Savannah 2011

Last week we went to Savannah for a long weekend.  It was our first visit there as a family (I visited it as a kid but Nancy had never been).  The historic district was beautiful with the old trees with spanish moss and lots of parks every few blocks.  It took us a few days to adjust to the slower pace and I think we picked the windiest weekend ever.  But we managed to see a fair amount of the city, enjoy some good low country cooking, and run a marathon along the way.

We arrived on Friday and took a walk down to the river.  We hopped on a ferry boat to get my race packet at the convention center which is on an island.  The other 23,000 runners decided to do the same thing.  After a long and windy wait, we finally made it across.  That was our first sign that maybe Savannah had more visitors than it could handle.

We met my parents for dinner at a restaurant near their hotel, along with everyone else.  The restaurant was overwhelmed with hungry runners.  We finally got a table and managed to get a decent meal, but poor Nancy had to get hers to-go because her order was brought out late and Peter was too fussy by that time.  That was our second clue that Savannah was full.

The marathon was on Saturday.  The weather was good but windy.  The start was a short 15 minute walk from our hotel and passed right in front of it at mile 8.  Nancy, Katie, and Peter were out front cheering me on.  It was great seeing them there.  My parents unfortunately were running late and missed me at mile 8 (or maybe I ran too fast).  But they met up at mile 26 and I got to see them there, which was great.  It was a big motivation to keep moving, knowing that they were waiting for me and luckily I slowed down enough to give them time to get there.

After the marathon, we went to my parents' hotel to see my Aunt Mary who lives in Florida.  It was her first time meeting Katie and Peter.  Her son Tommy and grandson Edward kindly drove her to Savannah to see us.  Unfortunately, she couldn't stay long but it was great seeing her.  After that we ate a nice beefy steak.  Luckily we didn't have to wait 2 hours for a table this time.

The next day most of the runners left town which was nice.  We walked around the historic district a bit and had a great breakfast at J Christophers.  Nancy and Katie had pumpkin pancakes!  Nancy and Katie saw the Juliette Lowe house (where the Girl Scouts were founded) and then we walked to the beautiful Forsyth Park where Katie and Peter played on the playground.  Katie wanted me to chase her but I gave up after a few steps.  We had dinner at the Six Pence Pub which legend says has a ghost in the basement.

On Monday my parents left early to go home and we spent the day touring Savannah.  We walked around the historic district, went on a great horse-drawn carriage ride around the city (which Katie loved), and ate a fantastic lunch at Mrs. Wilkes Dining Room.  We had to wait about 40 minutes but it was worth it.  You sit family-style at big tables for 10 and pass around big dishes of great food: mashed potatoes, green beans, turnips, sweet potatoes, blackeyed peas, fried chicken, bbq pulled pork, beef stew, corn muffins, and about 10 other dishes.  We finished with some amazing banana pudding.  We then toured the Mercer House which was pivotal in Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil.  After that, we were all exhausted and made the longer-than-expected drive to my parents house in Winder.

It was a fun time in Savannah.  We really liked our hotel (the DeSoto Hilton) because we were within a short walk to most everything in the historic district.  We look forward to visiting it again sometime and trying some more of their great restaurants -- but hopefully when they are a little less crowded!

More photos are here.


Katie in front of a statue of James Oglethorpe, who founded Georgia.


The ferry (small boat on right) to the convention center (white building on left).  We were hoping we were boarding the big river boat behind it, but no luck.


Katie at the Savannah waterfront.


At mile 8 of the marathon and still able to smile.


The view of the race from our hotel room.


The view of the historic district from our hotel room.


Everyone waits (and waits) for me at mile 26.  I was trying to get there as fast as I could.


Aunt Mary with her great-nephew and great-niece.


Katie at the fountain at Forsyth Park.


Katie and Grandma.




Peter swings at Forsyth Park.


This is me chasing Katie.  Not pictured: me.


Tired travelers in our hotel room.


Katie in front of a memorial to Johnny Mercer.


Just about every street in Savannah looked like this, with old trees and Spanish moss providing a shady canopy.


One of the many great parks ("squares") in Savannah, which are usually surrounded by beautiful houses.


One of the beautiful houses on a beautiful square.


Another nice square.


This is Broughton Street which was a nice old-fashioned Main Street with shops and restaurants.


Katie in front of our horse-drawn carriage with her new friends Jake and June.


The Federal Government tried to blend its buildings into the surroundings but failed.  This was supposed to look like an old southern plantation house.


Katie, Peter, and Nancy dance around while waiting to enter Mrs. Wilkes Dining Room for lunch.