Well, well, well, if you thought you were getting rid of me, think again.  I know it has been a longish minute since my last adventure, and after a brief medical hiatus, I am back at it and ready to roll and share our adventures again. Also, I wanted to clear up any side bets out there that might be going after reading Where the Hell are My Superpowers, turns out, I did not get to be Storm from X-Men, I got Epilepsy.  Enough about that, let’s get started!

This week we are heading south and going to explore Charleston, South Carolina! Now there are a TON of things to do in Charleston and we will not get to them all on this trip, but now that our daughter lives here, we will be visiting often.  Hopefully we will be able to eventually bring you local hidden gems.

Our first stop is one of my favorites to visit while in Charleston, and usually I make more than one stop if I have time.  The Charleston City Market!  If you love local artists, cuisine, and just interesting shops, this place is for you.  Beware though, most shops are in the open air market so there is NO air conditioning in most of the market.  There is however a section that does have air conditioning so this is a relief on those hot, humid July days.

I have picked up everything from interesting local photographers’ works to handmade earrings.  If there is a craft to be perfected, someone is mastering it and making a dollar here, there is something for everyone and you never know what you will find. It is open daily and is open in the evenings on Friday and Saturdays.

The market has been around for hundreds of years and is a historical fixture of Charleston. According to the Charleston City Market website, “The Charleston City Market, recognized as one of the oldest in the country, is part of a permanent exhibit entitled “Life in Coastal South Carolina c. 1840” at the American History Museum of the Smithsonian Institute in Washington D.C.”

After leaving the market the next logical step would be a walk through Waterfront Park.  I LOVE this park and have to visit every time I am in Charleston.  The beauty of this park sets my soul on fire.  I am not sure what my favorite part is.  

When you first come up to the park off Concord Street you are greeted with a fountain that is usually full of children cooling off from the heat of the day. This is also home to the famous Pineapple Fountain that is in all those Instagram photos.  There is more to Waterfront Park than these two water features.

There are the palmetto lined walkways and the actual water!  You have beautiful views of my favorite Charleston bridge, the Arthur Ravenel Jr Bridge.  You can also take pictures of the USS Yorktown at Patriot Point from here as you stroll along the pier.

Next up, we headed to lunch at the Griffin Pub.  I am not going to lie, when I first saw the sign I thought I was at some Harry Potter themed bar and I was stoked.  However on further investigation we realized this was just a pub that was founded by smartasses as we were drawn in by the hand written sign out front that said, “Cold Beer, Great Food, Meh Service.”  Sign me up!

Upon entering the Griffin you are greeted with a, “Seat yourself,” we lucked out and found the one open table left.  The place itself is covered in graffitied dollar bills stapled to every surface of the structure.  Pretty cool!  

I can no longer drink, but the place does have quite a selection of drinks to choose from.  We stuck with water since it was set on Hell’s Furnace outside, and ordered the fish and chips which was fantastic.  Of course, we could not leave the place without defacing currency like everyone else and stapling it to the wall to leave our mark on Charleston. 

Our last stop while we were downtown was The Black Fedora.  We ran into this place by accident while just walking around the city.  Upon further investigation, Trip Advisor has a recommendation of visiting here while you are in the area. If you like the game Clue, detective shows, and murder mystery dinners, you are in the right place.

This is an interactive show with voluntary audience participants.  You raise your hand at the beginning to get your role of a lifetime.  Of course I bullied my husband into it and he was awarded with the part of Earl the Redneck and I was a hippy.  We will be selling all out possessions and moving to Hollywood soon.

The Black Fedora provides drinks, deserts, and appetizers for an extra fee as you are part of the stage and possibly the cast.  There are several different shows to choose from and I would suggest buying tickets ahead of time.  Also, if the show you want is sold out, try another.  The one we wanted was sold out so we opted for another and had a blast!  I would recommend this to anyone going to the area, and the one we went to was also family friendly.

I know many of you may be disappointed about the lack of tours in this review, but I just could not do it at this time.  It was too damn hot and I am a hippy at heart and I hated carrying me around the town and could not stand the thought of a horse doing it with 16 other people.  We will be doing a tour when we return in the winter season.  I do however think everyone should walk the city and see the architecture, rainbow row, and the  churches and cemeteries.

We also got to see a low country treasure while we were in the south.  The Angel Oak Tree.  For those of you that have never heard of this tree it is located on Johns Island and according to the website it is considered to be the largest Live Oak Tree east of the Mississippi estimating to be 300 to 400 years old.

For those of you reading this and thinking, ”What’s the big deal, it is just a tree?”  You do not understand the glorious wonder of this tree.  I was mesmerized the entire time I was there, it was beautiful!  There are also guards monitoring visitors’ behavior to keep the tree in good shape, because as you know, people cannot seem to not tear stuff up.  I do highly recommend seeing this tree, even if it is just once in your lifetime.  It was almost majestic.

And let’s not forget about those beaches!

Charleston has its pick of great beaches.  Whether your favorite is Folly, Isle of Palms, or Kiawah.  There is a beach for everyone’s tastes.  Kiawah is great, but you have to get there early due to the limited parking.  Isle of Palms is one of my favorites.  It is dog friendly and has a small town to explore as well.

Folly Beach seems to be the most well known.  Parking can be challenging if you are going to the pier, and you need to be prepared to pay for parking upwards of 50 bucks if it is in season.  The pier is nice and has a gift shop and a restaurant.  This place is busy so be prepared.

My favorite spot for Folly Beach is the Folly Beach County Park.  We did not find this until our third trip down.  We have a parking pass so parking is free with our yearly pass.  There is a bathhouse with restrooms and a snack bar along with a really nice beach.  I am kinda sad we did not find this spot until we were leaving on our last trip.

I have been to Charleston three times this year.  Every time, I find something new.  The city has so much to offer, history, culture, art, dining, and nature.  You will find the nicest people you will ever encounter down here as well.  The only thing that I found that I did not like was the July heat.  I was melting.  I am sure if I lived there I would get used to it and I am sure when I visit in December when we have a foot of snow and it is -12 outside I will have a new appreciation for the heat.  I do love the low country though, everyone needs to come down, slow down, and have a glass of sweet tea and watch some glorious sunsets.