I have a deadline! I want to finish journaling about S. Carolina before we go to Texas so I don't fall behind. I feel blessed to have 2 back to back trips. This post is about Savannah, Georgia and Charleston.
Savannah, Georgia
Since Andrew and I were in the area we figured we should take advantage of our proximity and made a day trip to Savannah, Georgia on Monday, October 13. Savannah is an hour drive from Hilton Head. We had lunch at a seafood restaurant called "Driftaway Cafe." Andrew had cod and grits and his plate was clean at the end which is always a good sign. I had delicious tacos. Not fishy! Avoid the southern potato salad. The cat that roamed the restaurant and sat on tables was a turnoff. Someone at the table next to us brought their dog. During our trip we saw several dogs being pampered and pushed around in strollers. Our waitress had a thick southern accent and was exceptionally friendly. People were so warm the entirety of our trip. Nobody could believe we came all the way from Utah.
After lunch, we took our time checking out downtown Savannah. Water backs right up to shops/restaurants and it was pretty. We did some window shopping. At a cookie store, they were giving out free samples and the "peach cookies" spoke to Andrew. He bought some to savor later. Andrew also made a friend due to his stylish shirt. Savannah was a cool city!
Charleston, South Carolina
We checked out of our Airbnb in Hilton Head the morning of Friday, October 17 and drove to Charleston. We went directly to the restaurant "Boxcar Betty's" and got there when it opened at 11am.
We tried "Boxcar Betty's" earlier in our trip and fell in love with it. We made going again a priority. Fresh off our red-eye flight and after a long rental car debacle, we were starving. We stopped at "Welton's Tiny Bakeshop Bakery" in Charleston which has 4.9 stars and a couple hundred reviews. The hot honey ham croissant was exceptional. The apple danish was pretty good. The cinnamon roll was lacking... In fact not to toot my own horn, but I think I make a better cinnamon roll.
The second time we went to "Boxcar Betty's", we knew what to order and both had the "Chicken Not So Waffle" sandwich with fries. Boxcar Betty's is a fast food fried chicken place. The waffle sandwich has bacon jam, maple syrup, pimiento cheese, chicken, and tomato. I miss it already!
After filling our guts, we headed to USS Yorktown and saw a ginormous aircraft carrier. While there, we learned that the crew of the Yorktown was made up of approx. 380 officers and 3,088 enlisted men. It was massive!
On top, there was a runway for all the fighter jets. I learned Andrew desperately wanted to be a fighter pilot. Glad that ship has sailed. I also discovered that Andrew's grandpa, Grandpa Ditto, was stationed on an air craft carrier during WWII. Andrew was in heaven exploring this place. We stayed 2 hours. They sure make you pay a lot of $ to be there. In addition to paying $56 for entry tickets, we had to pay for parking. If you are claustrophobic, this ship is not for you. We climbed lots of narrow stairways. People were a lot shorter then. The stench of oil was overpowering on the ship. In order to access the carrier, we had to cross an impressive bridge in Charleston! It's tall and according to Google 2.7 miles long. We'd walked 15000+ steps that day, so didn't trudge across the bridge but that would have been interesting and lots of others were doing it. It would have been a 5 mile roundtrip walk.
Charleston was magical. We were immediately greeted by several horse drawn carriages offering tours. The city is old and has lots of history. Our time was limited and the tours weren't cheap, so we instead checked things out on our own on foot. Some of the streets are cobblestone. Andrew pointed out multiple times the gas lit lamps lighting up the city as we strolled the streets. We spent a good chunk of time wandering through the city market. It was like a flea market. We got some souvenirs. We found "Callie's Hot Little Biscuit" which is famous. Obviously, we had to try it! Not all the biscuits were out of this world, but there were some real winners! They were fresh and hot and melted in our mouths. The shortbread biscuit was the best. The regular biscuit was probably the least impressive to us.
We also walked to Rainbow Row and Riverfront Park. Rainbow Row is an area downtown that has colorful historic homes. They're cute! It was hard to get a good picture with parked cars, traffic, and people around. Andrew saw a home for sale near there and suggested we buy it...
We ate dinner at Lewis BBQ in Charleston which had exceptionally high ratings. We both had brisket sandwiches. The buns were memorable. The fries weren't worth getting (and I'm a fry person)! It was expensive and good, but I guess you could say I'm a brisket snob. My brother Jeff and BIL Chris both make brisket and I think their brisket is better. Andrew agrees. Lewis BBQ meat had more of a savory flavor than sweet.
After dinner, we were worn out. We drove to our hotel and spent the evening playing "7 Wonders Duel" which I won twice in a row. After being the loser at mini golf and pickleball, it was time. It was convenient to stay at a hotel about a mile from the airport because we had an early flight Saturday morning. I would love to spend more time in Charleston someday! Visiting a plantation and Sullivans island are on the to-do list.
Souvenirs
We brought the kids home seashells and hats. Andrew and I picked hats for ourselves too. James and Andrew's hats were on clearance! My hat is purple (of course) with the S. Carolina state flag on it. And no, we didn't forget about Penelope. Andrew also got the Georgia cookies and a t-shirt. I picked out 2 t-shirts. We got my parents a Charleston magnet, my dad a t-shirt, and a Nana and Papa rainbow row hand towel. I didn't expect a present from my parents upon our return, but they gave me a necklace memorializing my losses--the twins and the other baby I miscarried before Penelope. The necklace is gold with 3 circles and each has hearts. It made me cry. In fact, while on our trip I was emotional one night and told Andrew I would love a necklace to remember my babies and then boom, I got one. I've worn it everyday since.
Back At Home
Our kids didn't miss us. They were spoiled and did lots of fun things. They decorated Halloween cookies, went to a pumpkin patch, rode their bikes to Arctic Circle for ice cream cones, and more. I'm trying to write my parents a thank-you card and it's hard to adequately express how much it meant to us that Andrew and I were able to run away on this trip. It was sooo good for my soul and helped to have my mind on other things. The alone time with Andrew was remarkable.
No comments:
Post a Comment