriage tours are only available till 4 and book up quickly, and the hotel shuttle runs till 9:30, so I decide to walk around a bit, then get a carriage ride, then walk some more, eat, drink and be merry blah blah blah.

Map in hand (yup, doing it the old-fashioned way) I make my way down Market St., and find the carriage company that had been recommended by the hotel.  Ride booked for 2:30, so I have a couple of hours to explore and have some lunch.  Walking down Meeting St., and I spot what looks to be a great place for lunch.

And I get a spot at the chef's table - perfect.  The menu looks fantastic and it takes me a while to decide on the blue crab salad plate, with a pear and ginger sangria (yes, it was even better than it sounds).  Starting with warm, real southern cornbread served with soft butter, it just kept getting better.  

After this, I wandered for about an hour through the French quarter, hoping that the guide on the carriage ride would explain some of what I was seeing.  When I got to the barn for the tour, I asked if I could be seated at the side or the front so that I could get lots of pictures.  (Single person advantage - almost always get the best seats because it's easy to fit in).  Yup, got a front seat at the end.  Perfect.  And I am now officially in love with Charleston.  Not just the historical and beautiful architecture, the southern charm, but the smells of southern spruce and whatever flower it is (magnolia?) that gently touches your senses and then disappears, leaving you wanting more.  The quiet streets, the gracious grandeur, the way complete strangers nod and say "har ya doin'?" when they pass you.  This is definitely a place I could become very accustomed to.  Charleston, I don't think I'm done with you yet.  

   

  

After the carriage ride, the market beckons.  According to the carriage driver, it used to be a slave's market - where the slaves would come and buy things, not where the slaves were sold.  Although almost everything in it can be found elsewhere, the sweet grass hand-woven baskets, from a West African tradition, are beautiful, and this is the only place you can get them.  After watching a couple of people making them, and seeing the craftsmanship, I pick one out, bargain with the vendor for almost half off, and tuck it away.  

Supper is beef chimichangas in a little Mexican restaurant that has mostly Mexicans as patrons, and it's quite good and not too filling.  But it's a little noisy, so off to a rooftop bar for a mint julep and to browse through the photos I've taken today - boy do I ever need a lot of practice! - and rest my somewhat tired feet.  Then it's back to the hotel to rest up.

Tomorrow the weather is supposed to get cooler, so I'm off to warmer climes.  It's supposed to be sunny and warm in Daytona Beach, hopefully I can get a decent room for not too much moolah.

The scent of Magnolia

In the true spirit of a journal...

Dec. 26, 2015 - Charleston SC

7 a.m.  - Awake feeling refreshed and ready to explore.  Great bed for a hotel, and that's what matters when you're traveling, not whether the wallpaper is peeling in the bathroom.  The fog has once again taken over (what's with me always managing to find places with poor visibility when I travel?) but it's supposed to clear.  Hope to get out to one of the plantations.

9:30 - finished breakfast, still so foggy that the "riverview" restaurant on the 15th floor shows only pure white outside.  Plantation tours run all day, so will take some time now to clean lenses, backup SD cards to the laptop, and recharge batteries.

10:30 - fog starting to lift, so I make a reservation for one of the plantation tours.  20 minutes later the swamp on the other side of the road is visible from the hotel room window, and I can see several ibis grazing in the marsh grass.  Another 10 minutes later and the sun is shining, the fog should clear completely soon!  I get down to the lobby to meet the driver, and step outside into - omg I should have worn shorts and a tshirt!  It's very humid so good thing it's only about 75 F.  But wow does it ever feel great to be in the warm sunshine.

12:00 - At the Visitor Center, downtown Charleston, getting on a shuttle to the Magnolia Garden Plantation.  My pass includes a tour of the house and a train ride through the Audubon Swamp, where hopefully we will see a couple of alligators and other wildlife.  It's about a half hour's drive, and the driver promises I will get lots of pictures.  On the way, I see the odd small tree loaded with large red or dark pink blooms, but the driver does not know what they are.  The other shuttle passengers think it might be camellia, which I've never seen before to my knowledge.  Gorgeous.

12:30 - Arrive at the Magnolia Plantation, 500 acres of the original 2000, where the Drayton family (who still owns it, the only original owner left in the area) to explore.  I start in the garden as my ticket for the train tour is for the 1:30 train, and the house is at 2:30.  Yes, they are camellia and there are several varieties here at the plantation garden.  And other flowers blooming too, azaleas and magnolias (I think, they smell wonderful!), pansies, snapdragons, sweet william, those are just the ones I recognized.  If I let myself daydream for a few minutes, I could easily be a southern belle walking through the garden with my beau, with a parasol on my shoulder to keep the warm southern sun off my delicate face.  Bahahaha!  Ya right.  Ok, back to reality.  Camera comes out, and catches this little beauty, among others.

There are probably an hour's worth of pathways through the garden, plus a conservatory, but have to get back to catch the "train".

1:30 - The "train" is a tractor pulling a couple of trolley cars typical of tourist attractions.  Find a seat and we pull away.  The driver is chatty and informative, and it isn't long before we start seeing some critters, including large turtles (too far away to get a good shot), ibis, great blue heron, ducks (cinnamon teals), and alligators.  Lots of them.  By the end of the train ride, the driver admits he has never seen so many alligators in one tour.  A couple of dozen at least, all sizes, all sunning themselves on little platforms provided, or swimming about lazily.

   

This one was pretty chill.  A couple of turtles joined him on the platform, although smaller turtles are sometimes gator gourmet.  All in all, a lovely ride, although we didn't stop very often, nor long enough when we did, to get many decent pictures.  

2:30 - House tour.  Interesting, but this isn't a true plantation home as I was expecting.  The current home was the third on the property, and the first one was 13000 sq ft.  Now that's a mansion!  The second was only 11000 sf.  The current one was probably less than half of that.  Very historic, and beautiful, but the wraparound porch probably makes it look twice what it really is.  Still, you could have a party on that porch...

4:00 - back at the hotel, trying to find a decent restaurant that has "southern" or at least local food and that I can still get a reservation for at the last minute.  Stars Rooftop and Grill Room looks awesome, and has availability.  And it's only a 5 minute drive.... score!!!  Reservations at 6:45 so better go clean up...

7:00 - 9:00 - Dinner.  Unbelievable.  Must go back, Stars is amazing, fantastic food, impeccable service, perfect atmosphere (for me), great wine...  As usual, I try to eat local and drink the house specialty.  So, started with a cocktail called an Aviation (how fitting) and it was ah-mazing.  Gin, lemon, maraschino cherry liqueur.  However, this place also added a bit of lavender cordial.  It was actually really good.  Appetizer:  Baked Oysters, with sauteed spinach, Asiago cheese, fresh garlic and brandy.  Phenomenal.  For the main course I chose another appetizer and a sharing plate which was actually exactly the right amount.  The appetizer was "Bacon Tater Tots", so, fluffed potatoes and bacon bits coated and deep fried (like croquettes) and served with a bacon aioli.  The sharing plate I selected was more like a small entree, so perfect.  Rare grilled bluefin tuna, crusted with pecans, served with a spicy mustard, a honey-almond sauce and a mixture of vegetables like heirloom carrots, purple cabbage and mild radishes in a wonderful creamy sauce - they called it Vegetable Slaw but it was the best Slaw I've ever had.  Then dessert, which was Smoked Chocolate 'Smore Pie.  Words do not do it justice.

Fog and rain - better than snow!

Started the day with an odometer reading of 313969.  Umm, "my" numbers are 1, 3, 6, and 9.  Wonder what this day will bring!

When I first wake up and check the weather, Harrisonburg is getting a "Dense fog advisory", but I look out the window, and the sun is out, so it can't be that bad.  5 minutes later, I understand, because I can no longer see the end of the parking lot.  Better be on my way and take it easy.

In the hopes that the fog will clear, I opt to take Highway 11 down through the Shenandoah Valley, rather than the busy interstate that runs parallel.  It might be possible to stop and take some pictures?  However, the fog only lifts a little ways, and doesn't provide any interesting fog, just haze and of course when it clears a little, the shoulders of the road are too narrow to pull over.  I really must come back down here again some time though, because there are signs everywhere for interesting things to see and do, like caverns and historical landmarks and antique shops....

It strikes me that I am driving through the Bible belt on Christmas Day when I pass by a beautiful country home with a life-size nativity scene on the front lawn.  I snicker when I see the next house adorned by a much larger-than-life-size inflatable dachshund in a Santa suit on the front lawn.  Seriously.  Or maybe not so seriously...  The roadside signs identifying points and locations of historic interest are also intriguing, although many of the references are to events with which I am unfamiliar.  One or two jump out, such as the site of Sheridan's last raid, and the Original African-American Cemetery (no stones are visible from the road however).

Finally, as I approach the point where Hwy 11 will merge with the interstate, I start seeing signs towards a village called Natural Bridge.  I have to wonder if there is indeed a bridge formed by nature in some way, thus the name.  Cool, the hwy actually passes right through there, and the fog has mostly cleared!  And there is a large building with a huge parking lot, boldly announcing the Natural Bridge Park.  So of course, pull in and get out to read the plaque and see what I can see from the parking lot (nothing).  As I'm reading, I hear a vehicle pull up beside me, and a gentle voice with a dontcha-just-love-southern-drawls-kinda-drawl saying "Hi there!".  A kindly gentleman explains that there will be admission to the site in about 20-30 minutes, and he highly recommends that I stay.  He suggests I go over to the historic hotel and get a complimentary coffee while I wait, convinced it will be worth my time to hang around.  What the heck, it's a chance to stretch my legs and maybe get some cool pictures.  Here are a few, please note these are not the best ones photographically, but I haven't had time to do any touch-ups yet.  It really was worth my time.

And.... that was the end of the clear skies for the day, until sunset.  As I headed down the rest of the Valley, the fog rolled in yet again, and there was a sign indicating "fog ahead, adjust speed according to the weather", and yes, drove across the top of the mountains with fog and cloud below and above and all around.  Shortly after coming through the fog, the rains started coming down heavy enough that I was glad I was on the mountain and not in the valley.  Everyone was slowing down and putting on their hazard lights, it was really hard to see.  Like a snowstorm.  Sort of.  And it didn't let up until I was almost in South Carolina.

Then the sun went down, the rain stopped, the roads were dry, the full moon came up, and it was about 22C.  So the sunroof opened up, the tunes went on, and the rest of the drive to Charleston was largely uneventful.  Except for almost running out of gas.  But I didn't, I probably could have driven another 8 - 10 miles before going completely dry.  (Phew)  The forecast here for the next two days is partly cloudy and high of 73 F, which to me sounds like it's time to stop for a day or two and take in the sights in this area.  I'll see what's on the nightside table...

Highlights of the day:
1. Driving through Staunton, VA, and see a whole bed of yellow pansies in full bloom, on Christmas Day.
2.  Interesting road names, like "Rockin Way" and "Possum Hollow".  For real.
3.  Several log cabins that appeared to be still habitable, and inhabited.