Charleston

Charleston is beautiful! Part of this has to do with a warming in the weather but mostly it is a pretty harbour town with a lot of charm and character. George and Christine gave me a quick spin around the old town with its grand southern homes and cobblestone streets. The place is dripping with war history as it was a strategic port for both or the American Wars and below you can see a Civil War mortar that faces out towards the small island in the middle of the harbour, Fort Sumter.

Lunch was good southern shrimp and grits (which tastes scrumptiously better than it sounds) with oyster and mussel appetisers.

The afternoon was enjoyed at Middleton Plantation (above) which is more about the grounds than the house because one of the Middletons bankrupted himself supporting the confederate army and then Sherman came in and burned his house down anyway (Sherman did a lot of reaping, pillaging, burning and various other mindless destruction in the south and is not very popular around the traps) and poor old Middleton had no money to rebuild. Later generations have restored the gardens, however, which are extensive and very well manicured. Unfortunately most of the blooms are not yet out so I did not get to see it at it's peak however I feel that spring is definitely on its way!There is much of Charleston that needs closer scrutiny so I plan to return for a few days later in the year.