charleston

Peter and I drove down the Eastern USA to see his sister Kathy who lives in Charletson, South Carolina.

The drive down was crazy fun because ...

- we drove in Peter's new car


- we went from winter to spring in 3 days.

Watch this. Day # 1 = winter

Day # 2 = signs of spring

Rainy in Washington DC. The Lincoln Cenre can be seen through the drops...

As my mother says, "in spring, you can see the leaves growing!"

Day # 3 = spring!!

 


Charletson is an old, old, southern US town founded over 400 years ago. It was one of the richest ports in early America.

Slaves were brought over from Africa and were held on the islands off the coast until they were sold. So the histories of rich rich merchants and poor poor slave workers are part of the stories told in Charleston.

The museum site at nearby Willamsburg is 'animated' meaning that people who work there are given a character to bring to life. They talk with the people visiting the museum and tell their stories about their lives and the events of the day.

Everyday they reenact key events like when they decided to voice their unrest about English rule marking the beginning of the War of Independence.

today children play on these War of Independence cannonballs

In the early days of the new country of the United States, the newly elected President Abe Lincoln, wanted to abolish slavery. After his election, the south tried to separate from the country. Getting rid of slavery would crush the economy of the plantation owners whose wealth was created on the backs of their slaves. The result was the Civil War. Loyal southern Charleston residents pulled out their traditional iron fences and gates and replaced them with wood. The iron was donated to the war and melted down to make into weapons and bullets.




Years have gone by since the north won the Civil War. Charleston's downtown has survived fires and floods. It has seen times of prohibition when rum runners smuggled in rum from the West Indies.

rum runners hid flasks of rum in their brief cases

The economy of Charleston has been hard hit by the recession and there is evidence of this with many homes for sale and signs like this -

Today tourism is a main part of the economy. Historic homes have plaques to tell about their history. People take walking tours or carriage tours.

Peter's sister's house.

The buildings and gardens are gorgeous.

Porch ceilings were painted pale blue to discourage insects.

The gazebo in the famous Battery Park is a favourite place forgetting married.

 

 

Charleston's economy also depends on its fishing.  Of course it is the south so there is that accent.  Listen to this man's story about growing up in Charleston. You can really hear that southern drawl.

We went to a famous seafood restaurant.We sat next to the Beachboys.

Shrimp and grits -  local favourite!

Special events attract even more tourists. The weekend we were there Charleston held a marathon across its Copper Bridge. Many people dress in costume and kick up their heels - literally. After all, it is finally SPRING!!

The Copper Bridge

Oscar Meyer is a favourite brand of hotdog and the Oscar Meyer car is a much loved marketing tool. When it is seen driving around your neighbourhood, kids feel like something is going on!

We decided that next year we will do the Copper Bridge Marathon - the walking version anyway...