Savannah

After a one day stay in St. Augustine, where I went to the World Golf Hall of Fame and also spent some time walking around the historic district, I moved on to Savannah.  I very much enjoyed St. Augustine.  The Golf Hall of Fame was impressive, and it was fun learning a little more history of the game and seeing some of the greats that I'd heard mention of, but didn't really know much about.  The historic district in St. Augustine is fun if you have some historic information or do a tour (which I did), but it's pretty commercial, so you have to be able to look past that a bit.

Savannah was simply a love affair.  I stayed at the Doubletree Hotel in the northwest corner of the historic district, and it was convenient and the service was what I very quickly came to experience in all of Savannah.  Genuine friendliness and a willingness to tarry a moment for a few words were the norm.  I initially took a trolley tour of the historic district, and then walked everywhere, spending more time at the places I'd seen on the tour, and discovering a few new ones.  I loved the restored homes, especially the Owens-Thomas home:

 Mostly, I really enjoyed the pride the people took of their city.  They love it here, and like to talk about it to tourists.  As a city that was spared at the end of Sherman's March (after the burning of Atlanta) they have felt both fortunate, and also a little that it was deserved, because they're so pretty.

There are park squares all over town.  They're fun to study, since there are frequently statues of famous people in them, which tell the story of the city.  Forsythe Park is especially beautiful, at the southern edge of the historic district.

I have too many pictures of houses to attach, some really elaborate, some looking somewhat plain, but with great historical significance, and a few looking a bit dowdy.  Here is one I especially liked:

The food here was wonderful.  Of course, many people now know about Savannah's favorite cook, Paula Deen, who has her famous Lady & Sons restaurant about 3 blocks from my hotel.  I confess I didn't eat there, only because one has to arrive right when they open on any day to make reservations for later in the day.  By 9:30 am, I was usually well into my day walking.  This is a city I know I'll come back to with affection probably many times in the future.