Into every trip some disappointment occurs and this morning it happened. We were all set to have lunch at a famous, old boarding house restaurant in Savannah, Mrs. Wilkes, and at the last minute we learned that it was closed all of January. Serious bummer. So we decided to have a small breakfast at a wonderful bakery and head out to Hilton Head Island for lunch.
Hilton Head Island is in South Carolina (SC), about a 45-minute drive north of Savannah. We drove through patches of pine woods, then salt marsh, then waterways, and back to pine woods, marsh, etc. The whole area between Savannah and Charleston (which is north of Hilton Head) is a delta of waterways, waterways, and islands. Driving into Hilton Head Island, we passed oodles of golf courses and quite a few fancy, gated communities. Even the car dealerships have buildings that look like big plantation houses.
We ended up at a beach park that was pretty fabulous. Beautiful wooden walkways, large and clean restrooms, outdoor showers, lots of chairs to sit and watch the water, and a bunch of two-person swings to gently swing in back and forth (picture a two-person wooden bench suspended by chains from a wooden structure). Then there was a mat laid out on the beach sand, down to the water. It was around 72F with a gentle breeze, blue sky and lovely sunshine. In other words, PERFECT. We all wanted to simply sit there and watch the waves. It all looked so peaceful until I remembered that this was the Atlantic ocean and that this very beach would probably take the brunt of the brutal forces of hurricanes. But today is was truly lovely.
We had lunch at Annie O’s, a low country, southern home cooking place (you just knew I’d get around to food again, right?). Fried chicken and biscuits with sausage gravy, followed by the best coconut pie I’ve had in decades. I have to admit that after I took my first bite and had a good taste of that pie, I just stopped chewing and had a bit of an emotional moment -- it was that good!
After lunch we headed for Charleston. On the way we drove through Ashepoo, SC (really! I don’t make this stuff up, you know) and then through Beaufort, which is where one of my favorite authors, Pat Conroy, grew up. We saw a flock of big, white egrets perched in some trees -- that was a pretty picture.
So now, after a couple of Manhattans at the bar of a French restaurant that serves sushi (again, I don’t make this stuff up), we’re all set up in our hotel and ready to start touring tomorrow.
No comments:
Post a Comment