Savannah day 2 and 3

Typical tree shrouded street in Savannah

We came to Savannah with high expectations based on everything we had read, and people with whom we had talked. To say that those expectations were met in triplicate would be to understate our experience. With the lone exception of the "visitor center parking lot EVENT" we have thoroughly enjoyed driving around and walking around this genteel city. When I used to see pictures of Savannah showing the tree shrouded streets I always thought...."well, that's probably the one they preserved" in my own cynical way, BUT a street without Spanish moss covered trees overhanging both sides seems to be the exception. My only complaint is that the heavy tree canopy really interfers with satellite radio......lol.....a minor inconvenience!

On Friday, day 2, we did some shopping and then headed down to downtown Savannah. We eventually ended up on River Street, which not surprisingly, runs along the Savannah River. They have preserved the old cobble stone streets in this area, as well as the old trolley tracks. You can actually drive along this street, but it is not a smooth ride, especially in a low slung T-Bird like we have. After a couple of eye teeth rattling blocks we found a parking lot with an open space, and quickly parked. We wandered around for a couple of hours along the river, which was packed with tourists.....mostly "older" folks like ourselves who are retired. The one thing you notice quickly is that almost every structure has some historical significance with an appropriately placed plaque explaining why you should be interested. The second thing you notice is how many parks there are. Seriously.....every couple of blocks you see a park....some are placed right in the middle of the street, and you must drive around them to continue......kind of a square version of the traffic circle we see being used more today. The third thing is all the large statues, obilisques and fountains.....beautifully ornate fountains!

Beautiful fountains eveywhere you go


Monuments wherever you go...this was in Forsyth Park


City Hall

An example of the ubiquitous historical significance signs

Riverboat tours on River Street

Afte a couple of hours we were getting a little thirsty and decided to try and find a local brew pub, and the first up on my Google search on my Android phone was The Distillery located right near the civic center and visitor's center. So, we headed over there for a beer and a snack before heading "home". I love dark, robust Porters and Stouts, so I chose the Lost Abbey Serpent Stout weighing in at 11% alcholol by volume, and my wife, also a fan of stout beer, chose the Founder's Porter. We chased our beer with some great onion rings. Drinking that 11% beer was like drinking 2 pints of any other stout, or porter I've had, but very, very yummy....not the kind of beer you guzzle down, but the kind you sip slowly savouring each swallow.

After our bried interlude at The Distillery we headed home, and sat outside talking as the sun set on another day of our adventure eventually being chased back inside the the "no seeums" .

Saturday, our 3rd day, we met up with our niece, Katie Parker (daughter of Elaine's younger sister), who is attending SCAD (Savannah College of Art and Design), at a local cafe called Clary's

for breakfast, which was featured in the recent film, Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. After breakfast Katie took us on a tour of her favorite spots around town, and toured a few buildings including Montgomery Hall Digital Media Center where Katie spends a lot of time working on animation, which is her specialty......SCAD is unusual in that it has no central campus.....it occupies buildings all over Savannah......one building is the SCAD Theater which hosts art films, and and local bands. We took a walk around Forsyth Park. A very big park with a lot going on this Saturday......a farmers market at one end, a SCAD orientation for newly admitted students.....a group playing frisby football, various groups doing jazzercize, or something like that, and others just like us....walking and talking and enjoying the ambience.

Colonial Park Cemetery

Yes, the water really is GREEN!

Katie dropped us back at our car after 3 hours, and we thanked her for spending time with us old foggies, and then headed over to Colonial Park Cemetery. This cemetery is very close to St. John the Baptist Cathedral. It was opened in the early 1700's, and closed aroud 1830, but is now preserved by a local preservation group. I always find it very interesting to walk through old cemeterys.....you can learn a lot about the history of a town, and of course, there were many of the historically significant plaques at various crypts and grave sites telling us about the lives of the occupants.

This cathedral is beautiful....I wish we could have gone in side, but there was a worship service in progress at the time we were there.

The lovely Elaine along the Savannah River

We spent another hour or so on our own, and then headed back to our home for the afternoon....tomorrow is moving day, so we'll have to load the T-Bird back up and put our "stuff" away. This RV Park (Red Gate) is a wonderful, quiet park......except for the freight train that rolls through every morning around 6am.....lol. Nevertheless, we recommend this park highly!

Thanks for stopping by!