Charleston

A couple of weeks ago we took off and went to Charleston.  It was our first trip to this historic city.  

Sunday morning we got up and started walking the town.  The streets were quiet at 8am.  As the hours went by and we admired the historic homes and churches, people started to fill the streets.  After we visited the battery, we started toward the center part of town on foot.  The churches were open for services and at each doorway stood a man in a church robe welcoming people.  For almost an hour we heard church bells echoing across the city.  One church tower would play a few hymns and before it went quiet, another church would start playing their hymns.  Listening to the bells as we walked the streets helped me imagine what it might have been like to live there in the 1800's.  

We ended up at the market just before lunch.  The vendors had filled the buildings waiting for the tourists to come in.  This is also where slaves were traded before the war of Northern aggression.  Meredith asked if we could buy a slave to take home and clean the house and I quickly quieted her, telling her we couldn't afford one.  Then Cari quickly quieted me, telling me not to influence the kids that way.   

After lunch we took a boat out to the island fort of fort Sumter.  The island is a few miles away from the shore.   I'm not going to repeat the entire history that we heard a minimum of three times here, you know how to Google it.  I will tell you that fort Sumter was a fortress when it was built.  A brick structure that was several stories tall and flanked on all sides with cannons.  During the war, the fort was pounded for over 500 days and reduced to a heap of rubble by Union forces.  It was interesting to walk through this historic spot. 

On the way back to land, I took too many pictures of the Arthur Revenel Jr Bridge.  So many pictures, that I heard Randy whisper to his mom that I am in love with the bridge.  

Randy was interested at the fort, but of course, neither child was excited about the historic homes.  It was a full day of walking and they did a great job.  The next morning we woke up to rain and I think the kids were happy that we packed up and decided to head back home. 

I put together a short slide show with a number of photos and no music.  I learned this from Rake and I don't like having to upload more than three photos to blogger at a time.  It is slow and awkward.