Charleston, South Carolina

We went to the Slave Mart Museum today in Charleston, where they actually sold and held slaves. Talk about history. They referred to it as a "storeroom" to purchase goods. You were worth the most if you were between the ages of 19-24 going for about $900.00. At that time in S. Carolina there were far more black slaves then white people.
We drove to Mt. Pleasanton and we bought a Sweetgrass Basket, they are so beautiful and we loved the lady we bought it from. Her relatives had been slaves in the mansion that we toured the other day. She sells her baskets on a corner off the highway and her family has sold baskets there in the same spot for 100 years. We saw a Sweetgrass Basket at the Slave Mart Museum earlier today. It is the oldest African craft in America, the trade was transported across the Atlantic by enslaved African people. They are made with bulrush, sweetgrass, pine needles and palmetto.
We also found out what else is biting us. Chiggers, that's what causing the extra big welts that turn red and itch like crazy! Our camping neighbors brought us clear nail polish and told us to put that on it, it suffocates them. We'll try anything. The no see um's are definitely the worst though.

Fort Sumter, Charleston, South Carolina

These aren't replicas, they are the actual cannons that were used

Fort Sumter

We took a boat over to see Fort Sumter National Monument, where the civil war began. The opening shots of the Civil War were fired on April 12, 1861. The walls are five foot thick brick walls and approximately 50 feet above water. It was multi-tiered and was reduced largely to rubble during the Civil War.

Charleston, South Carolina

Picture above and below show the earthquake bolts

St. Michaels church, where George Washington and Robert E. Lee attended church, they say in pew 43

Bill in George's pew

George Washington

Graveyard at the Circular Church

Mansion we toured

We toured Charleston today, so much history here in the south, we love hearing all about it.

Beautiful city. Took a tour around the city and then to see one of the historic mansions here.

Many of the mansions in the south have what are called Welcoming Arms staircases, where at the front porch there are steps on both sides leading up to the front door, that's because in the l700's if a man saw a woman's ankles, he would have to marry her, so one side was for the women and one for the men.

The college in Charleston is beautiful. It consists of several blocks and so many are in the old buildings, there is even a dormitory where if you aren't an A student, you can't even apply to live there. What a beautiful city to attend college.

They have had the same Mayor here since 1975, they say he is so well liked and respected that no one has even come close to winning.

We went to St. Michaels church and Bill sat in the same pew that George Washington sat in when he attended church here, and 70 years later Robert E. Lee sat in the same pew.

Women are seen all over making baskets out of sweetgrass, beautiful hand woven baskets, many of the women have been doing it for 60 years, taught to them by their grandmothers and mothers.

Some of the houses have "Earthquake Bolts", these were put in place after they had an earthquake here in the l800's. The bolt went through the house and was tightened.

Piggly Wiggly

They have Piggly Wiggly grocery stores here, when we went in for groceries, the checker asked me if I had a pig card, I said "Did you just ask me if I have a pig card?" We should have Piggly Wiggly Markets, I would rather have a pig card then a Von's card.

Tybee Island and Savannah, Georgia

Tybee Island

Homes in Savannah

Close up on the building in the picture below

We were going to eat at Paula Deens, but were told the food wasn't good

Well, we saw a t-shirt that had a picture of a mosquito and said it was Georgia's State Bird, we believe it. That and sand gnats and anything that flies, we're covered and itching, especially Laurie.

We drove back to the historic part of Savannah so we could walk around and shop where we drove by yesterday on the tour. Such a fun city to walk all over. The city was built around "squares"; there are about 20 squares, they're parks with fountains, or monuments and huge, old oak trees and then the houses are built all around them, it would be great to live in an area like that, you could walk all over through beautiful streets and parks, and little neighborhood shops.

Then we drove about 15 miles to a beach town called Tybee Island. There's a lighthouse there that we drove out to see, there are sea turtles there, but we didn't see any. Very windy on the beach, but very pretty.

On the way back we went to a funky restaurant that we read about in "Road Food" called The Crab Shack, has an alligator pond out front, sits right on the water, and the inside has trees growing through it. Oh, and great crab and shrimp!!