Crew Log for November 26th – 28th, 2022
Part 2 of our time in Charleston. Be sure to check out Part 1 in our Crew Log from Awendaw Creek. There is some super cool dolphin video and pictures that Judy took on our way through Isle of Palms.
Not to spoil the ending to this blog, but we were looking forward to Charleston, and our time here lived up to our expectations. We had a great weekend of socializing with some good friends and got to spend 3 days in one of the historic cities in the US.
We left early for the French Quarter to do a little exploring on our own. We were within walking distance but decided to Uber down and walk back. Besides, we have discovered that the right Uber driver was better than any city guide for pointing you in the right direction. “David”, originally from the Bronks in NYC, was no exception.
Before we even settled in car he asked us if we had eaten breakfast yet. He had an idea for where we could grab brunch before heading off through the French Quarter. When we asked him where specifically we should go, he simply said, “walk down that way, and crisscross your way along any street that looks interesting”. Which is exactly what we did.
Our day started at Miller’s All Day Restaurant which, as the name suggests, serves breakfast all day. We weren’t sure whether David had delivered all the people dining here, but there was no doubt, it was a favorite spot to eat. Afterwards, as David instructed, we headed off through the residential area of the French Quarter, taking in the historic architecture.
During brunch, we started to notice that several people were dressed in what appeared to be costumes. Out on the street, there several more groups of people in costume, all staring at their phones, making their way through the street of Charleston. It turned out, that it was a game, designed to get people out and walking around the city. The theme was, Alice in Wonderland, and the idea was to collect clues to solve puzzle or maybe find Alice, we weren’t sure. We were definitely in the minority however, of costumeless people.
The houses in Charleston are definitely beautiful. David, our Uber driver, had explained to us on the drive down that the orientation and design was to provide natural cooling during the hot summer months. Every floor had a balcony and homes were all neatly arranged in an organized grid. Most had small outdoor spaces, but the grounds were beautifully landscaped. Several homes also had gas lanterns on either side of their entry way that seemed to burn continuously.
We eventually made our way to the Old Slave Mart Museum, located in the former slave auction building. The museum tells the history of the slave trade, with particular emphasis on Charleston’s role in it. It was an emotional experience for both of us, as we slowly made our way through the displays in silence. There were a number of African Americans going through at the same time, and I could only imagine the emotions they must have felt.
It was Saturday so we made our way down to the historic Charleston City Market. The market is over 200 years old and stretches over 4 city blocks and features traditional handmade sweetgrass baskets, local foods, crafts and souvenirs. It was a little overwhelming given the crowds of people, after spending the better part of the past 3 months isolated on our sailboat. We eventually weaved our way back through the city to the marina and recharged ourselves before my high school mate Heather picked us up.
Heather and I went to the Cobequid Educational Centre High School in Truro together, graduating in 1977. Following graduation, we both attended the Nova Scotia Agricultural College in Truro and the Ontario Agricultural College at the University of Guelph. What makes it “unusual” is we were both “townies” from Truro. She met Dennis and moved to Charleston. They are both the kindest, most thoughtful couple you could ever meet.
Heather had kindly agreed to serve as our temporary parcel drop, in addition to offering to put us up for the evening and making us a South Carolina specialty, Shrimp and Grits for supper. We put the camera and recording paper and pencil away and enjoyed a wonderful evening with Heather and her husband Dennis. We had a lot of laughs and the food was amazing. Heather is a fabulous cook, Dennis is an amazing bartender, and both Heather and Dennis made us feel very much at home. We are very grateful for their generosity.
Our parcels included the usual things boaters order: filters, spare parts, new windows and gaskets. My new phone to fly the drone was in the pile as were our new boat cards that Judy designed back in Rock Hall, Maryland. There was also a letter from home that we missed in Bangor and our friends Andy and Maura kindly forwarded to Heather and Dennis.
We expected it to contain our Tow Boat US card and a rebate cheque for some bottom paint we bought. To our complete surprise and absolute delight, it included a hand written note from Lane, our oldest grandson and pictures he and his sister Kennedy drew for us. It was definitely the most emotional moment for us on this entire trip to read the note and see those pictures. They are still hanging on our bulkhead wall and are unlikely to come down anytime soon. We miss our family so much.
We made our way back to the marina feeling energized and refreshed and certainly well fed. Dennis was even so kind to send us home with the leftover shrimp!
Rick and Marlene, very good friends of ours from Nova Scotia had been in North Carolina visiting their daughter and grandson for the past several weeks. We tried a couple of times to connect, but they had been suffering with some bad colds. Luckily for us, they agreed to make the trip to Charleston and spend the day with us here.
Family and friends are very important to us, and so it has been hard at times to be so far away from familiar faces. The holidays are particularly difficult. We have met a lot of people who I hope will remain friends long after this adventure is over. However, the nature of travelling on a boat is it is easy to very quickly get separated from new friends. Which is why it was so nice that we got to spend time with Heather and Dennis and Rick and Marlene. It was especially fun to have them all on Elizabeth M together!
In addition to our friendship, we have one other thing to be grateful to Rick and Marlene for. When we set up the blog months ago, one of the first people to join was someone who’s name we didn’t recognize. Eventually we received the nicest note from our new follower, who turned out to be Marlene’s Mom, who lives in New Brunswick. She occasional sends us a note, sometimes with a picture, which always brings a smile to our face.
Being fellow sailors, Rick and Marlene appreciated that provisioning and a visit to West Marine were on the top of the priority list. After our shopping trip and once everything was safely packed away on the boat, we headed off to historic Charleston for one last visit. Once again we followed David’s (our Uber driver) advice of strolling without a plan. We capped our day off with a nice meal at an Irish Pub and sadly said goodbye to our friends.
We had originally planned to leave the following day, but decided to take advantage of being on the dock and finish up some chores now that our spare parts had arrived. Judy also went off in search of the Post Office to mail some letters to the VIPs back home.
Her search took her through The Citadel, the Military College of South Carolina. It’s origins date back to 1942 and is one of six military colleges in the US. The 300 acre campus is just northwest of downtown Charleston, on the Ashley River. The buildings are said to be built in a “Spanish Moorish” style of architecture.
Energized by visits with friends and warmer temperatures, spirits were high on Elizabeth M. However, our enthusiasm was short lived.
But more about that, next time.
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