FTJ, Entry 149: St. Marys...and Night Visitors

A few days ago we drove south to the historic town of St. Mary's. (Its strategic location just above Florida led to its involvement in several of the major military conflicts in U.S. history. For example, troops were sent from New York to the area during the American Revolution. And it was captured by the British during  the War of 1812. In addition, Union gunboats shelled its waterfront buildings during the Civil War.)

Also worth noting, from St. Marys you can take a ferry to Cumberland Island (where JFK Jr. got married). We will have to do that sometime. But the day we spent in St. Marys was quite pleasant. 

Naturally, Beau especially liked visiting the Submarine Museum.

 

 

 

There is a beautiful waterfront park in town.

But you don't have to leave St. Simons to find beauty and history. We stopped at the Fort Frederica National Monument a bit north of where we are staying, and spent an afternoon in the ruins of a town and fort built by Oglethorpe (the founder of Georgia). The fort was a major defensive site against the Spanish. The official explanation:

In the early 18th century, the land lying between British South Carolina and Spanish Florida was known as the "debatable land." This land (today's Georgia) was the epicenter of a centuries-old imperial conflict between Spain and Britain. Fort Frederica was established in 1736 by James Oglethorpe to protect the southern boundary of his new colony of Georgia from the Spanish in Florida. Colonists from England, Scotland, and the Germanic states came to Georgia to support this endeavor.

There is not much left to the Fort Frederica development other than some foundations and a portion of the fort's magazine. But it is so beautiful and peaceful there. What a nice outing.

Jack-- this shirt is for you!!

 

A few other images from our island:

I just liked the look of this place. Reminiscent of Tara. Nice coach, Scarlett!

John Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Church, lived on St. Simons in the 18th century. This is a memorial to him and other members of his family. There are a lot of Methodists here!

 

Dunno what this palm is, but I like it.

The bottom of the St. Simons lighthouse is planted with gorgeous spring flowers.
The lighthouse was completed in 1872.

A Family Visit - YIPPEE!

We were so thrilled to have Beau's sister Irene and her husband Tom stay with us for a night on their way to Bermuda. We had not seen them for seven months, and it was great being able to spend quality time together, plus show them the beautiful Golden Isles during their short (too short) stay. They are a super couple and lots of fun.

Awwww, the siblings together again.

At the St. Simons fishing pier.

Tom and Beau, longing for a boat?

A "shaded" quartet having dinner at Mullet Bay, on the verandah. Nice!

Irene and Tom under the majestic live oaks downtown in front of the Visitors Center.

A Year in Georgia

We are hoping more of our friends and family come to visit, now that we are going to be here for the next year. Yup, we signed a lease on a furnished condo and are going to give living on this beautiful island a try. Why not? If the summer is just too hot and/or the winter too cold, we can pack up the old RV and head out again next July. But for now, we need a home base...

...and it will look like this (our landlords say they are replacing the dining table and the living room couch):

It is a truly lovely townhouse with great views of the vast expanse of marshes. And it is in a terrific location -- although you are not far from anything on the island. The beach and town, for example, are just a few minutes away.

OMG - we are excited...and nervous.

Tanks, Panky 

FTJ, Entry 148: Island Action, Tall Ships

We have been pretty busy here on St. Simons, starting with my meeting local resident Keenan, otherwise known as Ziggy, the owner of the eponymous island nightclub, Ziggy Mahoney's. Beau and I went there last Friday (May 4th, our anniversary) for a really fun evening. We listened to Ziggy sing and DJ, and then we did some dancing. 

Ziggy  is a great guy who acknowledged us several times during his act, telling the crowd he hoped we might settle on the island. (Okay, I might have flirted with him a little bit when I met him, to make sure he remembered me.)

Below, a very bad photo of Ziggy (damn camera!). He is quite a handsome fellow, actually. And a great singer/entertainer. We will be back, hopefully.

 

 Beau at Ziggy's surfboard table:

Earlier in the day we had enjoyed a fabulous anniversary lunch at Mullet Bay restaurant downtown. Sixteen years of wedded bliss. With some impulsive nuttiness (i.e., our RV adventure) thrown in to spice things up.

 

The weather has been superb, so we enjoyed the beach one day last week. It was perfect. We are already tan and old-people leathery, so we don't really need to "bake" too much, though.

I'd like to say that is me in the lounger, but we all know that I can't and she isn't. Sigh.

The sad truth.

It was surprising to see horses on the beach. Buddy growled at the strange "big dogs."

Last Sunday we trekked up to Savannah, a wonderful town we have visited before. But we wanted to experience the Tall Ships festival, which featured a number of schooners and square-riggers.

Some pics of the town and the ships:

 

One of the ships was looking for crew. Beau was tempted to sign on, but I talked him out of it.

 

The town's unusual WWII memorial sits along the waterfront.

Love the contrast of the ugly new behemoth and the old ships.

There was some local entertainment, including steel drums...

...and of course, the requisite pirate crews.

 

 

There were ships on both sides of the river.

The old Savannah waterfront.

 

A happy sailor at the River House, a waterfront eatery.

The town sits above the waterfront, so you have to go up stairs to get to it.

 

The gold domed building is City Hall.

Ye Olde Cotton Exchange (c. 1887)

Typical thoroughfare in the historic district.

 

Home of Juliette Gordon Low, founder of the Girl Scouts.

Had to have a photo with the statue of Johnny Mercer, the famous lyricist and Savannah resident who wrote "Moon River" (my favorite song), and the song I was named for, 'Laura."

Not sure what happened to the original Forrest Gump bench where he said "life is like a box of chocolates" (big whoop, I hate that stupid-ass movie), but it was in Chippewa Park in Savannah and looked like this.

Exciting, huh? Try to contain yourselves.

 Enough photos, enough blah blah blah. I shall end with a few oddities:

Beau's new girlfriend.

My new boyfriend. Love those big boys.

And guess what this is (below). There will be a prize for the right answer. I am not saying what the prize will be, but it could be taking you off this blog's email list. As Curly would say, nyuk nyuk nyuk.

This was a long one. If there are typos, don't tell me. I'm pooped. 

Till next time.

Tanks, Panky