Georgia on our minds! Thanks Ray Charles!

Well here we are in North Carolina! We have had 2 straight days of side ways rain and howling wind shaking our little T@b, but thankfully we woke up today to beautiful blue skies and warmer temperatures. It's amazing what bad weather can do to the psyche… On that depressing note…. Let's switch topics and chat about something happy! How about Savannah Georgia!! LOVED IT!! We had 4 nights and 3 days to have a look around, not nearly enough! We spent one day over on Tybee Island (a whole other post! I'll save that for another day), and 2 days walking the streets of historic Savannah giving ourselves a self guided tour. We couldn't go 3 feet without stopping in our tracks, pointing and oohing and aahing! The camera was on over drive! Savannah is the oldest city in the State of Georgia, established in 1733, so you can imagine the amazing architecture, cobble stone streets, and the beautiful tree lined streets and parks throughout the city. 22 park like squares to be exact. Remember the scene from Forrest Gump? Forrest sits on a park bench and starts up a conversation with a woman, "Life is like a box of chocolates, you never know what you're going to get". Well, he is sitting in front of one of those squares. There is so much history in this city, you could wander the streets for days and learn something new at every corner! We highly recommend you go see for yourself! This charming city is definitely on the top of our list since hitting the road in October! OK, enough babbling! Here are few of the many pictures we took…. on day one!

Forsyth Park, 30 acres, created in the 1840's. The fountain was added in 1858. Every St. Patrick's Day the fountain is turned green! The city of Savannah has deep Irish roots. 

A view from one of the 22 squares 

The Savannah Cotton Exchange (1887) in the background. The griffon fountain behind me was destroyed in a single car accident in 2008. It was reconstructed over 10 months to form a mold for the new concrete replica!

City Hall (1905). The exterior of the dome is gilded with a layer of 23kt gold!

Historic River Street. Once a collection of rotting shipping wharfs, this area was restored in 1973.

We ducked into this antique shop to have a browse. We must have been in there for about 30 to 45 minutes. Not sure if we were more impressed with the 5 floors including an attic full of antiques, or the home itself. The "Noble Hardee Mansion" was built in the 1860's and is the last unrestored home in Savannah. Take a look below.

OK! Sorry about the picture overload, bear with me... Here comes day 2!

What historic southern town is complete without an old grave yard? 

The "Kennedy Pharmacy", originally built as an Anti-Migraine Pharmacy. Ever heard of that before?  Us either!

The "Waving Girl". Known by sailors around the world. Story goes she waved a handkerchief by day and a lantern by night at ships entering or leaving the port of Savannah. It is told that she never missed a a single ship between 1887 and 1931! Now that's dedication!

Al fresco in the square! "The Olde Pink House" (1789) in the background and rumoured to be haunted! 

Ever read the book, "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil"? Or perhaps you saw the movie? We had no idea it was based on true events. Did you? Above is the Mercer-Williams House, where the alleged shooting took place. That night back at the T@b we downloaded the movie!

Above is the "Clary's Diner", also made famous in "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil"

"The Herb House" (1734), thought to be the oldest surviving house in Georgia! Check out the window! It was a seaman's tavern. Later the tavern moved next door to the "Pirate's House" below.

One of the many stories connected to this pub, it is rumoured that there was an underground tunnel that connected this tavern to the river where drunken men were taken to ships to wake up later as unwilling crew members! Welcome aboard matey!