Charleston Tour

     Following Wendy and Dan's advice we walked to Market Street and walked the city "Slave" market, named because in the past slaves sold their plantation grown produce here.  Glitzy, and although filled with some Chinese junk, also had hand woven baskets and Charleston memorabilia. (interspersed with iron sculptures of dancing and singing frogs (ugh!).

                                                                                 

                             
                                                    Charleston Wine Glass ???????
                                                                             

                                                                               
                                                        Self Explanatory???
                                                                                  

     We opted for the horse drawn carriage tour which provided a meandering look at not only the unique homes of the south but also provided us with a running narrative of the history of the city, the civil war, the earthquake and the current state of affairs in Charleston.  (They are still not fussy on "Yankees" in general, but treated us Mainer's with friendly respect.)  After the tour we walked the streets winding our way around to Fleet Landing, a restaurant overlooking Charleston Harbour with views of Fort Sumter.  In an attempt to "extend oneself", I decided to try some of the food that Charleston is noted for....She Crab Soup with blue crab roe (eggs!)...and it was .....delicious!  Beth opted for a "Trigger Fish" sandwich and was still extolling the wonderful taste as we were leaving the restaurant.  Once again, thank you Wendy and Dan for the recommendations.

                                                                    
                                                  "Carson" our chauffeur.

                                    
                                                    Beautiful Homes and Gardens

                                                                                                                                                         

         Oldest home in Charleston, note fence...used to keep out the revolting slaves in the 1700's.                                                                                            

                 
                                           Popular Bed and Breakfast. Two Meeting Street.

       Beautiful Churches. This steeple can be seen coming into  Charleston Harbor.

                                                                  
Where the term SNOB comes from. If you lived slightly north of broad street you were the upper crust of society.                                         
                                                                                                                                            
     As we walked back to the marina, we had to stop at the corner candy store. At $14.95 a pound for pralines and fudge, we decided one-half pound would be more than enough and hopefully all our walking would take care of the extra calories!
      The afternoon was consumed with "fixing shit"... its just that nothing is easy or convenient to fix on a boat.  I walked to the local Ace Hardware to get the new shut off valves and hoses for the leaking faucets in the office restroom, got out every tool known to man (except a coat hanger-world's most useful tool!) and surprisingly, changed it all out without breaking anything...(probably a simple task in most guys repertoire, but I would find it a lot easier to put someone to sleep for surgery.) Than on to cleaning up the bilge, tightening up the still leaking head in the aft cabin, and doing the routine fluid checks in preparation for leaving tomorrow.
     Charleston is a place that deserves a much longer visit.  There is so much more to do and see but the weather is continuing to be unsettled, with front after front  rolling through, so we need to get moving and cover some distance when we can.