Historic Savannah

After taking a month to rest and recharge, we picked up camp and moved to a little town called Rincon, Georgia, just outside of Savannah. We seem to have fallen into a campground theme with surrounding lakes, this was another beautiful one.

And another one of Rufus's favorites since there were several hiking trails, and plenty of off leash opportunity all around the campground.

The big moss tree on the right above was the infamous "squirrel tree". This park was loaded with them. In fact, owners of the park would be more than happy if every camper would enjoy a squirrel dinner during their stay (I'm not kidding). Rufus would go crazy chasing them around and up this tree. Quite funny to watch as well.

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The whole reason for staying here was of course for it's proximity to downtown Savannah. We ended up visiting the historic city three times in all, and we still left many stones unturned.

Where to begin? On our first visit, we took the local trolley tour. This seemed to be the fastest way to get our bearings and actually learn about the cities history. The fact it took over 100 years to complete the original town design was fascinating. It was all based on the "squares" (Oglethorpe Plan). When all was said and done - 118 years later - there were 24 squares in all in a nice, neat grid system. The squares are named in honor or in memory of a person or historical event. Many contain monuments, markers, memorials, statues, plaques, and other tributes.

 The next trip in, we had a pretty good idea of the layout, and with map in hand, set out on foot to explore.

 We learned about the city being based on the cotton exchange and shipping ports, which today is one the busiest ports in the country. Savannah is one of the fastest growing, and most visited cities in the U.S. IN the old days, "cotton factors" would walk these bridges above the passing wagons to evaluate  and set the market value of their cotton.

It was suggested by many to visit the Pirate House, which is the oldest house in Georgia (est. 1837). We stopped for lunch and marveled at the small rooms and aging structure.

Because of how long it took to complete the entire grid, the architecture is very diverse. The range of architectural styles from one corner of the city to the next was fascinating.

We wandered about the cities squares all day.

During our daytime walking tour we stumbled upon an Irish Pub and agreed to return for our final evening in Savannah. The food and atmosphere did not disappoint. It was also fun to see the city at night.

Savannah was yet another city on our very long list of places that we would like to revisit.

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I'm going to close this entry here and actually post/publish the last seven blog entries I've just finished writing. I never realized what it would take to keep up with our travels through a blog. We've already moved clear down to Beaumont, Texas and I'm just finishing here Savannah. Next stop is Key West.

I'll leave you with this some mall art, which was the largest indoor Christmas display I've ever seen.

Thanks for reading!

Everything goes better with Coca-Cola

It was time to settle down for a month and Perry, Georgia was our destination.

We had been moving around pretty quickly, a week here and a couple days there. It starts to take it's toll. We were pretty exhausted. New England can be brutal to navigate. Traffic moves pretty fast. Combine that with a highway system that's the oldest in the country and you get stress.

Staying somewhere for a month can also cut down on your expenses. Averaging $40 dollars a night for campgrounds and at least $100 a day in fuel can add up pretty fast. We can usually get a decent monthly rate between $400 and $500, and we obviously use a lot less fuel.

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We traveled through Selma, NC stopping at a campground on the inter coastal waterway near Myrtle Beach, SC. We watched ships of all sizes pass through the swinging gate bridge.

 We spent Halloween here and made some friends. We were entertained by the local High School kids renting the park for a huge Zombie themed haunted trail. And a very young couple - recently married - performed a small, but professional magic show. Announcing themselves with a new show name and starting their formal career as magicians. What an adventure that will be!
  

Probably the biggest event in Myrtle, was Rufus at the beach. This was his first real introduction to the beach and sea. He ran and splashed through the surf and really enjoyed himself.

We spent a day walking along the Mertyl Beach boardwalk and watched the catfish and ducks fight over tiny fish food pellets. A huge KISS coffee shop...really? : )

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Finally arriving in Perry, Georgia we were immediately welcomed by a butterfly and Miss Georgia with her dog Lilly, our next door campers for the month. Georgia had all the southern hospitality we've come to expect down here. Later in the month went to dinner with our other neighbors Nancy and Rick. We all had a celebratory campfire the night before we left.
This was definitely one of the friendlier campgrounds we've stayed in.

 

Because of some canceled flights from the previous years travels, we were left with two tickets that needed to be used before our usual Christmas break. So we knew part of this month was going to be spent traveling back to Spokane.

We did have a couple of very specific places to see while we were here in Perry. Sheila and I are both suckers for museums, zoo's and aquariums. We were in luck as they had two of the three in Atlanta, just an hour or so up the road.

They advertise the Atlanta Aquarium as the largest in North America. It was very modern and had some extremely large indoor tanks. I remember the day was frigidly cold. We just wanted to be indoors. Given it was still only mid-November, I guess this was just an early taste of the brutal winter Atlanta would endure this year.

One of my favorites...the whale shark!

And Sheila's all time favorite, the Lion fish.

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As I grow more mature, (older) I enjoy opportunities to learn more about history. We learned of Coca-Cola's beginnings in Atlanta and spent the day at their museum.

The tasting room was always packed, and supported flavors from all over the world. I remember a few that I thought were so awful, I didn't understand how anyone could drink them.

They had some pretty cool technology on display as well. Sheila enjoyed playing with a digital camera-screen that painted your image as you moved around.

Next years Christmas Cards?

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 One quick side trip before we left Perry, was visiting the Hay House built in 1855. A historic home just outside Perry in Macon. Unfortunately they would not allow photography inside (as was the case with many of the historic homes in Georgia. But we did a couple outdoor shots.

 The architecture designed in Italian Renaissance Revival style was phenomenal.

18,000 square feet, two families through three generations.

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Time to close this entry with yet another piece of art created from an aquarium photo.

Thanks for reading!