The time is flying by, each day quicker than the last! Since the holidays, we have been to Savannah, Georgia and Ft. Myers, Florida. We arrived in Savannah in time for the playoff game between the Atlanta Falcons and the Arizona Cardinals. We found our now "favorite" tavern (first time we were ever there) very close to our hotel. The crowd seemed to predominantly favor the Falcons (we were in Georgia, after all!) so we were in good company. As we all know, the Falcons blew it and I nursed a very bad headache from all the cheering and crying I did during the game. No, it was NOT the beer!
This was Bob's first time in Savannah so we did the usual tourist thing and took a trolley ride around the historic and waterfront districts. To say that Savannah is beautiful is an understatement. The live oak trees laden with Spanish moss (which we found out is not a parasite at all and is not harmful to the host trees) drape over every square in the city. Savannah is layed out in a grid with "squares", 22 of them, every 3-4 blocks. Some are the center of a neighborhood for a gathering place and others are dedicated to historic figures like General Pulaski who is revered in these parts! In any case, each one has its own charm and a story to go with it. My favorite was the square where the house from the book "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil" took place. We even saw the lady supposedly written about in the book while she was walking her dog. Our trolley driver pointed her out and I am
sure it was her!
We visited the Ships of the Sea Maritime Museum and were very impressed. It is housed in a old sea captain's home a block or two off the water called the Scarbrough House, built in 1819, for the owner of the
Savannah, the first steamship to cross the Atlantic. The ship models were amazing and the salvaged trinkets and china from shipwrecks were on display.
We did alot of walking on the waterfront, shopped at the "city market", and ate lunch at the famous Pirate's House. This is the oldest standing structure in Georgia and is a maze of small rooms in a large house. The wood is original and makes you wonder how it withstands any high winds at all. They are known for their delicious Southern cooking and recommended over Paula Deen's Place. At the end of the afternoon, too early to go back to the hotel, we decided last minute to drive down to Tybee Island. Neither of us had ever been there and we are so glad we went.
Tybee Island on a late Sunday afternoon in January was just beautiful. My love for the ocean made it even more special. We walked out into the ocean on this tremendously long pier, talked to many people and just soaked it all in. It was approaching dusk so we headed to the car and to find a place for some liquid refreshment (I know, you're surprised!). We happened upon a little place on a side street right off the beach called "Doc's ". Not many in there but those that were were very friendly and before you knew it we were in the middle of a conversation about the races they were planning to have at the bar in February. They were speaking about these races rather sheepishly and the man that came up with the idea was trying to conceal his laughter. I waited a while but couldn't control myself any longer and had to ask what the race was all about. I asked if it was crab races or turtle races since I had seen both of those somewhere. He said,noooo, not really. He sidled over to me and quietly explained that they were dido races. He came up with this idea to put four short plastic legs on the bottom of a dildo, attach a battery pack and let 'em go! This really tickled me and we had a good time discussing all the possibilities that this brought to mind.........
Richard and Marion, Bob's younger bro', had lived on Tybee for a short while and I thought while we were at Doc's that this is a place they would have liked. So Bob called Richard and found out that they had lived just around the corner and frequented Doc's frequently!!!! We had alot of fun trying to explain to him about the "races".
On to Ft. Myers and Bob's older bro' Warren. Suffice it to say that the weather in South Florida was much warmer than what we had experienced in Georgia in the last month so we were delighted to be there! Warren showed us around the city he's lived in for 25 years or so and seems to know everyone we ran into. We took in the flea market where he worked as security, really quite a place. Not only was it huge, 900 stores, it had its own food court and served beer! Well, we made a day of it! The boys drank and schmoozed while I shopped. Not bad at all for a sunny day in Florida.
I have photos which I will post shortly! (next day or two)
