Charleston trip 2014

Jeff and I took a trip to Charleston in early October 2014, as a last hurrah before baby #3.  My parents watched the girls for the weekend while we got in some quality adult time.

The side yard at our B&B

Friday
For trip preparation, I went a got a last minute prenatal massage.  I was feeling a lot of pain and discomfort and walking was difficult.  Since any trip with Jeff involves lots of walking, I knew I had to do something.  Fortunately the masseuse was a miracle worker and I felt like a sick person who had been cured.  It's a miracle, I can walk!  What a difference!  I was able to walk pain free.

My mom come up after work that night so Jeff and I could hit the road and make a little progress. We drove about 3 hours to Augusta and stayed in a hotel. The car ride undid some of the benefits of the massage so I'm glad we were able to break up the trip.

Saturday
We took our time in the morning and grabbed some breakfast at the hotel before hitting the road.  We soon left the highway for much more rural roads.

Sharing the road with this guy

We arrived in Charleston around lunch time.  We bought tickets for the Ft. Sumter tour and then went to find lunch.  We ended up at Juanita Greenberg's Nacho Royale right on King St.  Jeff couldn't resist nachos! They had an awesome patio area hidden out in the back.

King St

Nacho time!

Then we boarded a boat for a ride out to Ft. Sumter.  We heard some of the history of the fort, the city, and the Civil War before we explored on our own.

Late that afternoon we finally checked in to our B and B, the Governor's House.  It was pretty awesome!  We relaxed for a bit before heading out to dinner at Blossom.

The Governor's House

Front entrance

Courtyard

Stairs in the entry

Our room

Bathroom

Sunday
We started the day at breakfast with our fellow B&B guests.  We had tea, yummy food, and conversation with a British couple visiting the area.  Then we went out to walk around the city, this time heading south to see rainbow row.  We stopped in at the Old Exchange Building and learned about it's varied history including as a customs house, a post office, and a prison.

Part of rainbow row

The Old Exchange

Stairs to nowhere in the basement

The basement was used as a prison during the Revolutionary War

Then we walked around forever looking for a quick place for lunch.  We finally found the Bull Street Gourmet & Market and ordered delicious sandwiches.

We headed back to the hotel to get the car for the drive out to Boone Hall Plantation.  We spent a few hours there touring the house, slave houses, and hearing a storytelling presentation.  That evening we had dinner at High Cotton.

Famous oak lined drive at Boone Hall Plantation

The house

This is what I got when I asked Jeff to take a
picture of me.

A building awaiting repair

Monday
Monday morning we explored the market after breakfast.  Then we took a carriage tour of the city. We didn't do that first because I wasn't sure how Jeff would do given his horse allergy.  But he said he would be okay.  So we ended our trip with that.  Then we grabbed a quick slice of pizza and headed back to my parents house to get the girls.

Market

Off duty carriage

Views from the carriage

We had a great trip!  It was awesome for me to get away and relax and get a little more sleep than usual.  We did less than we normally would because I moved slower and needed more rest than usual. Jeff was very patient with the slower pace, letting me nap without bugging me about what we were going to do next.  We had good food, great sightseeing and awesome company!