Hash, Pirates and War

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My next adventure occurred over a long weekend (martin luther king jr day) and started off with a classmate getting free tickets to a Atlanta Thrashers vs Toronto Maple Leafs NHL ice hockey game. Not being much of a fan of it on TV (still not) I was amazed that it is a great game to watch live. Lots of cheering great atmosphere and sumo hockey as half time entertainment. So with a few wines, a bucket of margarita and a loud voice I became an NHL fan within 2 minutes....imagine it Engines (just like the SCG...LOL).

So after a week in class googling Charlston South Carolina I had a loose plan and set off for the long weekend and headed to an old historical town enriched in both civil war and pirate history....argh!!! Anyway, Charleston is quite an old town with some pretty significant history - 'Blackbeard' the Pirate blockaded the harbour for a couple of weeks, and one of his collegues who was quite famous (Stede Bonnet) was hanged (resisting the urge to say he was ‘hung’) in Charleston. The first victory against the British in the Revolutionary War was won in Charleston, followed by the signing of the declaration of independence. South Carolina was the first state to secede from the Union and the first shots of the Civil War were fired there.

So - it is a pretty amazing place to tour around as pretty much every building you walk past has some historical significance. I picked up a pushbike complimentary of the B&B I stayed in and rode around the town which has some massive houses. Amazingly enough most of it is new wealth because people used to shut up the top 2 levels of their houses because they were too big and cold. So when this whole ridiculous property rise began in the 80s people realised the wealth and now live very well. Charleston is actually an island and also quite expensive. A quaint little town home to Charleston University and a pile of pissed uni students after 1am. I strolled around and then headed to the historic centre for a guided tour. A grown man themeatically dressed gave a guided tour complete with mechanical figures telling us some story....didnt pay too much attention.

Anyway I rode around had a look and it was time to get back on the road. On the way home I decided to try Carolina BBQ which is very different to that of Alabama..more sweet mustard than rich BBQ. Again I caught the church crowd all dresed up eating ribs and I tried Carolina hash. Catherine Campbell I know what you are thinking.....same thing as my Mum probably sorry to disappoint you Catherine and Mum its ok...its food. Carolina hash is made from god knows what and tastes like a thick liquid chicken stuffing over rice. Not bad although Alabama is the BBQ place for me. It was time to come home to Athens so I started another week of getting ready for my next adventure with a classmate. NASHVILLE!!!!

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