The Antebellum South
South of the Border
During winter break, we decided to explore a few beautiful areas of our neighboring state, South Carolina. We loaded up the car and hit the road. Just when we were getting tired of the with “Pedro” billboard-littered freeway, a huge yellow sombrero emerged above the horizon. Was it an amusement park? A restaurant? A store? We had to check it out!
The yellow sombrero belonged to a giant “Pedro”, who turned out to be the mascot of a bizarre Mexican themed rest stop. I couldn’t help but think this place looked like a front for drug trafficking! This unconventional place is a popular tourist attraction and many consider it to be cute. Now that’s highly debatable!
Congaree National Park
Stretching nearly 27000 acres, Congaree NP is the largest preserved expanse of old growth bottomland hardwood forest in the United States. Two main rivers, the Congaree and Wateree, sweep through the flood planes, creating astonishing biodiversity.
We arrived early at the park and started our visit at the small visitor center. It was exceptionally cold that morning and as the mosquito meter indicated, pesky blood-sucking insects were nowhere to be seen. Phew!
We hit the Boardwalk Loop, a 2.4 mile elevated walkway that led us through the swampy forest. The place was very serene, peaceful, and absolutely gorgeous!
Majestic champion trees (exceptionally large specimen of their kind) rose from the inky-black flooded marshy wetlands. Spanish moss dangled from branches, making the place look eerie and graceful at the same time. It was stunning!
To visit the park more extensively, one has to canoe through the wetlands. That definitely gave us an incentive for a future visit!
Charleston
Before our Charleston city walking tour, we ate a hearty breakfast. One of the specialties in this city, are grits, a type of porridge made from boiled cornmeal. Maarten tried this dish and like they say, “A picture says more than a thousand words!”
We followed the Lonely Planet walking tour, which brought us to the most important and picturesque places in the city. Strolling through Charleston was like walking through a living museum strewn with historical pre-revolutionary houses, stately antebellum mansions, churches, and landmark statues. I couldn’t help but feel transported back to the 18th century where people sat on their porches, sipping the incredibly sweet tea they like here so much and where horse-drawn carriages adorned the streets. In fact, riding the latter is a popular tourist attraction.
We walked past Rainbow Row, a stretch of Georgian houses painted in pastel colors. These historic homes were constructed in 1740 and were used by merchants who ran their business on the ground floor and lived above.
On Cabbage Row we learned about the African Americans who used to live here and how they displayed veggies for sale on their windowsills.
Next was the Charleston City Market, recognized as one of the oldest in the country. Originally, it housed meat, vegetables, and fish vendors, but today it is a souvenirs shoppers paradise. The market is also the epicenter of the sweetgrass basketry, one of America’s oldest and most intricate handicrafts of African origin. I had my heart set on purchasing a basket and while they looked lovely, they came with a huge price tag!
Sweetgrass crafts were also sold in stands in the street. Men and women of all ages demonstrated their skills by coiling the locally harvested strong marsh grass. I started a conversation with a hard-at-work elderly lady. She told me the basketmaking skill was passed down to her by her mama, who in turn learned from her mother. And this woman was very adamant about teaching her expertise to her grandchildren. Upon asking how long it took her to create a small, simple basket, she told me a minimum of twelve hours. No wonder they were so expensive!
Visiting Charleston would not be complete without a visit to the small but extremely informative Old Slave Mart Museum. This building once housed an open air market that auctioned African American men, women, and children. I learned that, at some point, as many as 40% of slaves entered the U.S. through Charleston! As is usually the case with such museums, it was a very sobering place.
Today was also New Year’s Eve and we celebrated with a delicious dinner at Hank’s Seafood, where we unequivocally experienced southern warmth and hospitality. It was the perfect place to end a magnificent day.
First Shots Fired!
On April 12, 1861, the first shots of the Civil War (1861-1865) blasted at Fort Sumter, a pentagon shaped, man-made island, located at the entrance of the Charleston harbor. Confederate militia commander PGT Beaugard, bombarded the US garrison at Fort Sumter, starting a 34-hour stand-off. Union commander Robert Anderson and his troops surrendered and confederate troops took over the fort, occupying it for the next 4 years.
The Civil War had started. It claimed more than 70,000 casualties and redefined American history.
“I looked to see my hands, to see if I was the same person now that I was free. There was such a glory over everything. The sun came, like gold through the trees, and over the fields, and I felt like I was in heaven. ”
At the battery we boarded a ferry that brought us to the fort. Due to Covid-19, we all sat socially distanced in plastic lawn chairs. All of us wearing facemasks, of course. Bert was super excited because being a Civil War buff, visiting Fort Sumter had been a long time dream of his. And it showed in the amount of pictures he took!
Upon getting closer, it was clear why this fort was so important to possess. It being strategically located in the middle of the entrance of the very busy harbor allowed for the Confederates to create a valuable gap in the Union blockade of the Atlantic seaboard.
Once arrived, we were greeted by a park ranger who offered a general historical overview of what happened at Fort Sumter. I loved how the man subtly spread the message of unity, love, and tolerance, concepts that lack in our society lately.
Now we were ready to wander around and explore the fort. Original cannons were on display throughout and here and there shell casings were still stuck in the walls. Some of the cannons were impressive and they weighed no less than 50,000 pounds!
The hour went by quickly and soon it was time to return to the ferry. The ride back was windy and I was glad I brought my packable jacket. Others on board were not so lucky.
Boone Hall Plantation
The area around Charleston boasts lots of plantations and visiting one that has a majestic allée has been on my bucket list for years! We opted for a visit to one of America’s oldest plantations still in operation: Boone Hall.
Our visit started at the grand Avenue of the Oaks where 88 oak trees were evenly spaced left and right on a gravel road. The massive Spanish moss draped branches that met overhead, formed an impressive and beautiful natural arch. How majestic it was!
As soon as we started driving through the tunnel of oaks, the theme song of the popular 1980’s North and South miniseries popped into my head. Indeed, this actual lane was the one leading to Mont Royal, the home of Orry Main, a character played by Patrick Swayze in the famous TV show.
Bordering the magnificent Avenue of the Oaks were 9 original brick slave cabins that used to house craftsmen and house servants. These small houses were strategically build by the entrance so it was the first thing visitors would notice upon entering the domaine. It was one way for the plantation owner to show off his wealth. Field hands however, lived in wooden shacks, out of sight, out in the field.
Luckily, we had brought our hiking boots because after an entire night of rain, the grounds were extremely muddy. We planned on walking out to the cotton fields instead of going on the tractor ride. There were too many people too close together to my liking in that wagon anyways. After all, corona was still very prevalent! And I was happy we walked because the gardens were gorgeous. The path ran next to the river, to the lake, into the swamp, (where we saw tons of elusive Wood Ducks!) and out to the fields.
We also quickly walked through the mansion, which wasn’t very impressive in part because the house was not the original. But I did learn that another movie was filmed here. This very manor was used as Allie’s summer house in the movie The Notebook. And apparently Ryan Gosling once stood in the rain on the banks of the river bordering the plantation. Who knew?
Along I95
Interstate 95 is the main north to south interstate on the East Coast. It runs all the way from Florida to the Canadian border, basically paralleling the Atlantic. So there was no escaping this treacherously busy freeway. To escape traffic here and there, we made side trips. One such stop was at the Angel Oak Tree on John’s Island. This live oak tree is estimated to be 400-500 years old and is claimed to be the oldest east of the Mississippi. It stands 65 feet (20 m) tall, has a circumference of 25.5 feet (7.5 m) and covers a shading area of no less than 17,000 square feet (1580 square meters)! That’s one very old, colossal tree!
Live oaks are native to the lowlands of the coastal Carolinas and tend to grow outward instead of up. As with most live oaks, ferns decorated the massive Angel Oak and draping Spanish moss adorned the gigantic branches. Some of these branches were so big that they needed to be supported with beams and metal cables! All three of us stood in awe!
Maarten had read about the ruins of the Prince William Parish Church, also known as Old Sheldon Church, and wanted to go take a peek. The Greek revival style church was build circa 1751-1757. It was partially burned by British troops during the Revolutionary War and rebuild again. After the Civil War, the building was plundered by civilians who needed materials to reconstruct their houses damaged during the war. The ruin we saw was all that was left.
I found the setting rather eerie with all the crumbling gravestones surrounding the ruins, but at the same time the place radiated serenity and tranquility. I was happy we made the small detour because the place made for some beautiful pictures.
Our last stop before making it to Savannah, Georgia, was Edisto Island. Our plan was to visit the Botany Bay Plantation Wildlife Area but for some reason it was closed that day. What a bummer! I was really looking forward to walk on the undeveloped beach that is known for its abundance of dead oak skeletons. We had to make do with the less picturesque nearby state beach.
Savannah
In 1732, James Oglethorpe, a British soldier, member of Parliament, and philanthropist, sailed to the American Colony to establish the Colony of Georgia. Oglethorpe and the 114 colonists who joined him, founded Savannah in 1733, making it the oldest city in Georgia.
The entire city was build according to the Oglethorpe plan which uses a distinctive layout that alternates residential and commercial blocks with small green parks in the middle. The idea was to create walkable neighborhoods with a tight knit community. I found the entire design very cute and pleasant and I could see how people would gather in the green squares to catch up on the daily gossip. Even today, locals and tourists alike were hanging out on the live oak shaded plazas and I could feel the spirit of amiability and affability.
Just like in Charleston, we followed the suggested Lonely Planet’s walking tour and crossed historic neighborhoods sprinkled with cobblestoned streets, beautiful gardens, and stately mansions with astounding architecture.
We crossed about 20 or so squares and on the last one we decided to sit down, delight in a cup of coffee (chocolate milk for me), take in the the scenery, and enjoy the atmosphere. If it would have been summer, I could easily have sat here reading a good book.
Our walk ended at the City Market where we purchased and sampled Savannah’s famous turtle gophers, a mouth-watering chocolate, caramel and nuts treat. It was very rich and I really could not understand how people devoured multiple at a time. I could barely eat one and I am from the land of chocolates!
We ended our day with and exquisite dinner at one of the fine restaurants around the City Market. It was the prefect ending of a relaxing day.
Bonaventure Cemetery
Gorgeous live oaks dripping with Spanish moss guided us to this quiet, tranquil place. Upon entering we were greeted by giant sculptures and unique statues that were perched over the many tombs. It was peaceful and hauntingly beautiful. It’s not surprising that this cemetery has captured the imagination of so many writers and filmmakers!
One area was dedicated to those killed during the Spanish American War in 1898. I read that it was the second largest in the nation so it was pretty cool to see.
While strolling around we noticed many metal crosses that closely resembled the German iron cross. We were puzzled by it until Maarten noticed the letters CSA, which stand for Confederate States Army. We put two and two together and deducted that the crosses were grave markers for the final resting places of confederate soldiers.
We ended our walk on the edge of the bluff overlooking the Wilmington River and it really was a gorgeous view.
