Charleston
Moving from the Bristol Marina on the Ashley River, we passed by the place where a spark ignited civil war. Throughout Charleston, there are little clues to the great pride South Carolina takes in being at the forefront of secession. And, the shelling of Fort Sumter cascaded into horrible consequences for a divided nation. The rich and beautiful historic buildings and massive live oak parks are a thin veil hiding the system founded upon the inhumane enslavement of Africans. While there are many complications to this history, it is fortunate that the Union prevailed and emancipation became a reality. Sad that the vestiges of the system endure, overtly and subtley, directly and indirectly influencing the too-long, continuing recovery from this long national nightmare. https://newrepublic.com/article/148618/persistence-whitewashing
Only tour boats are allowed to dock at Ft Sumter - what a small place to have had such a big part in beginning of the Civil War. Glad to see the most prominent monuments in town celebrate Revolutionary heroes rather than the Confederacy. Stars and Bars battle flags were nowhere to be seen.
We moved to the Charleston Harbour Resort Marina. Their advertisements boasts that they have an effective state-of-the-art wave dampening breakwater. Well, it might be state of the art, but the occasional wake rocks our boat and the floating docks like a mild earthquake, casting doubt on the effective claim. The marina is nice, but clearly was nicer when it was new. Maintenance is losing the battle with wear and tear. Not quite up to first-class resort standards, except for the price of a slip, electric and $18 resort activity fee!
The most useful amenity is the free shuttle across the Cooper River to downtown Charleston. We walked up and down the City Market, and walked to Marion Square to see the Picollo-Spoletto art show. There were many talented artists interpreting the regional landscape in various styles and media. One local artist exhibited at Tallahassee's Art in the Park festival in April. He does very realistic paintings of garden birds.
The South Carolina Aquarium exceeded our expectations. With an interesting layout, similar to the design of other major aquariums, this attraction is a bit smaller, but very well done. We especially liked the turtle rehab exhibit, that took a different approach than the design we developed for the Jekyll Island Georgia Sea Turtle Center. Very well done and creative.
With a lot of walking around and enjoying a number of restaurants, one stands out - Kaminsky's Desert Cafe and Bar. It has wonderful selection of desert cakes and pies, and are very reasonably priced.
With great food, interesting history, beautiful landscape and architecture, we will be leaving Charleston behind and moving on up the ICW.
6.2-3.2018
June
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| We could learn from the trials of our forbearers and see the perils of today's deeply divided nation. |
Only tour boats are allowed to dock at Ft Sumter - what a small place to have had such a big part in beginning of the Civil War. Glad to see the most prominent monuments in town celebrate Revolutionary heroes rather than the Confederacy. Stars and Bars battle flags were nowhere to be seen.
We moved to the Charleston Harbour Resort Marina. Their advertisements boasts that they have an effective state-of-the-art wave dampening breakwater. Well, it might be state of the art, but the occasional wake rocks our boat and the floating docks like a mild earthquake, casting doubt on the effective claim. The marina is nice, but clearly was nicer when it was new. Maintenance is losing the battle with wear and tear. Not quite up to first-class resort standards, except for the price of a slip, electric and $18 resort activity fee!
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| It's gets bouncey on the boat when the big ships pass by! |
The most useful amenity is the free shuttle across the Cooper River to downtown Charleston. We walked up and down the City Market, and walked to Marion Square to see the Picollo-Spoletto art show. There were many talented artists interpreting the regional landscape in various styles and media. One local artist exhibited at Tallahassee's Art in the Park festival in April. He does very realistic paintings of garden birds.
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| Charleston's seawall sidewalk reminiscent of Havana's Malecon |
The South Carolina Aquarium exceeded our expectations. With an interesting layout, similar to the design of other major aquariums, this attraction is a bit smaller, but very well done. We especially liked the turtle rehab exhibit, that took a different approach than the design we developed for the Jekyll Island Georgia Sea Turtle Center. Very well done and creative.
With a lot of walking around and enjoying a number of restaurants, one stands out - Kaminsky's Desert Cafe and Bar. It has wonderful selection of desert cakes and pies, and are very reasonably priced.
With great food, interesting history, beautiful landscape and architecture, we will be leaving Charleston behind and moving on up the ICW.
6.2-3.2018
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