SUNDAY 28th DECEMBER 2003

MIAMI ROADTRIP PART 2: CHARLESTON

We woke up in South Carolina in a highway motel at 10am. I went to get coffees from the Swap Fox shack – you could tell you were in the south now. It was only 49° but you could feel the sun licking your skin.

The journey along the I95 took us past swamp, some cotton fields and dense woodland. Here and there religious signs reminded you of Christmas – some were more in-your-face. My favourite was: “Wise Men Seek Him - The Offer Stands”.
Many important battles and events during the Civil War happened here in these states and (after a little revision) I would love to return to look out across fields and imagine what happened.

We took the I26 off the highway to the charming and antique town of Charleston. I was amazed to find a town with so many old houses unspoilt ‘by progress’.

The Lady and I checked in at The King Charles Best Western and we hired bikes from a store just north of the hotel on Meeting Street.

I can only describe our cycle as ‘a gay time’. We meandered along the streets looking with delight at all the houses, learning the history from the signs, looking out at Fort Sumter.

That evening we stopped off at a microbrewery bar on East Bay Street then had a fantastic meal at Slightly North of Broad Street. We sat at the chef’s table overlooking the kitchen – I had great steak and The Lady had Tuna that made me cry it was so good (when it came back the second time, when she asked if they could cook it a bit).

The waiter pointed us out to a British bar called ‘The Griffin’ around the corner – good Guinness but empty (he said it would fill up around 1am). We strolled home happy and merry.