Blogs from Charleston, South Carolina, United States, North America - page 4

It's packing day - we're starting to head home. First we stopped at Poogans Porch for a very nice brunch: great biscuits (thanks Pat!). Next we stopped at the Charleston Tea Plantation - only tea plantation in North America. Learned a lot about tea - like the fact that all teas, black, green, oolong, etc., are made from the same leaves. They are just processed differently after they are harvested to make the different flavors. Not too many picture opportunities: just acres and acres of green bushes. Then we started our 5-hour trek to Raleigh. Got here around 8pm and promptly left the hotel to go to the movies - Toy Story 3! Oh, one thing I kept forgetting to mention ... early in the week when we were in the hotel elevator, Allsion was reading ... read more

Ok, this morning we went on a Gullah tour. Gullah is a language/culture of West African slaves that came to this area. First - while we were walking to the tour pickup area, we see what looks like someone waving at us and shouting "Hi." I figure they can't be waving at us - no one knows us ... then they wave again and I realize it is the owner of Halls Chophouse where we ate dinner last night. She recognized us and stopped to talk with us. Cool. Back to the tour - it was very interesting hearing the history of the city from the slavery angle. The tour guide was very informative and entertaining. We were on a bus the entire time - so I didn't have any photo opportunities. Not too many pics ... read more

Tuesday was our day to go to Patriots Point, where the USS Yorktown aircraft carrier is on display. We also toured the the submarine Clamagore. It is really hard to believe how many people worked and lived in the incredible cramped areas of the submarine. We first entered at the forward torpedo room. There was about 6 of us tourists, all pretty crowded, no room to walk around each other. Then you read the plaque that says a crew of 16 worked and slept in that space. There were cots hanging barely one foot from the 'ceiling' (probably not the proper naval term!), right above the racks they used to roll the torpedoes into the tubes. Close quarters. Then we toured the aircraft carrier. Even though this is an older one (its last mission was recovering ... read more

Quick note Allison wanted me to pass on: Last night, Allison made a run to the hotel market ... elevator stopped on the way down and a group of young men entered while talking with each other. One of them said 'Damn' to a companion before realizing Allison was in the elevator. He promptly apologized, obviously embarrassed, saying "Oh, I'm sorry ma'am" - Allison thought that was sweet. I thought it was hilarious knowing that Allison probably could have melted his ears with one of her strings of choice words ... Stopped at Biscuitville before leaving Raleigh - it did not disappoint. (Almost as good as the ones from Celia's Kitchen). We realized we must be in pork country as we passed places like Smithfield and the exit in the picture below. Allison drove this leg ... read more

After my visit to Savannah I was really looking forward to going to Charleston. I decided to take a walking tour; I have always enjoyed those in the past and learned so much from the guides. It was a beautiful day as we drove the 50+ miles through the South Carolina countryside from Yemassee, the homes along the roadway were all so obviously well cared for. Some of the yards were breathtaking, azaleas, dogwoods, and some flowering trees that I don’t know the name of. Like Savannah, there is a lot of history in and around Charleston connected to the American Revolution, and Civil War. I was surprised that so many of the houses are private homes, although our guide told us that the homes in the Historic District start at around 4.5 million dollars. I ... read more