May 18 - May 31 Charleston

Ivory Lady & Navigator were certainly ready for a little "rest & repair" - as were the Four Amigos!  The two weeks flew by with a great combination of boat maintenance/repair, enjoying the treasures of this Southern Lady known as Charleston and great visits with friends & family.  

We had the pleasure of spending an afternoon with Gene & Georgie Wambold from the Marathon Yacht Club.  We started with lunch at the Harbor Club and then a gentle walk to their home at 26 Queen Street.  Gene has been there since the late '90s in this 1703 townhome with private garden & lovely backhouse.  The furnishings and artwork rival many museums, while still being a gentile place to live!  Gene & his first wife, Joyce (Gene said it was all Joyce) filled the home with artwork, original documents from numerous US Presidents include our 2^nd President John Adams, antique silver, crystal and furniture that dates back hundreds of years. The backhouse is a cozy two-bedroom residence that shares the garden and is a haven in the midst of this vibrant city.   It's a lovely spot -- and they enjoy being a SNOB (read on to understand this designation!).  





The "carriage door" in the front of Gene's home is so spectacular (he varnishes it multiple times of year) that it is currently on the front of the Charleston Visitors' Map!

Circular Congregational Church

The following evening, CB & AJ connected with Gene & Georgie for an experience at the Circular Congregational Church for the "Sounds of Charleston".  A fabulous evening of music - from Gospel to Gershwin - that runs all year with an array of musicians concluding with Rhapsody in Blue (Gershwin) with four hands on a single keyboard and Amazing Grace, written by John Newton in 1779 following spending several weeks at the Church prior to his return to England.

The Amigos all thoroughly enjoyed Drayton Hall, the oldest preserved South Carolina plantation open to the public.  Built in 1738, this 630 acre indigo and rice plantation is under the care of the National Preservation Trust (not renovated) which allows one to see the original construction unaltered and gives an insight into the lives of the early inhabitants from their perspective.  Our tour guide was an archaeologist of the Revolutionary War Period and she was amazing in her ability to paint a mental picture of the lives of the Drayton family, who remained the owners & caretakers of the structure until 1967.

Memorial weekend gave CA & PC a great opportunity to welcome their daughter & son-in-law, spending some quality time and having fun sharing Charleston with them.  A trip to Middleton Plantation up the Ashley River (construction began in early 1730s) was amazing.  Endowed with the actual furnishings of the Middleton family, it was a wonderful tour back in time to the life of one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence.  On the plantation was a truly unique restaurant that served a daily buffet of Southern Food that was excellent - PC fell in love with Fried Chicken again!

The next day was a carriage ride through the historic “South of Broad” district. They learned that the early city of Charleston was divided.  Those South of Broad street were the well-to-do and those North were less affluent.  Those Slightly North of Broad could still claim respectability but instead of being SOBs (South of Broad) they were considered SNOBs (Slightly North of Broad - remember the comment earlier!?!)).  This IS the same city that claims that Charleston is where the Ashley and Cooper Rivers join to form the Atlantic Ocean!

Fountain at Charleston Waterfront Park

Lunch at Hominy Grill hoped to recreate the Southern cuisine experience from Middleton Place. While the cuisine didn't quite get there, the consolation prize was a visit by Michael Keaton, who was dining there.

To insure that kids got a "real" boat experience on Navigator, CA treated them to broken toilets, full holding tanks, an air conditioner that only blew hot, and the absolute best – a fire in the topside grill requiring the use of a handy fire extinguisher. Rumor has it that it added a little flavor to the hotdogs!

Meanwhile, CB & AJ headed north to their mountain haven (Dry Dock) with cool nights and delightful days.  Visits with Larry & Nancy Weir (life-long friends), Nephew Jim Davis, Royle & Judith Duff (next door neighbors) and MYC friends, Loyal & Bonnie Eldridge -- along with opening the screen porch (read 5 hours work), gardening & burn-pile (a favorite with AJ) made the four days fly by.

Spoleto Festival USA was in full swing during our stay, which is an annual 17 day compilation of all types of music & dance productions.  CB & AJ were able to fit in an afternoon at the Dock Street Theatre (longest continuous operating theatre in America) for a fantastic chamber music concert.

Angel Oak

The Four Amigos reconnected to complete provisioning and those "boat projects".  Our last day, we found a way to take some time to explore some local & unique sites.   We made a quick stop at Angel Oak - an amazing Live Oak that is estimated to be 800 years old.  The wood in the Live Oaks is so hard & dense that it made excellent wood for ship building - a major source of revenue for the low country in the 1700-1900s.  The wood is so heavy and yet strong that the limbs bend under their own weight, but do not break. When they reach the ground, the pressure is removed and they again start reaching for the heavens, hence the name Angel Oak.

Next came the Charleston Tea Plantation (the only tea plantation in the US).  We learned that all teas (black, green, oolong, white) come from the same plant -- the Camellia, in this case the Camellia Sinenesis which translates to "Chinese Camellia". The differences are in how they are oxidized (black longest & oolong shorter, green is not) and how they are harvested (white is the flower, not the leaf, and not always recognized as "tea").  In most parts of the world, the harvesting is done by hand, but here they use the "Green Machine" which clips only the tops of the Camellia Sinenesis every 21 days from spring until fall - the plants & weather determine start & ending! The plantation is divided in 20 sections to allow for the methodical harvesting. These are high quality teas are sold under the label of American Classic Tea.  

We hit almost all of the Essentials!

After the "Finery" of the Tea Plantation, we had to make a stop at the Firefly Distillery & Winery! We sampled their wares of tea-infused vodka (tea from Charleston Tea Plantation!), moonshine & liqueurs - and were impressed enough to buy much of their inventory.  

One final dining experience in Charleston - Virginia on King Street was a must!  We had the pleasure of dining with Marathon Yacht Club members, Bob & Sue Grote!  Make no mistake, these ARE the World's Best Shrimp & Grits, a fitting ending to our Charleston Adventure.   Actually, CB & AJ got two evenings with Bob & Sue - and together they discovered an entire new "alley" of restaurants & a "social club" featuring Hemingway motif & cocktails!

We will all keep special memories of our two weeks harbored in Charleston - among them the quote shared with us by the tour guide at the Tea Plantation -- "We Southerners’ wake up each morning very slowly and then for the rest of the day we taper-off ”. 

Navigator Departing Charleston Under the Ben Sawyer Bridge
(they did, of course, go under the correct span - in case you are wondering!)