12/27 - We went into Savannah, Georgia, early in the day looking for the
stereotypical southern houses. There were a few, but it was much less grandiose and more sleepy than I had expected. It seemed as if the city was mostly deserted making us forget to watch for traffic on our walking tour. The city has these very cool "squares" (21 of them) scattered a few blocks apart in a grid. They have ancient oak trees with weeping spanish moss, fountains, and lush understory gardens. The houses on the adjacent streets face into the square. They are such beautiful green spaces. The oak trees line the streets with their branches overlapping so they are these awesome shady green tunnels. Much of the oldest construction used oyster shells imbedded in mud 
for the walls. Even the sidewalks were made with oyster shells making them look like white sandy beaches.Then we drove up to Charleston, South Carolina. We drove along the coast to avoid the interstate and see the countryside. It was full of waterways, marshes, scrub, and oak/pine forests. Charleston is a bustling tourist town. We drove down the main drag past all the fancy designer shops (ick) till we got to the battery at Charleston harbor. We walked along Bay Street and oogled at the amazing historic houses. They have a unique style here of long narrow houses
that sit perpendicular to the street so that that the piazzas (porches) and front doors are along one side. Many of the houses are 3 stories, with full length piazzas on all 3 stories. We finally had to ask if Charleston had any ATMs because we never saw one or even a bank. All their ATMs are inside the businesses in the very back (flashing your money machines would be gauche in this genteel southern town). Even though it was late in the day we headed west again (that felt wierd) to try to see the big plantations out along the Ashley River. We were too late to do more than look at their historic markers and one visitor kiosk. We got some miles in by driving to Georgetown, along the Grand Strand (beach route) of South Carolina.12/28 - We set our sights on reaching the Outer Banks of North Carolina. The guidebook recommended reservations for the ferry on the southern end, so we called. Good thing because our pokey pace would mean we could only catch the 4:30 pm boat. Putting us onto a tiny island at 7 pm without a motel reservation seemed unwise, so we started calling the few available. Most were closed for the season, but I left a message on the only one we found. We got to
the proverbial fork in the road where we had to decide to go or skip it so we tried the motel one more time. Luckily, she called right back, so we were off to Cedar Island for the ferry.The ferry ride was 2 hours and 15 minutes and landed in Ocracoke. We stayed in a classic seaside 1950s motel with paper thin walls. We had a view of our first lighthouse out of the bathroom window. Aside from the noisy neighbors, we also had an interesting eerie sound that permeated the motel. It sounded alot like Moaning Myrtle, but maybe more pleasant. We never did figure that one out.
Mile 3923 - 12/29 The next morning dawned warm and sunny. The weather has been amazingly warm and balmy. Carolyn's been in short sleeves for the last two days - it hit 71 degrees today. We drove up the Outer Banks on a little
two lane road, sometimes with a sandy beach and water on both sides of the car. We crossed from Ocracoke Island on a short ferry and had a couple short rain showers that started each time we got out of the car to look around. About 80% of the islands are either National Park or National Wildlife Refuge. We thought of Brent when we went to walk on the beach where every resident of the island was spending their Saturday surf fishing. They had the most interesting rigs on their trucks to haul an ice chest and all 
their poles standing up - on either the front or rear bumper. We stopped and took photos at each lighthouse and stopped in Kitty Hawk for a tour of the Wright Brothers National Monument. (cj here - I'll remember the mock-up of the plane when I'm boarding my jet for the trip home - YIKES!). It was interesting to think how far we've come and the guts it took to fly the first powered plane. We continued on and experienced our first real rain while driving. Luckily, it was clear when we spent the $12 toll to cross all 22+ miles of the Chesapeake Bay Bridge and Tunnels. They put tunnels where the shipping lanes are! The bridges are four lane separated, but the tunnel sections were only one each way. What do they do during rush hour??Brad has enjoyed the humidity of late, but still shares our room. After living with me for the last 27 years, I couldn't leave my beloved schefflera behind in CA. Y'all can probably figure out how he got his name...We owe some big thanks to Vin and Doris for the yummy biscotti that gets us through "elevenses", and Brenda for all the chocolatey goodies that get us through the "fourses". Lastly, the moving van arrived safely in Rockland last Thursday. Rob says all the boxes will be unpacked by the time we arrive next week. Yippee!
