Our Last Days in Savannah

Our time in Savannah was almost up, so we were madly making ticks on our list of things to see. There was an Irish festival at the Civic Centre, so we decided to go check it out.

These dancers were adorable with their bouncy, ringlet hair. After I watched them for a few minutes, I thought "Oh, I should take a picture!" and this is what I got. Ta-da! Bowing as they finished, I got the tops of their curly heads.

This band was fantastic...The Dardanelles from Newfoundland. Isn't it great to go to Savannah to see a group from Newfoundland? The crowd loved them!

Rathkeltair was really the headline band, but judging by the crowd's reaction, I think the Dardanelles stole the show.

We had been meaning to do a house tour, so we went to see the Owens-Thomas House, which was built between 1816 and 1819. One of its unique features is a bridge on the second floor leading from one side of the house to the other. This was a show piece for the young architect and he received commissions for an additional eight houses after people saw this one.

Lots of windows!

The back of the house...they were big on symmetry.

This building in the back is currently a gift shop, but was the original stables and slave quarters. When they began renovating it for office space, they uncovered the original haint blue paint on the ceiling. This was a colour of paint used by the slaves on door frames, window frames and ceilings as they thought it kept the evil spirits out. It is the biggest discovery of this original paint in the South. These beautiful gardens would have originally grown vegetables and herbs.

Ah yes, The Wilkes House. It was closed for the month of January while the staff took a much-deserved break. It started as a boardinghouse in 1943 with simple, clean rooms and good home cooking. The meals have carried on to this day.

It is open from 11-2, Monday to Friday, and the line to get in starts forming each day at 10:15. You can see Nancy, Joe and Jim about halfway down the line waving...

Food is served boardinghouse style. There are over 20 bowls containing different items including fried chicken, collard greens, black-eyed peas, squash, baked beans, mac and cheese...and, of course, cornbread and rolls...yum! You just keep passing the bowls until someone calls it quits! Your choice of beverage is water or sweet tea, and boy, is it sweet.

There are two rooms which would seat about 60 people. If you line up early, you'll get into the first sitting. If not, show up around 1:45 to get into the last group. It was really good home cooking and worth the experience.

This is Davenport House, which we also decided to tour. This is more of a museum tour, as it is set up exactly as if you were visiting Isaiah Thomas to conduct business with him around 1820.

The beautiful back yard which would have been stables and a vegetable garden at that time.

And our last house tour, which we couldn't resist...the Mercer Williams House, the setting of the murder in  Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil.

The tour was really interesting. Jim Williams was a prolific antiques collector and even managed to conduct his antiques business from jail. It's a beautiful home and currently lived in by his sister. While they mention the murder and events of the book, they focus mostly on the antiques and architecture of the house.

Dinner at the Pirates House...ahar me hardies!

A trip through Forsyth Park at night...they just finished sandblasting the fountain, so it was pristine white.

One last trip through the park...

It would have been nice to see all the flowers in bloom!

We took Joanne out to Tybee Beach on a windy day...

This is one long beach...looking to the left...

And then to the right...miles and miles of beach.

You can see some of the hotels and rentals...

Jim was on one of the bridges that takes you over sand and sea grass. They really want to preserve the ecology and discourage anyone from walking on it.

Because you just know for sure that someone wants to sit on it!

Joanne with Johnny Mercer...a must do if you visit us!

A unique downspout...

Waiting for our table at Hueys, we managed to hit happy hour and got two bottles of wine for $22. A bargain!

And with much fondness and great memories, the sun set on our time in Savannah. Looking out our back door...

I think our trunk is going to explode!

We loved Savannah so much, we booked a place for next year. Can't wait to return! Now it's on to New York to spend a few days there with Joanne before driving home.