Low Country Landing

We made it!  At 1:15 yesterday (Tuesday) we tied up at the Charleston City Marina, home of the MegaDock! and our home for the next 3-4 weeks.  It is good to be here.

Even we were a bit surprised to arrive right on schedule. Once we made it down the Chesapeake Bay, where the Admiral experienced a bit of sea sickness, we were golden. Beautiful days, starry nights, calm waters.

The past 24 hours have been CWL: Clean, Walk, Laundry. The Cap'n has been washing off the ICW salt and soot, and I have been readying Freedom for our weekend guests.

A brisk morning walk through the quiet ( and a few flooded) streets of Charleston reminded me why I wanted to move here after college (never did, tho). A slow walk down the dock this afternoon enthused the Cap'n: 420's from the College of Charleston sailing on the Ashley river, mega yachts lining the dock. And guess what? We are once again reunited with Indiscretion.  Alas, no sign of Howard.

Other "celebrity" yachts on the dock: Themis, the 99th largest American yacht (156') owned by a local tort attorney (tobacco and asbestos lawsuits pay) and Seaquest, the 80th largest American yacht (164") owned by the son of the founder of Amway. (Yes, I  googled them).

Tomorrow brings more mundane tasks: the grocery store & more cleaning. But, we are full of anticipation for the weekend, the arrival of friends Diana and Tom, and the Southern Ground Music Food Festival.

Happy Fall Y'All

The Easter Promenade

While another city might have an Easter Parade, Charleston has a Promenade. Hosted by the Hat Ladies (NOT to be confused with The Red Hat Society, the Store for hats, www.hatladies.com, or any other hat groups based in Charleston) the Promenade marked it's 11th year on Saturday the 8th.  And the ladies celebrated in style:

Ruffles and Ribbons and a well-dressed escort. I think she was the "Head Hat" because she was  at the front of the line. 

A well-dressed family, right down to the dog!

Beautiful hat, Great shoes, but ooh my feet hurt just thinking about the long walk she has ahead of her!

Dogs, Hats, Fans, and Hula Hoops. This Promenade had it all.

Elegant mothers with Hat Ladies in training (plus, notice the jaunty red hat on the left)

These lovely lasses opted for the trendy Fascinator look. And they wore it well.

You can tell style runs through all the generations of this family.

There are no words......

I LOVE that she wore her Girl Scout vest in the Promenade. I hope she gets a fancy patch for it. This was one of my favorite pairs.

Finally, our Mistress of Ceremonies. She welcomed us all to the Promenade, and encouraged us to join her in singing The Easter Parade., as she did over the entire 15 minutes that it took for the women to promenade past us.  Who knew it had so many verses? (or maybe she was singing the one verse over and over).

What a great day in Charleston: The Saturday Farmer's Market (my second favorite ever), the Promenade, a Hidden Gardens Tour and dinner at Circa 1889.  Nothin' could be finer......