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We woke early for us so that we could spend most of the day in Savannah prior to driving up to the Augusta area. After finding a parking place large enough to accommodate our nearly 40-foot length (we had to push quarters into 2 adjacent parking meters), we set off on our first and very most important order of business in Savannah: beignets. A beignet is a little square Cajun donut, fried up so that it is hollow, and dusted with powdered sugar. We acquired a taste for them last time we were in Savannah, and so it has become somewhat of a Savannah tradition for us, despite the fact that we were 800 or so miles from Cajun country. After feasting on too many beignets -- we ordered a dozen, and Doug and Jody ate most of them -- we set off to see the historic district of old Savannah. Really charming. Every few blocks there was a New England style square, usually done up as a park or garden, often with a statue of some Significant Southern White Guy standing importantly in the center. All the trees had Spanish moss hanging from them, and the architecture was distinctive as well -- a bit like the French Quarter of New Orleans, but with a more refined, staid English feel. We wandered about, spending more than half our time in one 'Antique' store or another. The rest of the time was spent just walking about and looking at whatever there was too see: people, lovely old brickwork, buildings done up with wrought iron and shutters. It was a nice walk, and a good way to see this fine old Southern city. Our parking meters were due to expire about 2:30, so Doug and the girls went back to the trailer to make lunch while Jody took a tour of a historic house (as she is wont to do). It turned out the 7 dollars for the tour was somewhat wasted, since most of the house was closed or still un-restored, and the tour guide was bad as well. Good thing only one of us went. The drive up to Augusta was all on 'blue highways' -- no interstates or freeways. It was grand. Judging from the population density we encountered during this 3 hour drive, one could easily conclude that Georgia was entirely rural, and mostly unpopulated. Really pretty countryside, with wild flowers growing everywhere, and the occasional small town, distinguished mostly by the presence of a signal across the road, and a small cluster of the standard businesses at the intersection: gas station, diner, 'antique' shop oand/r dilapidated auto part store. We arrived in Augusta at Jody's Aunt Judy and Uncle Mike's home just in time to be received warmly and served dinner. It was a pretty full house: two of Judy and Mike's grandchildren were down with their mother, Mary Beth, from Washington DC, for a visit. In addition, Mike and Judy's daughter, Caragh, and her two young boys were often about, making for a lively evening full of the (mostly) joyful noises that lots of small people can make. |
