Charleston

We pulled into Charleston about 1pm and checked in early to our hotel. The girls love this southern hospitality...there were cookies and lemonade awaiting our arrival! After our sweet treat we headed to the Maritime Center where we took a boat tour of the Harbor. Since our time is limited here it was a great way to see over 75 landmarks in Charleston in only an hour and a half. A few highlights that were our favorite, Ft. Sumter, Ft. Moultrie, the USS Yorktown, the Ravenel suspension bridge over the Cooper River (longest in the US, who knew?!), and not on the list but exciting none-the-less…dolphins! So much history about our country...we're all learning so much!

Checking out the pier (and all the elaborate yachts) while we waited for our tour.

Getting ready to board the Carolina Belle for a boat tour of the harbor.

Ft. Moultrie, built to protect South Carolina during the revolutionary war, was made of Palmetto logs which were soft enough they absorbed the shots. They said even cannon balls bounced off the walls! This is why people refer to S.C as the Palmetto state. 

Perfect day for sailing the harbor...forget history, Emma liked the dolphins.

After our tour we scoped out a few of the highlights from land instead of water. We spent some time walking through Battery Park and checking out the cannons and cannon balls. This tree lined park was the perfect way to escape the heat and take a relaxing stroll through the heart of Charleston. Walking along the harbor was beautiful and the houses on our walk to the park were huge.

After sightseeing downtown Charleston we headed over to Mt. Pleasant to check out Patriots Point. We were hoping to eat at the Vickery (a delish little seafood place where you can overlook the harbor and watch the dolphins) but there was an event going on in Patriot’s Point and it was CRAZY busy down there. No parking, tons of people, traffic was at a standstill. We opted for Coleman Public House. It was…ehh. Mark got the shrimp and grits and I had the fish tacos, but we left really wishing we could have eaten at the Harbor.

We thought tonight would be a great night to get the girls to bed a bit earlier and bring a little normal back to our lives. However, these outdoor pools in the Carolina heat just call our names. After a nice little evening dip we headed up to the room for a little shut eye. Big day tomorrow at the plantation.