Ahhhhhhh. Finally, a “normal” Girls Weekend morning. We woke up at about 7, but I went back to bed for a bit just because I could! For those of you who are new to the Girls Weekend travelogue, a “normal” GW morning is pouring coffee, maybe grabbing a yogurt, and sitting down with a laptop to either journal or plan something or just look stuff up because we are complete nerds and love looking stuff up. And that’s exactly what we did. Somewhere around 10AM, Lori went to make us some cheesy scrambled eggs, which we usually have at least four or five times on these trips. It was a joyous, “slow” morning.
Eventually we showered and dressed and set out to explore. We had two items on our agenda today: to visit some cemeteries, which we both enjoy investigating, and to walk the pathway and street loop that Stephanie had suggested to us a few days before.
We left the condo around 1:00pm. Our first stop was the great little coffee shop we discovered the night before, then we walked down East Bay Street for a few blocks before turning east toward the water. Waterfront Park has a wharf that goes way out over the water. The weather was miraculous – the best day yet. Stunningly beautiful crystal-clear blue skies and shimmering water can make one just stop and acknowledge what God has done.
We walked all the way out on the wharf. A four-masted sailboat was gliding by, and we could clearly see Fort Sumter to the southeast. To the north, as Stephanie had promised, was an amazing view of the Arthur Ravenal Jr. Bridge, which spans the Cooper River. When it was completed in 2005, this bridge was the longest cable-stayed bridge of its time in North America and the tallest structure in South Carolina. We snapped a few photos of this bridge from the Aquarium a couple of days ago, but this was an even better view. Lori saw a dolphin, and I tried to get it on video arcing out of the water. I got to see it but missed getting a photo.
These Charlestonians sure do know how to landscape while making outdoor areas comfortable. There were delightful seating areas all over the place, including several covered areas with huge porch swings. We continued walking down Waterfront Park along the eastern edge of the peninsula to the famed Pineapple Fountain, which was installed in the spring of 1990, after Hurricane Hugo. According to the fountain website, pineapple motifs are common in Charleston and represent hospitality. Wading in the fountain is not only allowed, but welcomed, and while we were there a mom watched over her three kids romping in the water and ducking under the spouts that encircled the base of the pineapple.
We veered west from the fountain then turned and started walking south on East Bay Street again, aiming for Rainbow Row. Lori wanted to try to get some photos without all the cars in front and thought that might be possible during the afternoon. It wasn’t, but we enjoyed seeing the houses in full daylight. One of the houses was for sale, so we scanned the barcode and took the virtual tour. We had the option to purchase the home, which is currently on sale for $4,200,000. We're thinking about it.
We first went to Saint Michael’s, a beautiful Anglican (aka Episcopal) church with an attached graveyard. The graves are really packed in close together in these churchyards. There are also gravestones on the brick garden walls. Lori and I had no idea where those people were actually buried, because the markers were above other graves with headstones of their own. These graveyards certainly have a unique kind of beauty, and so much history. Some of the large headstones had the equivalent of entire obituaries carved into them. Many were so weathered with time that they were illegible, but often there were tombstones on graves from the late 1700s through early 1900s that were still clear enough to read fully.
Next, we visited the Unitarian Church, and were delighted to find the church doors wide open. There were some workmen inside when we went in, but they didn’t seem to find it unusual for us to be there, so we wandered and took photos at will. The church had all the grandeur of traditional old churches: huge, beautiful stained-glass windows, stately columns that went from floor to arched ceiling and then spread their bones out in a spiderweb effect. However, in contrast to many other sanctuaries, this one was bright and sunny, with light (blue, maybe?) walls and white columns. Lori took some great photos of the architectural details.
This church’s website explained that although the footpaths in their graveyard were kept clear enough to walk through, they allowed the flora in and around the actual graves to go unchecked. On one wall of that graveyard there was an opening in the wall to another graveyard next door, which actually belonged to another church—we didn’t go to the front to get the name of this church. There was a stark difference between the two churchyards. There were no trees in this second one, and the grass was closely cut. Lori and I both preferred the semi-wildness of the Unitarian Church graveyard.
We had passed St. Phillip’s several times throughout the week, and Lori was excited about the separate cemetery which looked to be full of live oaks dripping with gorgeous Spanish moss. By the way, this plant is neither Spanish, nor is it moss. It is actually an air plant that is not parasitic and does not harm the trees on which it grows. Also, you should never touch Spanish moss as it is usually infested with chiggers and could mean quite some discomfort for you. We reached St. Paul’s only to be disappointed. The church itself was open, but despite what was posted on their website, both the graveyard and cemetery were closed. Poor Lori was so disappointed!
One of my favorite souvenirs to bring back home for Eric is a sample of a local beer, but we had not seen a single liquor store the whole time we've been here. So, Lori headed back to the condo while I went on a mission. I found a liquor store online that was a half mile away. It was a lovely little corner store . . . that had no beer, because in South Carolina, liquor stores only sell wine and liquor. Grocery stores sell beer. Fortunately, there was a Harris Teeter right across the street.
On the way back from the grocery I passed one of the huge houses that were always facing sideways—in other words they took up minimal street frontage but went way deep into the property and had long front, or side, porches. The door to the street, which looked like a typical front door, actually led onto the porch, not into the house. Then you walked down the porch to reach the actual front door to the house. Supposedly, the houses in Charleston were sideways to take the best advantage of the local wind and shield interiors from the most intense sun. Indeed, after I read this, I realized that the houses were only sideways on the streets that run north and south. On the east to west streets, the houses faced the street, like “normal”. In the Meridian Kessler neighborhood in Indianapolis there are several of these sideways houses. I wondered whether the same thought process was behind the design of those houses too.
I passed the market on the way back and turned to cruised through it for a couple of blocks. I had been looking for a small size backpack and found exactly what I wanted! It’s made of cork, super soft, and naturally water resistant. It was also somewhat expensive, but it’s Girls Weekend, so the backpack is now mine.
Once back at the condo, Lori and I did a bit of packing, wondering where on earth the time had gone! Unbelievably, this was our last night. The ridiculous debacle with my plane ticket was still ongoing, and I did not hear back from Orbitz, so it was a good thing I had purchased that one-way ticket as a backup. I’ll have to continue that fight when I’m back at home.
We made the last of our Hello Fresh meals, then played 2 or 3 rounds of Blokus, a cool little game I had owned for YEARS but never played. If you like word games and puzzles, you will like this game. I had the travel version that didn’t take up much room in my suitcase. After the game we settled down to watch the rest of Season 1 of The Morning Show. WOW. What a series. We were sad we won’t be able to watch the rest of it together unless we wait a whole year. Plus, I don’t have Apple TV. Ah well. Unable to stretch time any longer, we finally went to bed.
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