Ole Charleston

I made it!! The sea monsters didn't get us, the aliens didn't beam us up, the ghosts of battles past didn't pull us into the watery depths with their apparitious grasp ...we passed unharmed through the Triangle and had a wonderful trip. Obviously, I have a load of pictures, because I always take too many. But, I'm gonna divide them up into a few posts because, well, #1. I want to and #2. I can.

Our first destination was Charleston, South Carrieliney. David and I went a few days before the cruise to tour around and eat. Charleston is known for its beautiful porched homes, incredible architecture, historical significance and oh, delicious food.

But first...on the way...we found a man with the world's greatest mullet. Sorry the picture is wobbly...mulleted people walk at a blinding pace. But, it was amazing. 

Also, in the hotel, this notice...man, I would love that guy's job...to be the administrator of elevators AND amusement rides. They are pretty closely related. 

Okay. Charleston.

Homes & architecture...
This is the oldest church in Charleston...I believe it was Methodist. Dates back to before the Revolution. How crazy is that. People worshipped on these grounds before America was even born.

Almost all of the houses have their own courtyards. Imagine this being your driveway and then having a courtyard the size of a small park. All to yourself. Lucky dogs who are swimming in old family money. Ugh, I hate them. 

Some of the homes at the Charleston Battery. You can rent a few of these...for $1800 a night. 

I normally try to avoid getting people in pictures, but I wanted to use them as perspective so you could see how big these houses were. Think of playing a game of Sardines in one of these...at night...with the lights turned off...while the ghosts of Charleston roamed the hallways.
This is the Ravenel Bridge. Really pretty architecturally. I held the camera out the window to take some pictures. 
Some churches. I loved this ceiling. Looks like a cake. 
Pretty porch.

Historical stuff...I love history...

A lot of the old churches had graveyards...imagine that. Why was little David so scared? 

Because of the girl ghosts that lurked behind every tombstone! Rarrrgh!

We drove across the bridge and visited Patriot's Point. That was a lot of fun. We toured the USS Yorktown. Met a few guys who actually served on the carrier during World War II. They were sprightly fellows...very interesting. 

My favorite thing aboard the Yorktown. A recipe for 10,000 chocolate chip cookies. We're going to make them sometime to see how they tasted to the soldiers. We'll, of course, reduce the recipe proportionally...maybe...we'll see...depends on how hungry I am. 

Creepiest thing ever. This was a dummy in the operating room of the ship. I walked by and was like "OH! Sorry. Didn't mean to interrupt your surgery. Carry on." Then I realized...there's no anesthesia...there's no doctors in here! Malpractice! It will haunt me forever. Also, I think it was a girl dummy. 

Inside the cockpit of the F-blah blah fighter plane. 

We toured the Cold War GUPPY III submarine, the USS Clamagore. Bless its heart...got stuck with a goofy name. It was cool, though. I'm not a claustrophobic person, but had I lived and worked onboard...I probably would have ended up as one of those crazy people your parents tell you about when they don't want you getting up at night to get water.

This is me telling the sailors to "Come on! Up the hatch! Move it, move it! Close the valves...she's taking on water, Captain!" I've seen too many submarine movies...I blame you, Dad. 

We also got to tour the US Coast Guard cutter, the Something. I don't remember the name. The Destroyer to the left was closed for refurbishment. I'm like, what you got to refurbish? It's old. Just leave it alone. 

My 27 year old husband just HAD to "fire" one of the old guns at the Battery in Charleston.

This is one of the original streets of Charleston. 

Food, glorious food...

Some of the pictures are lo-res because of my camera phone, but the food in real life was not lo-res...in fact, it was high-delicious. 

We ate at this cute little hole in the wall place for lunch one day called Boulevard Diner. I got some fried dill pickles and ranch for an appetizer. I cried a little. It...it was amazing. I got some crab cake sliders, too. Smothered in what can only be described as creme de joy. I mean, look at them!

We ate supper at Jestine's Kitchen one night. Best grilled cheese and tomato sandwich and fried okra I've ever had. 
Deliverance? I'm not eating there.

David took me to this fancy shmancy restaurant called Cypress one night. I totally felt out of place because I'm not a fancy shmancy person, but it was a fabulous meal with my darling. 

I had a none other than a crab cake appetizer.

David had a whole crab for supper. The waiter explained to us that you could eat the whole thing because it was soft...but, I mean...that's just wrong. Look at it. David loved it. But you know how I am with multi-legged things.

Dessert was fabulous...and pretty.

For breakfast one morning, we ate at this precious place called Poogan's Porch. An old house turned into a restaurant. Apparently, it's haunted. I do love haunted breakfasts. 

French toast with strawberries and bacon. Perfection on a plate.

Giada and Jim Carey ate there, too. Not with us. They wanted to, but I said nope, table's full. 

Alrighty, so, that's Charleston. Bermuda, part 1, tomorrow. Sadly, there were no Speedo pictures. Nobody wore any Speedos. I have mixed feelings about this...I was sad because, no Speedo pictures...but I was also relieved because, hey, I don't have to look at old men in Speedos.