Charleston, South Carolina

[Kyle]Charleston is one of our favorite cities on the East Coast, so we were happy to make landfall there after nearly seven years away from the U.S. Even before we had cleared in, we were already invited to cocktails aboard Take Five by Bill and Lydia, who are Chesapeake-based members of the Offshore Cruising Club (OCC) were also passing through Charleston. Joining us for cocktails were Kurt and Carol, the Charleston port officers for the OCC, the very same group that had been there on our arrival to say "Hi" and help tie our lines. What a warm welcome and a lovely first evening back in the USA.

Charleston has a classic style and is a pleasure to just amble about the many historic streets

After Take Five departed the next morning, we spend the bulk of our day doing the usual boring marina jobs that build up between visits. Among the jobs, it was the first time in several months that we had access to fresh water and a hose, so Begonia received some long overdue pa-treatment. Maryanne did some basic grocery shopping in the first real supermarket we’ve seen since we left South Africa back in the new year (thanks kindly to Carol, the local OCC port officer for the assistance). We were both flagging at the end of the day, but insisted on walking downtown for dinner as an excuse to enjoy the beautiful city along the way. Actually, we weren’t planning to go that far, the local Yacht Club was advertising a pizza night and that sounded just right for us. Once we arrived though, they confessed to some staff issue, and told us the only pizzas on offer were frozen ones from Walmart. We took the hint, and went off to find a proper pizza joint. We ended up at New York Pizza, where they were so faithful to the style that it was impossible to eat a slice without folding it in half like the New Yorkers do.

Our next day was reserved for proper tourism. We started with a trip to Fort Sumter, where the first shots of the Civil War were fired. The Confederates relentlessly blasted it to rubble from all sides within the first few hours. Hearing the accounts and looking at the photos, it seems amazing that any of the Union soldiers within survived at all. All did, in fact, and were later allowed to surrender the fort and return to their Union ships without further harm. They even got to keep their flag. By the time they got the fort back four years later, it was basically just a mound of dirt riddled with bricks.

Fort Sumter - where the first shots were fired of the American Civil War (1861)

We spent the balance of the day walking through Charleston’s stately streets, the college (university) buildings and the town’s many museums. We chose a route back to the marina via Fast and French, a restaurant recommended by Kurt and Carol. It is small, with only a long bar and just a handful of tables and it is endlessly charming. We were very lucky to get a couple of the spots at the end of the bar.

Beautiful Charleston kept us quite busy

After we sat down (at Fast and French), a whole string of regulars came by to be told their usual table wouldn’t be available for a while. All took the news in stride and none seemed to begrudge us the time to fully enjoy our delicious meal at a proper French pace while they paced the sidewalk outside trying to appear busy.

We walked home with the warm glow of full bellies that included some good wine and arrived just as one last cold rain shower announced that the time had come to dive inside for the rest of the night.