Charleston, South Carolina

We decided to spend the day touring Charleston. Started with Fort Sumter, which is located out in the harbor outside of Charleston, built upon a shoal which was enlarged to an island to hold the fort. The ride to the fort involved a half hour on a ferry. As we got on the ferry, the rain came down, and it rained fairly hard the rest of the day. Luckily we were able to walk around the fort itself between showers.


When South Carolina seceded from the union in 1860, Fort Sumter was left as a Federal fort surrounded by an area that was no longer part of the US. As tensions built, between the north and the south, the first shots of the Civil war were shot at Fort Sumter. The Confederates in the south were able to capture it when some of their cannon fire caused a fire inside the fort, and the union side did not have enough soldiers to fight both the fire and the enemy. Later in the war, it was taken back by the Federals. Only the lower parts of the fort remain, but it is interesting both to see the fort and to hear the history. The girl giving the tour emphasized that the principles that this war was fought over are really the founding principles of the United States.
Had lunch in Charleston, then checked out the Harris Teeter Gourmet grocery store, nice store, we did find a few things we don't always find in other stores. The marina has a shuttle, very nice for getting around in the rain, it is somewhat like your own taxi cab, as long as you want to go to places within downtown Charleston. The driver was saying that it has rained so hard that they have closed some streets in the city due to flooding.
Went out for dinner with Jim and Gloria at the restaurant here at the marina. Tried alligator, very tender. So far, we have had low country boil, shrimp and grits, and now alligator, all foods we tend not to see on the menu at home. Nice evening, not raining at present.



The various flags that have flown over Fort Sumter, the US flag with 33 stars, the first confederate flag "the Stars and Bars", the flag of South Carolina with a shield and palmetto tree, then the 2nd confederate flag called the Second National, and the US flag in effect after the civil war, with 35 stars, and finally in the foreground, the current US flag.

Ready for action

These birds greeted us on our arrival at Fort Sumter. We see them frequently on the water, often we're not sure if what we are seeing is a crab pot floater or a bird sitting on the water, until what we are watching flies away.