Charleston, South Carolina

One of the highlights of our trip was a walking tour of Charleston, South Carolina. We had our travel trailer parked at Edisto Island State Park campground. The drive into Charleston took us about one hour. It had been many years since I'd been to Charleston. A few days after Hugo hit, in fact. So it had been pretty much twenty years to the day since I'd set foot in that city. And of course it was nothing like the ruin I had witnessed then.

If there was a city in the deep South where I could retire and be happy to live in, it would likely be Charleston. The downtown area around the Battery is absolutely charming and glaringly beautiful. There's real history here. As close to true old history as you're likely to encounter here in the USA. The houses hint of a time long gone; the streets still seem something like those days; the people are the same faces that would look back at you should you have found yourself walking those avenues two hundred years ago.

Carole and I had a great time walking around downtown. We shopped on Market Street and had lunch at a nice open air restaurant. We then strolled up and down streets and alleys taking it all in. We walked along the water and looked out into the bay. We took photos of old churches and monuments. Returning on the wide loop we traced on those brick roads we stopped and had expensive, rich ice cream cones.

It was a wonderful way to share the day, and we both had a lot of fun.

This is where we parked on Market Street to shop and begin our two-hour walking tour.

Very happy me in the open-air restaurant where we had lunch.

Carole shopping in the mall along Market Street.

One of many scenic street views along our walk.

Carole splashing around in a public fountain near The Battery.

I like all of the horse-drawn carriages around. We thought about taking one of these tours, but opted for a self-guiding walkabout.

Obligatory photo with cannon and mortars.

One amazing part of the city are the vast numbers of stunning old homes and apartments.

What's a walking tour of Charleston without taking a shot of a cemetery? I took this photo and for some reason it came out all wonky! Discolored and pixilated! Were the spirits at work? Who knows??!!

This was a monument in honor of the Confederate (and apparently gay) defenders of Fort Sumter.