Thursday, July 11, 2013

Another brief vacation in retrospect.

It has been raining almost incessantly in my state and I wanted to escape it. But with daily storms forecasted along the coast, I feared a washout for my trip. And indeed, when I set out a little after 5 am on Friday, it was raining hard. It continued to rain the entire six hours or so of my drive. As if by magic, however, when I arrived in Beaufort, South Carolina, the skies cleared.
I had a few hours to kill before I could check in, so I decided to spend the afternoon wandering around the town. Cannons. There are always cannons. These were in a little Riverfront park I found.
I sat for a bit in one of their wooden swings, watching the sailboats in the harbor. It was sunny and pleasant, with a nice breeze blowing.
After checking several menus, I picked a restaurant advertising local shrimp and microbrews on draft. I had to wait about ten minutes for a table out on their deck, but I was pretty pleased with my seat by the railing. Shrimp, field greens, and a cold IPA, and I was a happy woman.
I still had time, so I wandered the streets.  It's actually remarkable how much my shopping-ban has altered visiting new cities. Since I don't plan to buy anything, I don't go into the shops. I look instead at the plants and architecture of a city.
The crape myrtle looks different with their draping of Spanish moss.  I've always been told that the epiphyte is rife with chiggers, but I just read that it is rarely a problem with Spanish moss in trees. Still, I keep my distance. If you've ever known the maddening itch of chiggers burrowing into your flesh  you would, too.
I like the tropical feel of the palms trees all along the Southeast Atlantic coast. You can practically hear the ocean in the rustle of their branches.
But the afternoon was edging along and I still had an island to get to. I found my parked car, and headed on over.

26 comments:

  1. Yaaaaaaaaay! Happy to see you back. I've been thinking about you all week and wondering how your trip went. And from the look and sound of it, you had an AWESOME time!

    Faaaaaaabulous photos! Especially loved the first one of the bird bath and the one of the crape myrtle - gorgeous color! Also, seeing the Spanish moss reminded me of the years I spent living in Orlando, Florida.

    Welcome back, girl!
    X

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    1. I did. The beach part, which I'll get to next, was better.

      Spanish moss always looks so mysterious and elegant to me.

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  2. so beaufort was nice? its on the short list of places T and i might slip away too here in a week when the kids are at 'grandparent camp'...dinner looks good...

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    1. It's a very nice little town, and also close to some really lovely beaches. Including Huntin Island, a state park.

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  3. Getaways are good. Looks as though you had a great one.

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  4. I like that wooden swing set-up. I like the look of Spanish moss but I'm not sure what it would be like growing in my back yard (thinking messy).

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    1. I don't think it's particularly messy - it's so light weight that any fallen moss would be easy to rake up.

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  5. Ah, the antebellum south, South Carolina is a good example of that. Architecture, the parks, the mansions. It puts a nice gloss on that period, and we look at it today and remark how lovely it is. Time will cover all, eventually. Someday Gettysburg will have a theme park, Antietam will have trams going up the hill, Cemetery Ridge will have bbq pits and picnic tables.
    Looks like a nice, relaxing place to visit.

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    1. Sure, but you can be aware of a dreadful past and still revel in the beauty.

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  6. What a great little park. And the balmy weather must have suited you to a T.

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  7. Sounds idyllic. I'm never happier than when I have a beach nearby but anymore, especially here, I only go early or late in the day...We have lots of Spanish Moss down here, but no chiggers that I've heard of. Sounds like I should be grateful!

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    1. Me, too - I am careful about getting too much sun. It's funny - I've only ever gotten chiggers in places where you brush up against grasses and such - never from Spanish moss that I know of.

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  8. A no-shopping ban sounds like it really lets you "see" the world. I like that! We have a Beaufort here in NC too. I went to a boat parade there over Christmas.

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    1. It does - it alters your perspective. You know, the two Beauforts are pronounced differently. The one is SC is byew-fort, and I believe the one in NC is bo-fort.

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  9. I love the house with all the balconies. Very beautiful.

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  10. That swing looks relaxing. I'm happy to say I have no idea what a chigger feels like.

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  11. A shopping ban. Love the idea! Looks like a lovely vacation!

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  12. Ah Shrimp and cold beer on an afternoon overlooking the sea. I envy you. I have had some of those lazy afternoons in my drinking and non vegetarian days, particularly when I was selling gear for the fishing fleets all over the world. Nostalgia again. You have a knack of kicking that up for me.

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    1. I imagine some day re-reading these posts and feeling nostalgic myself.

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  13. Really hope I have a chance to visit the SE coast someday. Looks so beautiful.

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  14. I adore the moss in the trees, one of my favorites. Sounds like a nice time while waiting for your check in time.

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