the last of my Charleston Posts

Okay, now that I'm rehydrated, after my visit to Charleston, and finished showing you photos of the

Middleton Plantation, the wedding, and the lovely ladies we brought with us.... now, I'm ready to show you a few of my photos from Charleston. The above photo was taken from Waterfront Park, and is a lovely (if dim) shot of a nice sailing sloop, with that Fort Sumter in the far distance at the left.

Fort Sumter guards the entrance to Charleston Harbour, and is reknowned for firing the opening shot of the civil war.

The building to the right is known as the Royal Exchange (also known as the Old Exchange and provost dungeon). This building was built in 1771, and we had an opportunity to tour the building. The third floor is a ballroom, where George Washington once attended, and danced... and more recently Prince Charles was entertained.

The very same building was also used to to trade goods, as well as slaves.

The Irony is that this is also the same building where South Carolina ratified the Declaration of Independence from England, and they were quick to point that out to Bonnie Prince Charles when he was there.

The Dungeon was used to detain such notable figures as Blackbeard the pirate, Arthur Middleton (owner of a local plantation and one of the signers of the Declaration of Independance) and used by the British to detain freedom fighters from the Revolutionary War.

Now... no description of Charleston would be complete without showing you a few shots of the charming, charming homes and the cobbled streets. Ain't this charming... can't you just envision (in the theatre of your mind), this street traveled by horse and carriage, when Charleston was "Charles Town"? Yeah, me too.

Charleston is known for a style of home native to Charleston called the "Single". A Single was basically a colonial, turned sideways to the street... situated far on one side of a very narrow lot. Today's homes, the front of the house (the wide part) faces the street... but with these Singles... the short side faces the street... and on the side, the house had a long veranda, topped by a balcony (or two)... and the balcony sheltered the house from the sun, and allowed doors and windows to be open during the heat of the day, and during the rain promoting lots of cross ventilation. And take my word for it... in the days prior to air conditioning, every bit of Harbour breeze would have been highly welcome.

As we walked toward the Battery, we encountered many a "for sale" sign. In fact we even came across a Realtor, waiting to show a client a home for $1,175,000... a lovely home, recently redone... new kitchen, new baths... We, of course, spent a few minutes grilling him about the home, and since he didn't have photos, I pulled it up on my phone, and showed our group the photos myself.

We arrived at the Battery, admired the cannons facing into the harbour... and then walked back along the waterfront, 'till we came to our restaurant Magnolia... where I swear to whatever Gods you care to worship... that I gained 6 pounds... a highly successful visit.