Next Stop - Kiawah Island, South Carolina!

Kiawah island, located approximately 30 minutes south of Charleston, is one of my favorite spots on the planet!  I had the good fortune of spending time here as a teen.  A gated island, Kiawah is a blend of exclusive, yet down to earth escape mecca for inland southerners and snow-maxed northerners in April.

Kiawah is slightly southward facing which makes it slightly sunnier than the average east coast beach.  At least it feels that way to me :).  You will enjoy grassy dunes with flowering native shrubbery while accessing the beach on the various boardwalks.

The general public cannot access Kiawah unless staying on the island either in the posh Sanctuary Resort or one of the many beach side or inland condos and cottages.  A trick to accessing Kiawah without spending the night is to dine or use spa services at the Sanctuary.  The 10 mile long beach is located right off of the main lobby (sorry JK, for dishing out the Secret!).

The rest of the island is quite quaint, in that 'golf and tennis sort of quaint/snobby' way.  It feels like a very safe island with the various gates and security one must pass through.  Kiawah is best navigated on a rented bicycle.  Once children reach the 'tween' stage, they can easily be turned loose to be independent for the day navigating the paved bike paths to tennis, beach and groceries while adults take their tennis lessons, golf, or whatever!  I recall most evenings spent as a teen trapsing all over the beach and boardwalks from one bonfire to the next.  It was good clean fun.  I do not recall kids drinking or using other paraphernalia.  I left Kiawah with my innocence fully intact, at 14 and 15 years old.  I made lifelong friends in Kiawah, as many families returned year after year (and thanks to Facebook).  An idyllic place for a teen's first summer romance! {blushing}...

Most of the condos are located on gorgeous lagoons like this one with draping wisteria that threads itself through the trees!  Alligators galore! Be careful!  

Be sure to enjoy a yummy pizza at the Market at Town Center, Kiawah’s neighborhood market, and is located in the East Beach Village. Enjoy daily specials in a causal atmosphere. Open for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Specials include sandwiches, salads, pizza, steaks, seafood and pasta. Dine in or take-out is perfect for families or groups. The Market also offers a wide variety of grocery items, beer and wine, cigars, newspapers and gifts. Wireless internet!

I plot my next escape there! ciao!

Second Stop, Charleston, South Carolina!

This is Charleston's Rainbow Row.  originally built in the 1700s they represented the center of commerce in this port town that was the south's equivalent to Boston.  Merchants sold their wares on the first floors and lived and loved upstairs.  Many have three stories. 

Why did we visit Charleston?  My intellectual answer is that it is a place rich in Revolutionary and Civil War history.  My emotional answer is that I spent time here as a girl and have always found that it just "speaks to me."  Have you visited places and appreciate them yet some do not "speak" to you as others do?  Well, Charleston "speaks to me".  Perhaps I will live some part of my life here, I don't KNOW why it speaks to me.  It just does!  'Nuff said.  

Out in the harbor lies Fort Sumpter.  This was the first naval engagement of the Revolutionary War AND where the first battle was waged and won by the confederates in the Civil War, taking over the Fort from the Union forces.  You can take a boat ride to it about 3 or 4 miles into the harbor, or you can simply enjoy it from Charleston, as we did.

Charleston has a fun City Market similar to Boston's market if you have ever been.

Apparently, there are only about 200 families still active in the art of Sea Grass Basket Making.  The baskets seem to range from $100 for very small baskets to over $300 for larger baskets.  Increased development in the area has reduced the amount of available sweet grass.  The craft is usually passed from from mother to daughter, and there are reportedly no written instructions on how to make a sea grass basket. 

I like many kinds of nuts plain, but I HATE them in baked goods.  I don't know why.  My mother still teases me that I "will like them when I get big!".  Yeck.  HOWEVER....I tried my first Pecan Praline....... oh goodness.  I thought I died and saw Rhett Butler. What is a praline, you ask? 

It's pecans in a buttery, brown sugary coating, THAT'S WHAT IT IS.  That's what I'm talkin' about.  Seriously, head to River Street World Famous Pralines located on N. Market Street about one block north of the City Market.  They have all sorts of naughty hand made candy and penny candy.  Must - Stop - In!!!

When I travel, I do only a minimal amount of planning and things usually work out well.  This gets tricky with children, but the spontaneity keeps things interesting and fun for everyone.  I will say that Charleston has excellent, inexpensive parking and a free trolley system with stops all over town.  Be sure to travel by foot down King's Street (upscale shopping).  After the shops, it turns into residential area that is simply beautiful with cute immaculate row houses, gardens and wrought iron gates.  A photographer's paradise. 


I decided that I would like to return to Charleston, sans children, slowly walk King's street and fully absorb all that is there (as opposed to the slightly more rushed pace of traveling with children and limited time).  I would like to have dinner there where I may order chilled white wine (wait, I don't drink alcohol) and have a summer salad then stroll back, (fully noticing the architecture) to my short term rented flat and...I could go on and on with my daydreams...whoops!  Next post...Kiawah!

Ciao!