Surely you’ve heard of the Okefenokee Swamp? Even if you don’t just love rolling that name around your tongue, you may be old enough to remember the Pogo cartoon strip by Walt Kelly, which was sited there. Continue reading “Swamp Fever”
Our march to the sea
We seem to be following General Sherman and his troops right along coastal Georgia. We started our day at Fort Pulaski, outside Savannah. The Confederates lost it early in the war, which greatly affected the role Savannah was able to play in supplying the South. It was the first time traditional fortifications were lost to “rifled artillery,” suddenly rendering it and all fortifications in the world like it totally obsolete, as told by a Civil War re-enactor. Continue reading “Our march to the sea”
More than just a pretty place
Savannah is just naturally gorgeous. Its 22 public squares are each a distinct oasis of quiet, draped and garlanded by live oaks and Spanish moss. But the moss is full of nasty bugs and you dare not touch it. And when the sun recedes, the sense of darkness is not just about the light. Continue reading “More than just a pretty place”
From Gullah to genteel Savannah
Leaving Beaufort, we drove the short distance to St. Helena Island, one of the chain of sea islands that also includes Hilton Head, and the home of the Penn Center, an important site in the story of the transition from slavery to freedom. Continue reading “From Gullah to genteel Savannah”
Beautiful Beaufort
A gorgeous low country town, Beaufort weathered the Spanish, the French, the American Revolution and managed to survive the Civil War by being occupied and not burned. That preserved some of the most wonderful architecture in the South, evidently a cross between Charleston and Savannah. The crepe myrtles, palmettos and spectacular live oaks with their hanging Spanish moss are as striking as the homes. Continue reading “Beautiful Beaufort”
The Wiener Wars
No, I am not intending to refer to what may or may not be going on at the moment in the household of Anthony D. and Huma Abedin. Those are the WEINERS. This is about WIENERS. As we have now officially left North Carolina, I’ll comment on the intense competition in the hot dog world in that state. Continue reading “The Wiener Wars”
Saturday in Columbia
Like all good tourists, we did tour the lovely South Carolina State House building, which is newly renovated and immaculately landscaped. And like all good students of irony, we were particularly taken with the statue of Strom Thurmond. Continue reading “Saturday in Columbia”
From Polk to Pearl
A day of celebrities. We started in Pineville, NC, birthplace of our 11th president, James K. Polk. (Surely you remember him,) Nice and humble, as befits a man of the people. His family moved to better times in Tennessee when he was a kid, but North Carolina can still claim him.Continue reading “From Polk to Pearl”
“Where do they put all the dirt?”
That was a question raised by one of our museum guides today. She was a Yankee transplant, and, like us, could not believe how manicured and beautiful Charlotte is. I guess being the country’s second largest financial center helps, as some of that money is clearly cascading into the city in terms of its architecture and style. “Charlotte’s got a lot!” is their promotional slogan. (Think about it.) What they seem to have a lot of is money.Continue reading ““Where do they put all the dirt?””
More than just cotton
We started our next North Carolina adventure with a slight detour to Cooleemee, and its Textile Heritage Center. This consisted of a home once occupied by the Cooleemee cotton mill manager and a sample mill worker’s home from 1934, once electricity and plumbing had been installed. Continue reading “More than just cotton”