I happen to feel that we got married on the perfect day, as it will fall on Labor Day weekend every few years! That means we always have the time to take a nice long weekend anniversary trip. :) So we started off what I hope can be a tradition (that is, taking a trip every anniversary!) by going to Charleston, SC. It seemed like the perfect destination, as it was within driving distance and is a beautiful town with so much to offer!
We left on Friday the 4th and drove the 4 1/2 to 5 hours from NC to Charleston. We checked into our Bed and Breakfast,
Vendue Suites, where we were greeted by Jan, who takes care of the 3 room B&B. She helped us bring our bags in and even spent some time recommending places to see/visit and things to do! I would definitely recommend staying here. We thought it was a great deal for the location...very close to the "action" in Charleston!
Cheese and crackers and a bottle of wine were also waiting for us in our room when we arrived.
There is so much to do in Charleston, so to start off the weekend, we decided we would just walk around and explore the area. We spent a little time at Waterfront Park right down from our B&B, which has a pier-like area and swings and benches for relaxing. Let me just say that we had the most beautiful weather the entire weekend while we were there. The sun was shining and the temperature was comfortable. It was perfect! Very much like the weather on our actual wedding day! :) (the photo below is not mine...our weather was much nicer!)
We then walked over to King Street where all of the mainstream shops are located. There were designer shops and little boutiques, as well as some restaurants every now and then. We walked for quite a while and eventually found ourselves near College of Charleston and some residential areas with cute little houses.
It was getting later and we were getting hungry, so we decided to go to Southend Brewery & Smokehouse, just down from our B&B. Grant ordered a pulled pork sandwich and I had a yummy tomato and basil pizza!
After dinner, we walked around a little more and stopped at River Street Sweets for some bulk candy and salt water taffy, as well as a chocolate covered oreo and pretzel. Yum! Then we called it a night and relaxed back at our B&B.
Saturday morning, we started the day with breakfast in our room. The B&B stocks fresh fruit and pastries/muffins each afternoon for your next day's breakfast. It was so nice to be able to wake up and have breakfast right there waiting for us! Before I booked this room, I read reviews on tripadvisor.com that said the breakfast was dull and not filling. We disagreed! There was plenty for 2 people and it was nice and light and refreshing! We then left to get tickets for a carriage tour. We ended up going with Old South Carriage Company, and our tour guide was a little odd, but we got to see some really neat houses and learn a little Charleston history! This is something we thought was cool to do, but not a "must" for Charleston. A walking tour would have been just as good. We obviously couldn't go everywhere since we were riding in a horse-drawn carriage, so that was one of the limitations.
(bullet holes from the Civil War!)
We followed our carriage ride with lunch at Sweetwater Cafe, a small diner-like place and then decided to walk to Aquarium Wharf/Liberty Square where our Fort Sumter harbor tour departed. On our way, we stopped at Charleston Candy Kitchen for yummy birthday cake flavored gelato! Our walk was quite a bit farther than we thought, but we made it. Our tour was with Spiritline Cruises, and it was great! We circled the harbor/Cooper River as we made our way to and from Fort Sumter, which was where the first attack of the Civil War took place in 1861. And if I remember correctly, the fort has been pretty much untouched and preserved as it was at the end of the Civil War. We definitely recommend doing this if you're in Charleston.
(The actual cannons that they used in the Civil War!)
A cannon ball-bullet still wedged into the Fort wall.
What was left of the Officers' quarters following an attack/fire.
View of Downtown Charleston from the Harbor
We rode a bus back to our hotel and got ready for dinner. We called around to make reservations at a fancier restaurant, but nothing was available until late evening. In the mean time, we finished up our bottle of wine and then walked about a block or so to Fleet Landing for drinks. The owners of the restaurant also own the B&B we stayed in, so a free drink was included with our stay! :) It was a really cool place, very laid back, and the only restaurant in downtown Charleston that is truly on the water.
After a couple of drinks there, we walked to 82 Queen where we had reservations at 8:15pm. This was supposed to be our true "anniversary dinner," so we went all out. :) We ordered delicious food (Grant had chicken and I had the filet mignon!) and also a bottle of wine, which we finished. ;) Needless to say, we were both feeling all of our drinks by the end of our meals! We eventually made it back to our hotel (blisters on my feet and all...), with a little detour because I almost got us lost! We sat outside of our B&B and watched people walking and people waiting to get into the Rooftop Bar at the Vendue Inn across from us, which is supposedly pretty popular and usually has a line to get in. (I'll spare you the pictures from that night!)
Sunday morning we started with a light breakfast in our room, and then took bikes that our B&B had for guests to use around the peninsula and down to The Battery Park. Along the way, we stopped to take photos of historic mansions and the famous Rainbow Row. When we got back, it was time for lunch, so we walked to Poogan's Porch and actually ate on the porch! This place is pretty popular though, because we had to wait in line for a while. Grant had a turkey sandwich and I had delicious praline french toast!! After that it was time to go back to reality and pack up and head back to NC.
Left photo: Grant's in the white...he must have heard an airplane...
Right photo: Cute little alley we found on the way back to our hotel. :)
Overall we had a really great time and would recommend Charleston to anyone! I would definitely go again, and it's awesome because it's so close to us here in North Carolina. So hopefully, if we're back here again someday, we'll get to visit Charleston again!
