Oh, Savannah! - So Nice, We Did it Twice!

November 28 - December 11, 2022

I found Santa on River Street!

Very unlike us, we called an audible and changed our destination at the last minute for this stay! We had originally made reservations for a state park in south central Georgia. As time was approaching to head that way, Dick began questioning how many interesting things there would be to see and do around there. A look at the map quickly convinced us our hearts really wanted to be heading back to Savannah! We had spent a week there during our first year of full-time RV adventuring but, honestly, you just can’t get enough of this lovely, southern charm!

City Market Candy Kitchen Praline Samples - fresh off the marble!

We found wonderful reviews for CreekFire RV Resort, and although we really love the state parks, CreekFire is a gem of an RV resort!

Our first surprise while staying there was learning the campsite a couple of sites away from us was occupied by a couple who just happened to have lived down the road from my sister in Long Grove, Iowa. Long Grove has a population of 838 people, so it doesn’t take a lot of math to understand the odds of this happening is next to impossible! Tony and Trina invited us over for a couple of evening campfires. They also had invited another couple, Bill and Erin (from Portland, Oregon) over, making for lively evenings of conversation and laughter!

The six of us also ventured down to Savannah one evening. We took in the Christmas Market Place on River Street and dined on the finest low country boil that Savannah has to offer at Savannah Seafood Shack! Seeing all of the Christmas lights of historic Savannah was absolutely delightful and the food totally delicious!

Savannah City Market

Leopold's - a not-to-miss spot!

Possibly our favorite feature of CreekFire was their Lazy River! I’m typically not good at sitting still, but stick me in an inner tube and give me a White Russian, and I can be content for a long time! We met so many other campers while drifting around and around! Apparently, I’m not the only one who finds this activity relaxing. One person we met was Laura. Laura’s husband was the mayor of Eldridge, Iowa (the town I grew up in)! What a small world!

In addition to the Lazy River, there is a lake on CreekFire’s property. The sun setting over the lake was really pretty. We heard several alligators consider the lake their home; however, we never did see one. Maybe that was alright!

We did manage to get up early enough one morning to join Liz for a class in Meditation/Relaxation. Liz held the class lakeside, so we had all of the sounds of nature adding to the calm environment. It was a delightful way to start a day and left us ready to tackle any challenge that day!

Hilton Head, South Carolina was an hour’s drive northeast of our campground, making it an irresistible destination for a day trip. We left Savannah with sunshine and 74° and arrived at the beach in Hilton Head with 64° and a light mist. We walked a short distance along the coast and quickly decided it was lunchtime! We also managed to ride our bikes from the parking lot to the coast – maybe a half mile, but quickly abandoned that activity as well! I’ve always known I’m a fair weather outdoor enthusiast and this day only proved it! I did find some endurance inside Island Quilters quilt shop, where I found pansy themed fabrics that will make a fun project this winter! Life just keeps giving me creative ways to make lemonade!

Another fun day trip was to Tybee Island! On the way, as we were passing the entrance to Fort Pulaski, Dick noticed the park entrance read “Kennedy Space Center”. Weird! Then, when we arrived at the Tybee Island Beach, the pier had a large sign above it reading “Canaveral Pier”. Hmmm. We either took a really wrong turn, went thru some strange black hole or… a movie was going to be filmed here. It turned out that option three was the correct answer. Keep your eyes open for “Eleven”, staring Channing Tatum and Scarlett Johansson! Although neither actor was around (at least that we noticed), it was entertaining to watch the transformation of the Tybee Island pier of the 2020’s into Florida’s Cape Canaveral Pier from 1969. The vintage vending machines with Animal Crackers and candy cigarettes for 15¢ certainly brought back memories from our youth! On our way back home, we saw them actively filming at the fort entrance. There was a crowd gathered which was cheering and waving American flags, so be sure to look for Big Red driving by in the background when this film comes out!

We found sunshine at the Tybee Island beach and actually had to apply sunscreen! Sitting there, reading with the sound of the waves crashing onto the sandy shore was amazing. As much as I enjoyed it, I do believe this is Dick’s second favorite place in the world to be -- second only to either Hilton Coliseum or Jack Trice Stadium on the campus of Iowa State University!

Fannie's on the Beach restaurant

In 1864, Sherman’s army ended their March to the Sea at Fort McAllister, after leaving a 60-mile-wide path of destruction from Atlanta to Savannah. Fort McAllister is located 15 miles from where our campground was so, yep, that turned into yet another day’s outing. The entire fort is earthworks and is the best-preserved earthworks from the Civil War that exists. The fort had successfully defended their position several times when attacked from the Savannah River, but really had no chance of winning when Sherman attacked by land from the rear. The Union Army outnumbered the Confederate Army 25 to 1! In under an hour, the battle was over. I wish everyone could learn our history by these hands-on visits! The books always put me to sleep when I was in school. Now, I can’t get enough of it!

In December of 2019, I had cataract surgery done. I had noticed lately that I wasn’t seeing as well as I thought I should. I wondered if my prescription had changed, or if the scratches on my glasses were causing a problem so I made an appointment to get my vision checked. It turned out that neither of these were my problem! I had developed secondary cataracts, which was easily corrected with laser surgery. I couldn’t believe the difference it made in my vision! I’m so very thankful for the medical knowledge, skills and technology we have available to us today! On the way to my appointment, we passed several cotton fields! It was fun to pull off the road for a few minutes and get a close up look at this staple of the Georgia economy!

Savannah was the motivation for coming to this area so, of course, we made several trips into this beautiful city. The live oak trees dripping with Spanish moss that line the streets of Savannah take your breath away. Combine that with the historic homes from the late 1700’s and early 1800’s and you have something truly special! No wonder Savannah is known as a “City of Romance”!

Walking around Forsyth Park was possibly our favorite activity! There is always so much going on there! Saturday morning, we not only found a farmer’s market, but a live concert, individuals practicing tight rope walking, musicians playing for tips, artists selling their crafts (I bought a pair of sea opal earrings Eve had made), soccer games, tennis matches and many friendly smiles!

We were blessed to attend the Second Sunday of Advent at the Cathedral Basilica of St. John the Baptist. This is such a historic and beautiful church!

After Mass, we walked to the Savannah River, passing Juliette Gordon Low’s birth home on our way. Juliette was the American founder of Girl Scouts of the USA in 1911. I had such a wonderful experience with Girl Scouts growing up, so it was interesting to see where Juliette grew up! Ruth Arp was the leader of my troop and she always had fun activities planned for us – including a trip to an International Girl Scout Chalet located in Adelboden, Switzerland in 1974! Who knows, maybe it is was a combination of Girl Scouts and Ruth Arp that lit this fire of adventure that lives in my soul! Ruth passed away in October of 2022 at the age of 92. She really was an inspiring woman!

When we arrived at Savannah River’s waterfront, we found the Savannah Belles Ferry which provided free rides across the river to the Convention Center. It was fun seeing Savannah’s River Street and all of the stores along the street from the perspective of the river! I bet it is particularly beautiful at night, with all of the Christmas lights shining brightly!

I wouldn’t call us “foodies” of any type, but we did include a food tour in our visit to Savanna this time around. This tour included tastings from six venues and pretty much provided us with all of the needed calories for the entire day! Our favorite was the first stop at Zanzie’s, although all of the stops were yummy!

Along the route, we stopped at a couple of Savannah’s 22 squares. There, we learned a little more of Savannah’s history. One stop was at Chippewa Square, where a scene from Forrest Gump was filmed (the bench with the feather and box of chocolates). Another was at Johnson Square. A common characteristic of the squares is the live oak trees filled with Spanish moss. What’s unusual about Johnson Square is the complete and total absence of Spanish moss from all of its trees. Lore has it that Spanish moss won’t grow where innocent blood was shed. This could quite possibly explain the absence of this abundant, southern air plant, as it was in Johnson Square where slave auctions were held and families were forever torn apart.

On a happier note, another community not far from our campground was Richmond Hill. There we spent a morning taking in their annual Christmas Parade! I have to admit, we’ve grown quite accustomed to such events in a warm climate! You would think after so many decades of my life experiencing the “white (and COLD) Christmas”, it would be firmly ingrained in my blood. Not true! Maybe the first green (and WARM) Christmas seemed a bit strange but, after that, we didn’t look back! Palm trees are just as lovely as conifers when draped with holiday lights!

We also attended mass at St. Anne’s in Richmond Hill for the Third Sunday of Advent. This was a very lovely church filled with parishioners who made sure you were welcomed and felt at home. Oh, the southern charm of the south! Yes, Savannah (and the surrounding area), we will undoubtedly be back yet again!