Waking up in Savannah, knowing that we would be going for a long scenic walk and the rushing up to Charleston, I was immediately distracted. Why? I am normally extremely observant in hotel rooms. I like to note the finer details of the hotel room's design; the eternal battle between form and function. Yet I awoke this morning and looked up to see that I had completely missed a major design element.
Facing the bed, facing my side of the bed, was a piece of artwork depicting an unclothed man. Specifically, an unclothed man whose hands are in positions that are not for a general audience. The Bohemian is taking their bohemianity rather seriously.
I soon found myself in the bathroom, where a most interesting light created this shot.
Look closely at the eyes. There are squares on my eyes.
Squares!
But... how?
Square lighted shaving mirror.
Time for a walk. Or shall we say, since we are in the South, a stroll.
Savannah City Hall. The Bohemian is two buildings to the left of there, in case you wondered.
If you have never been to Savannah, it is home to one of the USA's largest historic districts. Basically, the whole town's center is a National Landmark. Why? Among other reasons, the city's founders decided to design the city around public squares. Every few blocks you come across a square. Now, if you are a loyal Colossal Waste reader you know that one of the things I love most about Europe is their devotion to public space and public art. Piazzas, Plazas, Plaças, Platz's... the idea that the community deserves public spaces within their cities to gather and enjoy sculptures and fountains strikes me as nothing short of wonderful. Needless to say, Savannah's dedication to the concept of placing a public square every few blocks, for a total of 22 within the city, moves it high on my list.
We chose to walk straight up Bull Street from the river, the central street of historic Savannah.
The square closest to City Hall, Johnson Square. Now, every square is named for a person of importance in Savannah's history. That or an historical event. I am not going to look them all up to be a pretend tour guide. Suffice to say that as you walk through Savannah every square has a sign to tell you why said person or even is honored by a square.
Obelisk!
If I had my Savannah walking map handy I could tell you which church this is. But I do not. Did you expect Neo-Classical Greek architecture in Savannah? Maybe you should have.
Pic of a pic. Even the boulders in Savannah are dedicated to history.
Chippewa Square. Barbie and I were kind of shocked to see that Savannah's Jewish people dedicated this grave site to Georgia founder James Oglethorpe. Later, I learned that James Oglethorpe founded the colony of Georgia as a refuge from London's debtor prisons, and established religious tolerance into Georgia's charter, as well as banning the slave trade. So... no wonder the Jews loved him. (Slavery was legalized after Oglethorpe's death.)
I do not want to add it, but I will. This square features the park bench from Forrest Gump. Seriously, though, the British guy who banned slavery and established religious tolerance is more important than Tom Hanks, even if you will never hear the name James Oglethorpe again.
If I had the map, I would tell you the name of this church.
A statue of James Oglethorpe is THERE, in the center of Chippewa Square. The Battle of Chippawa (yes, the square's name and battle's name are spelled differently) occurred during the War of 1812. In case you forgot, that was a war we fought against Britain around 40 years after declaring our independence. Amazing that they became our closest ally.
Savannah is covered with willow trees, which are simply beautiful and picturesque. So I took a picture.
Here we are in Madison Square, named after James, our 4th President. That statue is Sgt. William Jasper, a hero from the Siege of Savannah who recovered their flag even though he was mortally wounded.
Two pics of the same statue? Yes. But look at how beautiful this square is. It deserves two pics on the Waste.
That incredibly interesting piece of architecture is the Scottish Rite Free Masonry building. It looks sliced in half, as if you would find a similar building in Scotland just waiting to be joined to its Savannah counterpart.
I should add that at this point we are also across the street from some buildings for the Savanna College of Art and Design. All across historic Savannah you see young people walking with art supplies, or sitting to sketch or to paint. If you are the sort of person who thinks you would not want to be in a place surrounded by young, enthusiastic artists appreciating the beauty around them, well, then I do not like you. Also, art school women are always pretty and fashionable in that anti-fashion way. That is a fact.
You cannot see her, but that is Barbie on the steps of Temple Mickve Israel, founded in 1733 and the third oldest Jewish congregation in North America. They hopped on a boat from London, seeking the religious freedoms here. Which excluded Catholics, by the way. Seriously. Everyone was welcome in colonial Georgia, except Catholics. Why? There were tensions and conflicts with the Spanish Colony of Florida. I suppose that they thought Catholics might be loyal to Catholic Spain, not Anglican Britain. This was Britain, you know. And everyone here likely had a London accent. I wonder when that disappeared.
At the end of Bull Street you come to Forsyth Park, which features a fountain that gets every camera within 200 feet snapping.
Barbie and the fountain.
Barbie is THERE.
Forsyth Park features this, the Confederate Memorial. I, um, well, whatever.
Panorama of the fountain? Why not.
Time to hitch a ride back to The Bohemian and jump into the Impala. Soon we are on our way to Charleston.
I tell you this. It is never easy to get a picture of the, "Welcome To...," sign. Never easy.
An affordable home in South Carolina.
Our first view of Charleston, South Carolina. Did you know that it was Charles Towne in 1670. Nobody knows exactly when squeezing those two words together became acceptable, and then official, but note that this is proof that one day all that text speak stuff that drives us old folks crazy is going to be official, too. OMG!
The Charleston Place Hotel. We will sleep three nights here, my friends. It is like moving in. Like we will live here.
If there is one thing that they care about in the South, it is giving off the perception of class.
No pictures of the room, though, as it is best described as, "Old School." Older interior design, older furniture... even a small old television. Like, a picture tube. I cannot remember the last time I saw one of those in a hotel. Well, now I can.
I hit the pool while Barbie got a massage, and soon enough it was time to head down to meet those gathered for the wedding for dinner.
Dinner was in an excellent restaurant in the hotel, and I got to meet many very fun and interesting new people. I did not take pictures of them, as I respected their right to privacy. But, thinking about it now, that was an error. I should have taken a picture of the entire table.
At least I took some food pics.
An absolutely delicious Foie Gras on a Waffle, with whipped cream.
Equally delicious scallops.
After dinner, it was time to hang out in the hotel bar. Until bedtime. I had to explain to several people that I prefer a good night's sleep to the pleasures of alcohol. Then I had to explain it is a preference, not a judgment. I enjoy being around drunk people. It makes them as honest, open, and crude as I am on an average day.
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