Charleston ~ Big, Beautiful, Old.

Charleston is a lovely and large city.  We visited once years ago traveling the conventional way of airplane and automobile.  I enjoyed Charleston more that first trip than I did this time.  But that isn’t the city’s fault, it has more to do with Charleston feeling so big compared to the places we have been recently.

Hotel cottages around a small pond were a pretty backdrop for walking Captain.

We docked at the Charleston Harbor Marina which is across the Cooper River from downtown Charleston.   We were placed on the bulkhead furthest from land and we were pretty isolated from all of our rally members. The walk to shore felt like a quarter of a mile!  I was reminded of our stay in Puerto del Ray, PR and that large marina.

Also, we have enjoyed fabulous, sunny, warm weather and Charleston is where we first felt a turn in temperature.  That alone is enough to put a damper on our enthusiasm.  I am amazed at how wimpy Frank and I have become about cold weather, but we just don’t like it much.  And we didn’t really pack that much cold weather gear.

The marina provided shuttle service into Charleston and a water taxi also picked up from our marina, so it was easy to get into Charleston.

Our first afternoon in in the city, we tried to get a walking tour but had missed times didn’t work, so Frank found an online tour and acted as our tour guide.  While he did a fine job of navigating and identifying the important buildings, tour guide Frank was thirsty after only 45 minutes and required a stop in a brewery to refresh his speaking voice. 😉

That pretty much ended our tour, but we still had a great time.  Here are several pictures from our walk.

The Pink House

This building is supposedly the second oldest structure in Charleston.  Built in the 1690s, it was originally a tavern for sailors visiting the port. I found the iron work, especially the lantern above the door remarkable.

Hallway to a sunny courtyard.

I can’t remember the facts about this building, so maybe some Charleston person can tell me (Annie?).  I believe at one time the rooms off this hall were court rooms, but today it appears to be a residential building of some kind.  Regardless of its’ use, the age was apparent by the wood and construction.  I found the way the sun highlighted the bright, green hanging plants enchanting.

Fountain at Waterfront Park

The pineapple fountain seems to be more photographed than this one in Waterfront Park of Charleston, but I thought the way the water was caught in this shot particularly interesting.

Dappled sunshine on ballast stone streets.

Charleston is full of cobblestone streets made from ballast stones.  Ballast stones were placed in empty ships to balance them as they crossed the ocean. Once the ship arrived in port where it was picking up cargo, the ballast stones were thrown out and replaced with cargo.  The ballast stones were then used to build streets in many port cities.

I liked the look of this ivy covered doorway and steps.

Right near our dock on Patriots Point was the USS Yorktown (CV-10) an aircraft carrier which was renamed to honor the Yorktown (CV-5) destroyed at Midway in June 1942.  Also at the Patriots Point Museum is the USS Laffey (DD-724), the most decorated WWII era destroyer still in existence, and the USS Clamagore (SS-343) a cold war submarine.

A close up to give you some size perspective.

Frank spent a long afternoon exploring this museum and catching up on his WWII history while I wandered around Charleston.  Now and then it’s a good idea to spend some time apart when you live on a boat.

Leaving Charleston provided some equally beautiful views.

Stately commerce buildings

And stately residential buildings

One very special happening during our stop in Charleston was a visit from Annie S. Annie is a fellow sailor who resides in Charleston.  We first met Annie in the BVI when LIB joined in the first sailing gathering of the Women Who Sail Facebook group.  Annie was on one of the WWS sailboats and Let It Be joined the rally in several BVI spots.

It was awesome to catch up my WWS friend and hear all that is happening in her boating life.  We shared a delightful dinner on LIB and spent the evening jabbering away. Thank you so much, Annie, for making time for us! (Can’t believe we didn’t take a picture!!)

Next city on our ICW stop is Beaufort, SC….