Way Down South

We left Mississippi on Thursday and headed back to the Eastern Time Zone destined for Charleston, South Carolina! I have wanted to visit Charleston for the past couple of years, so I was glad we finally got to visit! Perhaps I’ve read too many Southern Living magazines?? 🙂

We arrived late on Thursday night and pulled up to the canopy outside of our hotel. They have valet parking (which we paid for of course), so we had help unloading our bags and then they whisked our car away for us! We stayed at the Mills House Hotel, right in the heart of the historic district. It was a nice hotel and far better than what we are used to – most of the time we stay in cheap hotels to save money!

We walked over to the battery and then wandered down to the ferry that was heading over to Fort Sumter. Even though Kevin was on his spring break from teaching, there was no way we were leaving Charleston without seeing where the Civil War began! I’m married to a history teacher, remember??!!  I actually really enjoyed the afternoon.  The ferry ride was great and the park ranger was actually pretty interesting.

We were pretty hungry after the tour, so we enjoyed a casual meal at the hotel outside on the patio (we had a $50 credit from the hotel since I got the dining package – only $5 extra each night so paid for iteself with the credit alone).  Later that day, we walked around Market Street, which hosts quite a few street vendors as well as restaurants and other touristy things like carriage rides. We had originally planned to eat a casual cheap dinner and then visit a place for dessert that a friend had recommended. But, when we walked right past the dessert cafe, we decided that we’d make dessert our dinner!  Did I mention that we ate quite a bit on this trip??!!

On Saturday morning, we met up with one of Kevin’s childhood friends at The Mustard Seed (another local place that was recommended) over in Mt. Pleasant.  The prices were definitely reasonable and you get a lot of bang for your buck there. Since he was a local, he recommended some less touristy places on Sullivan’s Island (a neighboring island across from Charleston).  On the way to Pratt Street bridge (which has great views), we just had to stop by Ft. Moultrie (I’m such a good wife, aren’t I??).  From what I remember, this fort was around before Ft. Sumter and is the fort from which the confederates shot on Ft. Sumter at the beginning of the Civil War.

Later that night, Kevin and I had reservations at a fantastic restaurant called Magnolia’s.  It was expensive but wonderful (and our dining package was helpful again since we had a $100 gift card to spend there).  After dinner, we booked a Ghost carriage tour at sunset.  Although I don’t really believe in all the ghost stories they tell, it was still pretty cool.  The guide told us a lot of random facts about the city as well as the common anecdotes and stories about Charleston.  It was just nice to sit back and have someone drive us around for an hour too!

We had to check out on Sunday morning, so we spent most of the morning packing up.  We did enjoy a nice brunch before we left for our drive back to Richmond.  I can actually say that I’ve now eaten caviar!  I can’t say that I really tasted it though since it was on top of a potato that had some sort of cream cheese mixture on it.  Fancy, huh??  I probably wouldn’t have eaten it if I thought I could taste it, but it was so little, I was ok with it.

Well, I have probably bored most of you with this super long post, but I just had such a nice time that I couldn’t help but share!  If any of you are looking for a nice weekend getaway with beautiful scenery and warm weather, I think Charleston is right up your alley.  I’ve already told Kevin that I want to go back and I also want to check out Savannah, Georgia.  We’re hoping to make some weekend trips this summer, so we’ll see how that goes!

Thanks for all your prayers and thoughts while we were on vacation.  It was a wonderful trip and Kevin and I will cherish the memories we made there!