Our base camp here in Charleston, is the Planters Inn. It is located at the corner of Market Street and Meeting Street and without really knowing exactly where it was, we found it by feel yesterday. It was easy to find because old Charleston is built on a peninsula and it narrows as you work your way south from US 17. With Mrs. Gym acting as reluctant navigator, we inched south and eventually hit Market Street at a point about a block from the hotel.
This is a swank boutique hotel that is right in the middle of the action. We have a wonderful big room with a separate sitting area and two bathrooms. The second bathroom was nice today when we had less than an hour to wake up and get ready for a full day of touring. In addition, I can leave the seat up in my bathroom, if I choose.
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| bedroom |
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| sitting room |
We had a full day today. We explored the oldest parts of Charleston by horse-drawn carriage and later on foot. We also took a boat ride out to Fort Sumter which was built on a man-made island out in Charleston harbour.
Last night we had pre-arranged the carriage tour which was set for 9:30. The carriage was to pick us up at the front door and when we strolled down at 9:20; there it was waiting for us. Our guide Ann, was at one end of the reins and Henry the horse, was at the other. We jumped in and proceeded down a predetermined route which took us by many of Charleston's historic landmarks and many of its beautiful antebellum (pre-Civil War) homes. Ann was a great entertainer and because this was a private tour we had a wonderful introduction to the city.
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| Ann |
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| Henry |
Right after the carriage tour, we decided to take the noon cruise to Fort Sumter, out at the eastern end of Charleston Harbour. The site is a National Monument, so it is ably managed by the U.S. National Park Service. The ride out and back again was smooth and a recorded narrative was provided on the boat. When we got to the island a park ranger provided a detailed account of the battle that began the Civil War. The most amazing part about the story of the battle was that after a 34 hour bombardment of the fort by numerous surrounding confederate batteries, which fired thousands of times, there were no casualties.
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| approaching Fort Sumter from Charleston |
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| re-mounted cannon facing Charleston harbour from inside the fort |
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| This illustration depicts what the fort looked like in 1860 before the Civil War |
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| monument to the Union troops that endured the confederate attack (note that there was a James Moore here too) |
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| looking back over the ruins of the fort toward Charleston |
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| the flags that flew over Fort Sumter during the Civil War include the two Confederate Flags at the top, the North Carolinian flag in the middle and the two U.S. flags at the bottom (the U.S. had added two states from the first flag to the second) |
Following the Ft. Sumter tour we had lunch and walked back along the route we had covered in the carriage, to take some pictures of some of the stuff we missed getting good shots of earlier in the day. Here are some of Mrs. Gyms photos of Old Charleston:
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| St. Philip's Church on Church Street |
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| Old Exchange and Provost Dungeon |
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| One of the numerous beautiful antebellum mansions |
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| The Calhoun Mansion. This guy was a blockade runner during the Civil War and because he was paid in gold he did very well. |
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| the last cobblestone street |
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| White Point Gardens and The Battery at the tip of the peninsula |
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| another beautiful home |
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| and another |
We leave here tomorrow and head back to Miami so that Mrs. Gym can enjoy the rest of our vacation on South Beach. Stay tuned!
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