Day One--Savannah

Hardeeville, South Carolina
Hardeeville RV Park

I made up my mind that we'd pace ourselves while visiting Savannah.  I checked the brochures that we've collected on the area and chose a trolley tour. 

We decided to take the Gray Line, Oglethorpe trolley tours which also includes free parking.  Their advertisement said the 90 minute tour was uninterrupted.  After the tour then you could use the hop on/hop off trolley.  Made sense to us that people getting off and on would interrupt the tour.  Of course, I did have a coupon for $17 which helped make the decision on which one to take.  I might add that everyone told us to park at the Visitor Center where you can take any of the trolley tours and use their free parking.  

We've heard horror stories about the traffic and getting around town but I must say the city of Savannah seems to have figured it out.  There are many trolley tour companies and also the free DOT which is not a narrated transportation. 

Our tour guide was great but I can't believe all the information she gave us.  I was on overload before the tour was over.  To begin, Savannah was founded in 1733 by James Oglethorpe.  There were many stories of the Revolution and Civil Wars.  

  

The other news is, I wasn't carrying an extra camera battery with us, so therefore not my usual number of photos.  

I can see why so many movie companies have used Savannah as their location.

This is the Telfair Academy--Victorian Mansion and Museum.

Masonic Lodge

The 1996 Olympic metal work was made by a local artisan. Now I can add another Olympic site we've visited to our list.

We thought the carriage rides should have had the drivers in period clothing and without their cell phones.

There was a section of Federal architecture.  

The Pirate House has an underground tunnel were sailors were drugged and shanghaied.    

There were so many interesting things the tour guide told us.

I was totally awed at all the town squares.  Our guide said that you could rent a gazebo in a town square with a police officer for three hours for $175.  The bride is then delivered to the groom, who is waiting in the decorated gazebo, in a white carriage with white horses. No wonder there are so many weddings in such a beautiful place.  

This is the site of The Battle of Savannah which was held in 1779.  It was the deadliest battle of the American Revolution.  

It is a beautiful town and I can see why everyone thinks so.  How do you decide what to tour?  It's worse than trying to decide what to order at a restaurant when you haven't eaten all day.  You want it all.  

We left the trolley at Market Square and still couldn't decide what to tour.  I finally said let's just go home, think about it and do it another day.  

It was a wonderful, perfect weather day.  I can't believe we have passed this city up a few times, because I thought it would be too hot.  

Turtle Safely..........

   

POW'S--A Perfect Place for Memorial Day Weekend

Columbus, Georgia
Lake Pines RV Park

When we planned things to see during our week here, we thought since today was in the middle of the Holiday Weekend, people would already be where they were spending the holiday, making today the best day to be on the highway.  We were ready to leave a little after 8 am.  

Where were we going?  The Andersonville National Historic Site, which wasn't crowded.  The Site is divided into three parts, National Prisoner of War Museum, Prison Site and the Andersonville National Cemetery. 

I'm glad we did the Prisoner of War Museum first.  I was surprised to learn that it covered all POW's from all of our wars.

Once again our timing was perfect as they were getting ready to show a very well done video.  Just listening to what these POW's went through is heart wrenching.  

The museum had equal amount of stories covering all the wars.  

As you went out the rear doors you saw this reflection pool.

This park is on the grounds of the Andersonville Prison.  

The first Union prisoners arrived at Camp Sumter on February 1864 before it was finished.  It was intended to hold 10,000 over 16 1/2 acres.  By August there were 32,000 prisoners on 26 1/2 acres.  It is believed that 13,000 died while imprisoned during those 14 months. 

I knew we wouldn't have time to do everything so didn't stop at the spring.  We also thought about stopping in Americus to see the Habitat for Humanity exhibit, but didn't think it was open today.

Our next stop was the Jimmy Carter Historic Site Georgia.  This didn't look like your normal National Historic Site.  

It is housed in the old Plains High School where Jimmy Carter attended school.  

We viewed the excellent orientation film in the old auditorium.  

Bill felt comfortable sitting at the oval office desk.  We've seen so many of them, I think they must be mass produced.

One of the classrooms has been replicated to look like one during Carter's school years.  

This is about all that I remembered about the Carter's.  

This is the town of Plains that Carter painted.

He still teaches Sunday school classes.

This is a copy of the Nobel Peace Prize he won in 2002.

I didn't realize he was a submariner.  Don could have probably told me that.  

The Plains Depot was home to the 1976 campaign headquarters.  It was the only building in Plains that was empty and had a bathroom.  

Next we drove down to the boyhood farm, passing the haunted house where the Carters rented from 1956 to 1961.

You can't help but pass Billy Carter's service station and the Carter residence which is closed to the public since the town only has a few streets.  The Carter residence which was built in 1961 is the only home they ever owned.  

We didn't stop.

The Secret Service booth.

The one thing I neglected to mention was the park rangers were so helpful and friendly.  

Here's the home and you can walk through it.  The family moved into in 1928.   There was no running water or electric.  

Notice the thunder mug by Jimmy's bed.

This was a big day when they put in running water and this bathroom.  Notice the bucket over the shower which has holes in it for a shower head?

  

This was where they came to after school to get their list of chores that his mother left for them.  

These were the clay tennis courts. Jimmy was always beaten by his father when they played.

 That building is the commissary that they ran for their workers.

It was well stocked and there was a list of the prices in those days but they never paid any money.  It was deducted from their wages.

The windmill doesn't work anymore.  Notice the gasoline pump by the side of the commissary. 

We were ready for lunch but the only restaurant closed at 2.  I really wanted to try the peanut ice cream.  The downtown was constructed around 1890 and remains relatively unchanged.  

The RV Park has a free jam session at the barn every last Sunday of the month, but by the time we returned it was almost over.  

I don't mind telling you that we both decided we need to do absolutely nothing the next two days.  We figure the pool and the holiday travelers will leave and we'll enjoy doing nothing.

Turtle Safely.......