Road Trip 2012 - Day 10

Tuesday, April 24th - Charleston, SC

We were awake at 8:00 a.m. and had the continental breakfast in our room as we prepared for the day.

We decided to walk to the Fort Sumter Visitor Education Center at Liberty Square. This was a much longer walk than the previous day's trek to the Charleston Visitor's Center.

We purchased our tickets for the 30 minute boat ride to Fort Sumter. You are allowed 1 hour at the Fort, before re-boarding the boat for the 30 minute ride back to the Education Center. While we waited for our designated departure time, we examined all the exhibits.

Finally, it was time to board the boat. The Husband, who is so mannerly, told me to let all the older folks board first. I told him, "Honey, these people are retirees. They are aggressive and brutal! We'll never get a seat. Let's go!" Reluctantly he followed me. Even so, we had to sit on the top level, exposed to the elements because all the protected seats were taken by "The Retirees!" It was cold and windy on the water. Very cold and windy!

The Husband with the Fort over his left shoulder.

On land, just before entering the Fort. 

The actual cannons used during the seige.

Over The Husband's right shoulder is Fort Johnson. The first shot on Fort Sumter was fired from there, beginning the Civil War.

The wind on Fort Sumter was brutal and cold. You felt like you were being beaten, it was so strong. We opted to return to the boat a few minutes early, but we could not beat the majority of "The Retirees." They were already on board, seated at tables in the enclosed areas of the boat. No cold, windy return for them! We climbed to the open deck of the boat and it was even colder and more windy on the return trip to the mainland. Did I mention it was cold? and windy?

After returning to the mainland, we took a pedicab ride from the Fort Sumter Vistor Center to the City Market area, thus avoiding the long walk back.
This guy was a lifesaver! 

We lunched at Magnolia's Restaurant. A couple of appetizers and a drink and we were good. We walked back to the B&B and took a nap in anticipation of a big evening with our friends.

The Friend and The Wife picked us up at our B&B and drove us the few blocks for a pre-dinner drink at the rooftop Pavilion Bar. My feet thanked them profusely! The Pavilion Bar was hip and trendy and full of glamorous people, just like us. We enjoyed the rooftop view of Charleston, a good cocktail and pleasant conversation.

After the drink, we repaired to the restaurant immediately adjacent to our B&B, Husk. On our first night in Charleston we had our first drink there with The Friend and then returned late at night for a sandwich. This night, however, was special because The Friend had made dinner reservations in the restaurant. Husk was named Bon Appétit magazine's 2011 Best New Restaurant in America and we were looking forward to the experience, to say the least!

I started with the "Buffalo Pig Ear Lettuce Wraps with Sweet Vinegar, Marinated Cucumbers and Spring Onion." The combination of tastes was divine. Salty pig ear, sweet and spicy flavors combined with crunchy cucumbers and lettuce was an interesting taste sensation. For the main course, I had "Cornmeal Dusted NC Catfish with Smoky Tomato, Spring Courgette and Sweet Corn." It was melt in my mouth delicious! The Husband, The Friend and The Wife also thoroughly enjoyed their dinners.

If you are planning to travel to Charleston, SC, I encourage you to 1) visit Husk's website and read about the Chef and his food philosophy, as well as his approach to sourcing ingredients for his creations and 2) make a dinner reservation!

After dinner, we returned to the Husk bar for an after dinner drink.

We can't thank our friends enough for making our first visit to Charleston so enjoyable. Their knowledge of where to stay and the restaurant scene made our visit stress free and delightful!

Thanks, guys!

Road Trip 2012 - Day 9

Monday, April 23 - Charleston, SC

At 5:30 a.m. we were awakened by truck noise. Lots of loud truck noise. Not only was it trash day, but there were also huge dumpsters full of construction debris that were being emptied. Joy! Joy! Joy!

We finally rolled out of bed at 8:15 a.m. At 8:30 a.m., the phone rang advising The Husband our breakfast would be delivered soon. It was very nice to get advance warning before the knock on the door!

After breakfast, we opted to walk to the Visitors Center. Silly us. The walk was longer than we anticipated. The Visitors Center was very busy. Lots of people in line waiting for information and tour tickets. We waited in line at least 30 minutes, perhaps longer, to purchase our tickets for the 2 hour Gullah Tour, conducted by Alphonso Brown.

We both enjoyed this tour. Alphonso is a funny, informative guide and we learned so much about Charleston's history. We also developed a keen appreciation for Philip Simmons, Blacksmith. He was the maker of many of Charleston's iron gate works of art. If you ever visit this fine city, we recommend you take this tour. You will not be sorry.

The tour ended at the Visitors Center and we caught the free trolley back to The City Market. I was more than a bit disappointed by the majority of the vendors in the market. I thought it would be primarily hand made, locally grown or vintage items. Unfortunately, it was primarily new tourist items. There were, however, a number of Sweetgrass Basket vendors, who were friendly and happy to educate us on the time honored craft. We did not purchase a basket during this visit to the market, but I knew I would not leave Charleston without one!

We had a quick lunch at Toast and repaired to our room for a short rest.

After our rest, we walked through the graveyard at the Circular Congregational Church, two blocks from our B&B. I love graveyards. I think they are places to remember and celebrate the people who have lived before us.

See the large tree in the background?

Here we are at the base of the tree. A sweet, older couple took our photograph and told us on their guided tour they were told that experts believe the tree to be 350 years old. They could take a core sample and determine the exact age, but have opted to refrain for fear of killing the tree. A good decision, in my opinion!

After visiting the graveyard, we continued our walk in the neighborhood and came upon a couple of basket creators. (We were told on the Gullah tour that they do not "weave" the basket, but prefer the term "sew.")

I carefully selected a basket to purchase and here you see the sewer signing and dating it for me.

We returned to the room and prepared to meet The Friend and The Wife for dinner. She is just as nice and easy to converse with as her husband. We had such a fun evening.

We walked to the Peninsula Grill for a pre-dinner drink and then moved on to dinner at Hank's Seafood Restaurant. After dinner, we walked to Charleston Grill and enjoyed a drink along with the music of a live jazz combo.

If you ever visit Charleston, you want to have a friend like The Friend. He knows all the cool and happening places and is a great drink and food guide for the city!

This was a day we did not even see our car, much less take it out of the garage. Walking everywhere made for immediate slumber once our heads hit the pillows!

Road Trip 2012 - Day 8

Sunday, April 22 - Asheville, NC to Charleston, SC

We slept late again, not awakening until 8:45 a.m. We left the hotel at 10:15 a.m. with the odometer reading 36,069. We stopped for a fast food breakfast (which was not good) and filled the car with gas.

I thought it was a boring drive to Charleston, SC. It was treed on both sides of the highway, so there was no view of houses or towns as we passed through the countryside.

Here is our obligatory photo at the state welcome center.

We arrived in Charleston and checked into The Elliot House Inn at 3:30 p.m. The inn has an outstanding location, right in the heart of the historic district. Everything is within easy walking distance.

We took the opportunity to rest (nap!) because we were meeting an old friend of The Husband's for drinks. The Friend lives in the area and, in addition to recommending where we should stay, also made dinner reservations for us for the following two nights.

These guys had not seen each other in 35 years and just recently reconnected via e-mail. When they saw each other, it was as if no time had lapsed. They picked up where they left off with comfortable and enjoyable conversation.

The Friend and The Husband

The Friend took us on a stroll of the neighborhood, beginning with drinks at The Bar at Husk Restaurant. We loved that the bar is a freestanding building adjacent to the restaurant. The second floor is a cool cocktail lounge. The first floor is a standard bar.

After the drink, we took a walk "South of Broad" (as Charlestonians say). It was an amazing trek through blocks of historic, beautiful homes. Scattered amongst the homes are churches, many with small cemeteries full of ancient graves. The Friend shared tidbits of information about the neighborhoods, specific houses and the history of Charleston.

The turning point of our walk was when we reached The Battery. As we promenaded the seawall, we could see Fort Sumter in the distance. 

As we headed toward our inn, The Friend ducked into an alley and like magic we were having another drink at the bar at McCrady's Restaurant. With this drink, we each had a deviled egg as an appetizer.

They cost $1!
For a deviled egg!
Which was 1/2 of a whole egg!
Oh!
My!
Goodness!

Suddenly, we all realized it was late on a Sunday night. We hustled back to the area of our inn, only to find that the restaurant where The Husband and I had planned to have dinner was closed. Fortunately, The Bar at Husk Restaurant was still open and was happy to serve us a sandwich.

At that point, The Friend left us in the capable hands of Weaver, the bartender, and Darrel, the bar back. In addition, we met Jay. A nice young man who was in town for a conference and ended up at the bar for a cocktail.

After enjoying our split BBQ pork sandwich, we walked the long distance (50 yards?) to our B&B.

Our end of day odometer reading was 36,347.

We parked in a garage across from the B&B. It will be interesting to see if the car comes out while we are here, since this is such a walkable area.

Road Trip 2012 - Reports

I just wanted to check in and tell you that it may be a couple of days before daily posts resume.

We are in Charleston, SC.

In addition to enjoying the tourist attractions, we are spending time with one of The Husband's old friends, so my writing time is limited.

I'll be back soon!