2021 - South Carolina - Day 05 - Myrtle Beach to Charleston (Boone Hall Plantation)

 We got up to another breezy cool morning in Myrtle Beach.  The weather has been pretty wonderful.  Temperature has been perfect.  The wind...a bit too strong.  But hey...all good.  We used our breakfast package to once again get breakfast at the Hotel.  This time, however, we were smarter and figured out how to share plates in a way that we did not have as much food. The food was pretty good.

After checking out, we got in the car and headed south to Charleston.  As we drove, we started to figure out what we were going to do the next 48 hours in Charleston.  We opted to purchase a tri-package where we would take a harbor tour, a downtown carriage tour and visit the Boone Hall Plantation.  We purchased it over the phone and then changed our destination from the next hotel to the plantation.  

We arrived at the plantation just after noon.  The plantation was pretty cool.  It has been used for such movies as The Notebook, North and South and Alex Haley’s final roots chapter called ‘Queen’.  The plantation is used for many things.  They have various ‘harvest days’ where they celebrate the beginning of a given crop harvest.  They have acres of land where they grow a ton of different crops from Pecan trees to strawberries with many other things as well.   We saw blueberries, corn, grapes, etc..  Quite a long list of things grown here.  The mansion on the premise was redone.  As a matter of fact, the owners of the plantation sometimes live in the place in rooms upstairs.  Along the property are preserved living areas where the slaves once lived.  The bricks and everything that were used to build them came from the property as it used to have 3 brick kilns that produced over a million bricks a year.  The bricks were actually used to build Fort Sumter.  We walked through all the buildings, down the amazing entry road that was lined with 86 live oak trees.   There used to be 88 but a hurricane took out one of them and a lightening strike another.  We also jumped on a trailer pulled by a tractor that took us around the property for about a 45 minutes or so.  It was narrated by guy who was very ‘dramatic’.  Kind of funny to watch as much as listen.  We also listened to a couple of lectures.  One lady described the situations of the slaves.  Another lady actually acted out some things, singing songs, talking in the dialect spoken back then.  Funny, as we came up to the area to sit to listen to this black lady, she started banging a big stick on the ground to the side of the little stage.  It turns out she was killing a copperhead rattlesnake that was slithering along the foundation of the little house there.  She had not problem killing it and picking it up with the big stick.  The whole audience was amazed as they watched her do that.  From that point on, everyone was monitoring the ground under their feet!   All in all, I think we stayed a couple of hours there.  We even grabbed a hot dog, some salad and a small Bundt cake to share for a quick lunch.

After the plantation visit, we headed to our Country Inn and Suites hotel.  It is North Charleston...a bit away from the downtown.  I think it is about 12 miles or so away.  We’ll see.  We will do the harbor tour and the carriage ride tomorrow in the afternoon.  It is supposed to be a warm day here...around 88 degrees.  That will definitely be the hottest day while here.  We will see.  I will end this post later tonight and post pictures after we have eaten dinner.

Wow....dinner was amazing tonight.  We went to Lewis BBQ in Charleston.  The BBQ was purchased by the pound.  At first glance, the prices seemed a bit high.  But once you buy portions and sides, it turned out to be reasonable for BBQ.  But man...was it so darn good.  Brisket, pulled pork, green Chile corn bread, Mac-n-cheese and potato salad.  We have enough for a meal tomorrow or when we travel on Saturday.

After dinner, we drove downtown looking for the Savannah Candy Company.  We found it.  But parking is so expensive down here.  We also found the carriage company that we will use tomorrow.  So we now kind of know how to get to where we need to go.  Anyway, the candy company had some nice chocolates....gophers, pralines, etc..  But that was not enough, so we went to get some ice cream.  We are going to be in a food coma when we get home at this pace.  But the food was great.  Tomorrow I’ll tell you about the sites.  But tonight....it is all food.

Lastly, we played 5 crowns before going to bed and I set an all time ‘high’ record.  Pretty sad.  Should have never stepped up to the card table.   Until tomorrow....

Pictures:

Just some pictures around the plantation....

This lady is now named the ‘snake killer’.  She was a one lady show in so many ways singing, acting and killing snakes (which was not part of her act!).  She was really good describing the culture and languages of the enslaved people.  Apparently most came from West Africa (Angola) and brought rice and other things with them.

The pretty, long, driveway up to the mansion on the plantation.  Everything here has been restored and preserved.

These were the quarters of the slaves.  But these were the ‘skilled’ slaves that were most loved and used in close ways by the owners.  They are pretty sure the other slaves did not live so well.  But in some cases, two families, up to 16 people, lived in one of these little huts.  Pretty sad how humanity chose to treat humanity.

This is the back of the mansion...a nice little courtyard.

Road leading up to the mansion lined with live oak trees.

First time I’ve seen a cotton field with cotton on it.  Pretty cool to see.

Another picture of our snake lady telling us about the history of the plantation.

Along side the property there was a large waterway flowing quickly by.  It was a pretty place where they had a reception house.  Pretty nice location for a wedding reception.

This is the ‘gin’ house.  It is short for engine.  It provided support for all things motorized and generating energy.

The mansion....

If you look on the log, you’ll see a number of turtles sunning themselves.   Out in the middle of this pond, there were a bunch of turtles too.  Still no sighting of an alligator!

Happy back seat drivers.....

Happy vacationers.....

Can you say BBQ YUM!!!!  Lewis’ BBQ....gotta go there when in Charleston, SC.

The entire group.  Having a grand time seeing the south!

Our snake lady shared how they used a broom in their marriage ceremony reading from 1st Corinthians in the New Testament.  After a couple was married, they ‘jumped’ over the broom that was laid at their feet.  They would then put the broom over their bed or under it.

Great trip we are having!