Calhoun, GA, USA
Left Savannah on Wednesday and made our way 2 hours north to Charleston, Sth Carolina where we stayed in a fab restored town house in the centre of the historic centre of town. Charleston really 'majors' on its British heritage and colonial past and of course on its American Civil War cojnnections - the first shot of which was fired on Ft Sumpter in the middle of Charleston harbour approaches.
Thursday we took the boat trip out to the fort - a mere shadow of its former glory as it was never really rebuilt after being battered to pieces in the war. Also a carriage trip around the town viewing amazing late 17thc and 18thc houses. We made a tour of the over-the-top-kitch Calhoun Mansion.
We've been thinking aboujt Angela our marvellous guide in Savannah - she took us on the literary tour of the book/film "Midnight in thre Garden of Good and Evil." She came out with many trad southern lines such as " Lordy lordy," and "mercy me!" One of the most memorable was a stop at traffic lights that take a long time to change: "Good Lord," she said, "you could conceive a child and bear it before these lights change!"
Yesyereday we took a liesurely morning stroll around some of the delights of this most southern of southern cities, admiring the wonderfully resotred buildings and the care the local preservation societies take in explaining the local history. The history may only be two or three hundred years old, but my goodness they take a pride in it and make it accessible to visitors.
Mini-disaster struck on the inter-state on our way back. We had visited the Drayton Plantation House and then off on the 5 hour drive back here to Calhoun. But a tyre ripped to pieces on the motorway. Fortuntaekly we were only doing 65 mph but we ground to a halt on the hard shoulder. Not being very good with a jack (perfectly good with 'Jack' but not with 'jacks!") we waited for a state trooper to arrive who kindly changed our wheel. But it was a bit disconcerting waiting by the side of the road - strangers and sojourners in a foreign land! We eventually got back to the house here at 2330 and fell into a blissful slumber until 0930 this morning.
We're invited out to dinner tonight by some neighbours - otherwise a quiet weekend before setting off to Memphis on Monday.
Have a good weekend y'all