We heard that Savannah has many fabulous restaurants so we planned for an early Valentine's Day celebration at one of these eateries. Making a selection was not going to be easy with so many choices in the uncharted waters of the streets of Savannah. We felt confident that we would figure it out.
The trip into Savannah from St. Simons is very easy. You hop on I-95 and head north for an hour, then connect with I-16 East which brings you right into the downtown waterfront area. Since our check in time at the hotel was 4pm, we had plenty of time to become familiar with some of Savannah's landmarks. We decided to head to St. John the Baptist Cathedral on the corner of Harris and Abercorn Streets. We had heard that parking on the streets of Savannah could be challenging, but low and behold there was a spot right outside one of the side doors. Of course, having our disability tag allowed us to claim that spot legally! The picture is the main entrance to the cathedral. The building is so large that it takes up an entire city block. You would have to stand back pretty far to be able to capture all the spires.
Our arrival time allowed us to attend noon mass and then tour the magnificent church. I hope the following photos help to give you a sense of its color and beauty. The two altars pictured are side altars. I took a picture of the main altar but decided not to include it since it truly did not do it justice.
Once our tour was completed we decided to head to the Owens-Thomas House Museum which was in the neighborhood. According to Fodor's or TripAdvisor (I can't remember which) if you only toured one house in Savannah this was the one to see, especially if you love architecture. Well we do, so we did. The house is located on Oglethorpe Square, one of the 22 beautiful squares located in the historic district. The walk from the cathedral to the house was .3 challenging miles. "Not that far!" you say? Savannah's sidewalks are not for the fainthearted or unsteady and forget those four inch heels unless you have ankles of steel and the balance of a circus performer. Okay, I exaggerate but only a little bit! Many stretches of sidewalk in this area of town are made of brick, which has shifted and swayed over the years, making for a very mindful walk. You have got to keep you eyes open if you don't want to twist an ankle or trip on an errant brick. Lucky for me, I had the arm of my husband to hang onto and my sneakers on my feet.
The tour of the Owens-Thomas House was very interesting and the 90 minutes went by quickly. The guide was very friendly and knowledgeable. You are not allowed to take pictures inside but you are allowed to take as many as you want of the exterior and the garden area. The following are pictures of the back of the house and the formal garden. The house was designed in the Regency style by William Jay for a man named Richard Richardson. Richardson had a dark cloud over his head and did not live there for very long before moving to New Orleans where the dark clouds continue to gather. Poor guy. Owens bought the house in 1830 and held onto it until the early 1900's. The remains of the cistern systems in the house were fascinating as well as the upstairs bridge that served as a hallway! That hallway became William Jay's calling card and helped to launch his career as an architect of some renown.
As we left the house, it was well past lunchtime, so we asked for a recommendation at the Museum gift shop and headed to the District Cafe. Lunch was delicious and social. A women dining there with her two adult sons, struck up a conversation with us. Conversation is always seems to be about where you are from etc. It turned out that she was living in Savannah with her military husband and had a lot of local opinion and information especially about where to eat. We filed that information away for our evening plans. We walked back to the cathedral and headed to our hotel. We were looking forward to checking in and settling our evening plans.
The rooms at the Best Western Plus Hotel were very nice (recently updated) but I would not stay there again. Why? The hotel is on the outer fringe of the historic district at a very busy intersection. Noisy! We managed however to sleep through the night without much of a problem but I would have preferred a quieter, calmer location.
Our original dinner reservations, required that we get back in the car and head to a different section of town. No way so we canceled our reservations. There were too many fine options in our location that we could walk to. We were able to get reservations for 6:15 at Vic's on the River. It was a beautiful location on the river with a stylish interior and fabulous food and service. Don't you think piano music always adds to the ambiance? Ron had the scallops and I had the crab cakes for our main courses. We managed to eek in a dessert to share - apple, fig, walnut turnover with vanilla ice cream and salted caramel sauce. Yum! Good thing we got to walk back to the hotel!
We began day 2 with the complimentary breakfast which was pretty much your standard fare at one of the chain hotels. After last evenings meal, we really weren't looking for much. Checked out of the hotel and headed over to the Savannah Welcome Center. We had planned to take a 90 minute tour of the historic district by tram. We knew it would be the most efficient way to see as much as we could in our little time, especially with so much to see.
The 10:30 tram was full and this is the off season! We met quite a few PA snowbirds who were touring with us. We thoroughly enjoyed the sites and the tour guide's chatter as he explained the scenery going by. It was warm enough to roll up the vinyl windows and enjoy the view and the warm morning sun. Here are a few snaps of the beautiful buildings we saw along the way.
And these are just a drop in the bucket! The city's beautiful homes are innumerable. Sherman did not burn Savannah during the Civil War and so we have these homes that help us to stay connected to a different time and way of life. Four times during the tour, we were joined by an actor who would portray a character from the city's past. It was very well done and added to our fun. Here are two of the characters. A civil war rebel and a drunken pirate.
Our tour complete, we headed back to Bull Street to enjoy this beautiful area filled with gorgeous homes, shops and restaurants. The street ends at Forsythe Park and its fantastic fountain. Once our walking tour was done we had a delicious lunch at The Public Bar and Kitchen. We enjoyed eating at an outdoor table and watching the people go by. I will end with a couple of pictures of the fountain which is so beautiful pictures do not do it justice.
We were back on St. Simons in time to enjoy the 72 degrees on the warm beach sands before the sun set. Ahhh!
Peace and Love to all!
No comments:
Post a Comment