Hilton Head and Savannah

We have so enjoyed our past 3 days!  I think Hilton Head has made my list of favorite places to visit or vacation.  There were only 2 choices of campgrounds on the island, both expensive.  We are glad we made the decision to bite the bullet and pay the price to stay on the island and not in the Savannah area and drive over to Hilton Head.  Our RV resort (that is what they call campgrounds to justify prices equal to a cheap hotel room!) was very private, quiet, with beautiful landscapes sites.  The best part was it was right on the bike trail that takes you anywhere around the lower part of the island.  (more on that later)  I'm not the sharpest tool in the shed and it took me two bike rides around the RV resort to realize that there were only Class A motorhomes allowed.  No tents, pop-ups, travel trailers or even fifth wheels.  That explained the "quiet" - I never saw any kids.  Lots of older people and their dogs.

We spent all day Monday in Savannah, about an hour drive.  Our GPS routed us on back roads, not I-95, which I always like.  They call this the Lowcountry and we could see why.  Marsh land everywhere.
To get a feel and overview of the city, the first thing we did was take the 90 minute trolley tour.  Always informative, we learned the following:  Colonists landed in what is now Savannah in 1733.  It is the first planned city.  Broad Street was the first paved road in Georgia.  Slavery was banned in Georgia until 1751.  Two-thirds of the world's cotton came from the south and there were only two pricing houses for cotton: Liverpool, England and Savannah.  The city was planned around 24 "squares" (22 still exist) that are basically green spaces, or parks (very welcoming and restful).  Some have fountains or statues and some are just a lovely oasis in an urban setting.  Savannah is the birthplace of Juliette Gordon Low, founder of the Girl Scouts , and Johnny Mercer, who wrote "Moon River".  During the Civil War, General Sherman burned the city of Atlanta on his march through the south.  Savannah was spared that fate because Sherman had friends (the Telefairs) who lived here.
And to add to our list of "oldest this or that", Savannah is home to the oldest African-American church congregation.

After doing the entire city loop, we got off the trolley and explored on foot.  It was a beautiful day, sunny and in the 70's.  The gal at the ticket booth said Savannah has 14 good days a year and we hit one of them.  She said it is either freezing cold or blazing hot.  I think that might be an exaggeration, but we could see the distinct possibility of steamy summer days here.
Walking around, we found some of the architecture similar to New Orleans with wrought iron fencing and balconies. I tried to take pictures of the beautiful houses that surround the squares, but, for the most part, large oak and magnolia trees would block the view so I knew the pictures wouldn't show what we could see.
After reading some online reviews, we chose Mrs. Wilkes Boarding House over Paula Deen's The Lady and Sons for lunch.  (Ok - I may have been influenced by the name Wilkes, as Ashley and Melanie Wilkes are major characters in one of my favorite movies - Gone With The Wind.)
We were warned that there would be a line, but I told Mike this is like the Cafe du Monde in New Orleans where the beignets were worth the wait.  The line actually serves a useful purpose - helping to locate the restaurant and the side entrance.  It would be very easy to walk right past it.
There is no menu.  We were seated at a large oval table with 6 other people.  The food and iced tea were already on the table and it is all family style.  The main dishes were fried chicken, beef stew and BBQ pork.  We then could choose from the 15 side dishes on the table, including sweet potatoes, yellow squash, black-eyed peas, collard greens, baked mac n cheese.  In other words, all things southern!  For the unadventurous, there was mashed potatoes and gravy, corn, and cole slaw.  The servers wore T-shirts that said "If the Colonel made chicken this good, he would have been a General."  It was delicious, along with the cherry cobbler and banana cream pie pudding we forced ourselves to eat, even though we were stuffed!

To work off some of those calories, we walked to River Street, which appropriately enough runs parallel to the Savannah River.   When Savannah was founded, the river was 12 feet deep.  Dredging has increased that to 42 ft. and 98% of the world's ships can navigate the river, making it a very active port.  The street is cobblestone and lined with the touristy shops you would expect. Other than having to go downhill to this area, Savannah is a very walkable city with no high rise buildings.

Tuesday was our day to explore our end of Hilton Head.  I say "our end" because when we were leaving today, I realized that the island is quite large and some areas very commercial and busy.    We were down on the southern tip where we could easily get around on our bikes.  The trails are well marked, paved, and flat.  (you have to be thankful for the little things. . . )  We turned right out of our park and rode 2 miles to a marina and back.   We then headed the other way and rode 2 miles to one of the many public beaches.  The tide was out so we were able to ride our bikes right on the beach.  We rode in one direction close to the water, playing chicken with the incoming waves and rode back up higher on the beach.  We now have the distinction of riding our own bikes (not rentals) on a beach on the west coast (Santa Monica) and east coast.  As Mike said, "From sea to shining sea."  It was actually ocean to ocean, but that doesn't fit so well in the song.
It was a perfect day weather-wise so we ate lunch at an outdoor cafe just off the beach.  We rode back to the RV, worked on a tire pressure problem and then took our camp chairs and drove to another beach to spend the rest of the late afternoon gazing out at the Atlantic, looking for dolphins (no luck), and watching two beginner surfers attempt to handle the small waves.  You would think that growing up on  Lake Michigan, as we did, that being on the water, or looking at the water would be ho-hum.  Not so.  Maybe because we grew up on the water, we never tire of the calming effect it has, watching the waves break on shore or gorgeous sunrises and sunsets the water produces.

We also drove to Harbour Town to see the iconic red and white lighthouse that stands behind the 18th hole of the Harbour Town Golf Links, home to a PGA tournament.  Harbour Town is part of Sea Pines Plantation, a huge resort that takes up the entire tip of the island, and the only drawback is the $5 fee to enter this area.  So to get to all the restaurants, shops, golf courses, or beaches here, you have to pay.

We left at 8 am this morning and are almost to St. Augustine, where we will be for the next 3 nights. (my goal lately is to finish a blog post in the hours it takes us to get to the next destination.  I've only got 16 more miles!)

                                                                    Our campsite

                        The Savannah riverfront.  We came across that bridge to get to the city.

                                                           Examples of the squares

                           We thought this statue looked amazingly like Captain Morgan!

            The line to get into Miss Wilkes Boarding House for lunch.  Mike is in the blue shirt and shorts.

                        The sidewalks here have crushed sea shells mixed in with the cement.

                                        We didn't eat here, but this is Paula Deen's restaurant.

                                     I did walk through her shop connected to the restaurant.

A statue on the riverfront in honor of a women who signaled a welcome to incoming ships for over 40 years.  By day she waved a towel, by night a lantern.

                                         Bike riding on Coligny Beach - Hilton Head Island

                                                         Harbour Town lighthouse

NASCAR Everywhere

My task in this post is to make it interesting enough that those who didn't understand my reference last time to "Jeff, Jimmy and Junior", or have never watch a race on TV or simply could care less about NASCAR, will continue reading.
I'll start with Mike's observation.  It is always noted how difficult it is for an athlete to make it to the professional level of their sport - i.e. the NFL, the NBA, MLB.  Let's take the National Football League as an example.  There are 32 teams with 53 players on each team.  That means there are 1, 696 openings for an aspiring football player.  In NASCAR,  only 43 drivers compete week after week in a Sprint Cup race.  His point?  It is harder to make it to the top of stock car racing than any other sport.

Since all the race teams are headquartered within a 30 mile radius of Charlotte, you would think NASCAR was born here.  Not so.  The National Association of Stock Car Auto Racing was founded in a motel room in Daytona Beach in 1947.  Its roots are in this area, as the early drivers, for the most part, were moonshine runners from the Carolinas.  To outrun the law, they started tinkering with their engines to get more speed.  A pioneer and legend in NASCAR, Junior Johnson was 14 years old when he started running moonshine.  Driving fast cars led to challenges of "who has the fastest car?" On weekends, the runners would take their cars to the hard sand of Daytona Beach for races.  Seeing the potential of organized racing, along with the need for safety, Bill France, Sr. presided over a meeting at the Streamline Motel and fast driving became a legitimate sport.  Here is a portion of his plaque at the NASCAR Hall of Fame:  "Without Bill France, Sr., NASCAR would not exist.  His vision and drive transformed stock car racing from a weekend pursuit to a major national sport and made NASCAR a household word."

Back to Charlotte.  Our campground was across the street from the Charlotte Motor Speedway.  After arriving, we realized we were fortunate to get a site as the Speedway was hosting a car show this weekend.  The campground was full of motorhomes pulling large trailers with every kind of old car inside.
We were up before the sun on Friday morning to try to get to as many racing team headquarters as possible as most were about 20 to 30 miles outside Charlotte.  Our first destination was Mooresville, a.k.a. Race City, USA.  Hoping to get some of the crumbs from the NASCAR table, this town has every imaginable business associated to racing.

Driving to Mooresville, on Hwy 3, we passed a large complex that looked empty.  No signage indicating what it was, and only one of the several buildings had a few cars in the parking lot.  We knew DEI - Dale Earnhardt, Inc. was on this road (hence the Hwy 3) but couldn't believe this would be it.  We didn't stop to investigate as our first destination was JR Motorsports because it was the only garage we visited that does guided tours inside the garage and we wanted to catch the first one. Things seem to fall into place for us (thank you, Lord) because just like in Napa Valley when our first vineyard stop was Larson Winery and the guy was so helpful and knowledgeable, going to Dale Earnhard, Jr.'s Nationwide (the junior varsity of NASCAR) team garage was the perfect place to start.  We got an in-depth tour of the garage, which included every aspect of getting a car ready for the track.  We could take pictures of everything except the engines (from Hendrick) and in the fabrication shop which would be the car chassises.  We could ask questions of anyone working (I prefaced mine by saying "this will probably sound stupid, because I know nothing about NASCAR. . . ").  Mike took more pictures and asked more questions in these past two days than he did our whole three months out west!  He was glad he took a lot of pictures in this garage area because this was the only one we were allowed in to.  We saw cars being made literally from scratch through the final painting process and sitting waiting to be loaded into the trucks that will take them to the next race track.
I asked the receptionist about the complex we passed on our way in and she said it was indeed, DEI.  When I commented on how deserted it look, she answered in the sweetest southern accent and said, "I know, and it just breaks our hearts."  She found me later and said she checked and the gift shop at DEI would be open from 11-2.  We were disappointed because that time frame wouldn't work for us as we needed to be sure we left the most time for Hendrick Motor Sports, arguably the pinnacle of NASCAR race teams.  For Mike, being a Jeff Gordon fan, the Hendrick garage is the pot at the end of the rainbow, the holy grail.  For me, you take the three J's previously mentioned, (Jeff Gordon, Jimmie Johnson and Dale, Jr.) throw in fourth Hendrick driver Kasey Kahne, and this race team has the cutest drivers, hands down!

We made stops at Penske Racing, Kyle Busch Racing (strictly for Uncle John), Joe Gibbs Racing before ending our day at Hendrick.  Talk about saving the best for last.  Or at least the biggest.  The other garages had all their cars in one building, even if there were two or three drivers.  The Hendrick campus had a shop for the #24 and #5 cars, and an identical building that housed the #48 and #88 cars. Add to that separate buildings for a museum/gift shop, administration, Performance and you can see this is quite the operation.  (What other sport do you identify the individual so closely with a number?  Sure other athletes wear a number, but in conversation, you don't often say, "With that cutback, #20 finds himself in the end zone again."  No, the announcers would say, "Another incredible run for Barry Sanders."  But in NASCAR, if you ask someone their favorite driver, you will most likely get a car # instead of a name.)

NASCAR today is big business, with corporate sponsorship in the millions of dollars.  The top race teams have state-of-the-art facilities and top-notch mechanics.  Lee Petty, father of the Petty dynasty said, "Three-fourths of a race is won or lost in the garages."   Pit crews train in NFL-like weight rooms.  At Joe Gibbs Racing, it is an NFL weight room as Gibbs is the former championship coach of the Washington Redskins.

Saturday morning was quite chilly (for this region) but beautifully sunny.  We went to the Charlotte Motor Speedway to take a tour of the track.  Our second brush with southern hospitality was the parking gal.  After handing over $5, Mike said, "We are going on a tour, where should we park?"  She said if you aren't here for the car show, pull around and park over there.  She gave us our $5 back and took the sticker off the window.  In all honesty, everyone we have come in contact with so far has been very friendly, kind and courteous.  Often we are asked where we are from and then told they are sincerely glad to have us visit.
Charlotte Motor Speedway was built in 1959, the same year as Daytona International Speedway, by Bruton Smith, who owns 7 other racetracks, including Bristol.  We were the only ones on the tour so we had the guide's undivided attention, and vice-versa!  Again, Mike had a lot of questions and just plain talked racing with the guide so our 1/2 hour tour lasted over 45 minutes.  We were in a van and usually the tour takes a lap around the track.  Because of the car show,  we were only able to get on the track at turns 3 and 4.  He stopped the van and said we could get out to take pictures and walk up the banked turn.  You can not appreciate the degree of steep bank the racetracks have unless you see it in person, or better yet, walk up the bank.  Television does not accurately convey it.  When we got back in the van, the guide drove the van up to the top of the bank and stopped.  It was a little scary.  He said on some of the other tracks with a steeper bank, the van would have tipped over.  He had interesting stories of Bruton Smith and the racetrack - exactly why I enjoy taking tours.  I'd share some, but I fear this post is already getting lengthy.  Included in the tour was a look at Smith's dirt track and drag strip.  A world record of 332 mph was set at this drag strip. We also saw the South Carolina State Police holding a defensive driving school for area young drivers at the drag strip.

We then drove into downtown Charlotte (which has a really cool skyline) to the NASCAR Hall of Fame.  The fact that it was built in Charlotte speaks to the importance of NC to racing.  (our guide back at JR Motorsports said if you want to be involved in any level of NASCAR, you pretty much have to live in this area.)
The Hall of Fame was terrific.  It was much more than a display of cars and outfits and trophies, although there were plenty of all of those.  It was 3 levels of a sport "driven by people, fueled by passion".  One whole area was all hands-on.  Kids and adults all tried their skill to see how fast they could change a tire during a pit stop, or jack a car up or fill it with fuel.  I drove on a simulated track and only crashed once!  From the orientation film to the actual Hall of Honor, it was an informative and enjoyable afternoon.
Although we didn't buy the obligatory photo they take, the girl gave us directions to Dale Earnhardt Jr's local bar, Whiskey River, which was four blocks away.  We ordered a late lunch but soon realized we were not going to be able to watch the Michigan State/Illinois game as EVERY TV in the place was tuned to the West Virginia game and we were surrounded by a sea of blue and yellow.

I'll leave you with this trivia question:  What is Dale Earnhardt's real name?

We have a 5 hour drive today to Hilton Head, SC.  If you have any suggestions for must see or do in Hilton Head or Savannah, please send them along!

Answer:  Ralph Dale Earnhardt

              Mike taking one of his many pictures.  This isn't a display car.  This is Junior's Nationwide car.

 The actual car Dale Jr. drove to a win at Daytona the year after his father was killed at that race.  It will never be driven again and was in the condition (dirt and all) it came off the track in.

           The trucks that take the cars and equipment to the races.  The cars go up on the top.

   

                                                      In the lobby of Joe Gibbs racing

                                                       Outside Hendrick Motorsports

                                               

       

                                 The lobby of the #48 and #88 building.  I like the saying

                    This is how close we could get to the garage workers at Hendrick

                                      Mike at the top of the 23 degree bank at Charlotte

                                                      Entrance to the Hall of Fame

                                            The car that won the first official NASCAR race

                  No visit to NASCAR country would be complete without a picture of The Intimidator's Number 3 car

                                                      Look who's driving the 48 car!

I mentioned they put the cars at the top of the trucks to haul them to races.  This is how they do it.
The truck drivers are the unsung heroes of a race team.  While the drivers and pit crews fly to the races, the trucks haul everything that is needed, from cars down to spare parts.  They are also the chief cooks and bottle washers!

                                   Someone testing their skills at tire changing in a hurry

An inside true to scale example of the bank at some tracks.  I could not stand there without holding on to the rail.  The cars behind me are full sized.

Passing Time in Myrtle Beach

With Mike back in Michigan for a meeting, I had a few days alone in Myrtle Beach.  Now, if I were  a guy, or a golf nut, passing the time would have been no problem as there are over 80 golf courses around here.  A hacker's dream.  (Actually, I am a hacker, but this is not my dream).

So, using the excuse that one of Mike's favorite shirts had two small holes in it, after I dropped him off at the airport on Saturday, I drove straight to a mall to replace it.  We never shop on our travels, other than for groceries, so this was a treat.  And I'm not even a big shopper.

Sunday morning was the church dilemma.  It is not an easy task finding a church on the road.  At least for me.  If you are Catholic, you just ask directions to the nearest Catholic church.  Ditto for Lutherans. But if you are looking for a Bible believing, Bible teaching, non-denominational church, it becomes a little more difficult.  Based on convenience more than anything, I ended up at a church a little over a mile away from the campground in Surfside Beach.  It was a good service.  And I seem to hit churches on their hospitality Sundays because they were having a free catered lunch after the service.  (In Utah, it was the third Sunday of the month potluck when I was there).

I didn't stay for lunch as I was on my way to Charleston (Mt. Pleasant, to be exact) to spend the afternoon with family - PJ and Jessica O'Mara and their two cute daughters, Taylor and Jayden.  Brad O'Mara and his girlfriend Ashley joined us.  PJ and Brad are Mike's second cousins, but we dispense of such formalities and just say "cousins".  We had a wonderful time, filled with lots of laughing and reminiscing. The hours flew by and I found myself making the almost 2 hour trip back after dark, but it was worth it. So far, a bonus of this eastern trip has been the chance for us to catch up with some extended family members that we don't get to see very often.

The weather didn't quite cooperate with my planned beach day on Monday.  It was overcast all day, which didn't make me want to rush to the water.  It was perfect for a bike ride, though.  I set off to explore the campground, knowing from the map that it was really, really big.  When I was done, my pedometer app said I had ridden 5 miles and I didn't even get through the whole park!  Later that afternoon I did plop a chair in the sand.  (it might have been overcast, but it was still warm - you have to be thankful for the little things. . . )  Taking a break from my book, I strolled the beach in search of sea shells.  I didn't have to look hard - they are everywhere.  Not so the dolphins - I never did see any.  The coming and going of the tides are very visible here.  When Mike and I walked the beach one morning, I thought the beach area seemed narrow.  But that afternoon, the tide was out and the beach tripled in size.  I enjoyed watching the sandpipers scurrying in and out of the water.  We didn't so much enjoy the pitter-patter of little feet we constantly heard in the motorhome.  Thinking it was raindrops, but knowing it wasn't raining outside, we discovered blackbirds were running on our roof.  What could be up there to attract them?

Tuesday was cleaning day :(  and Mike flew back in :).

We woke Wednesday morning to the first bit of sunshine we have had in days.  The wind, however, was fierce.  It was so strong it blew our bikes over.  Our idea of getting in another round of golf changed because I have a hard enough time hitting the ball straight or far without battling the wind.  We did some maintenance things, or I should say Mike did:  putting air in our bike tires and getting the collected rain off the roof and slide out awnings.  And we took a last walk on the beach.

I had seen The Carolina Opry advertised and thought it would be fun to go.  A recommendation from friend Valerie sealed the deal for me so we went to this musical show on Wednesday night.  Mike wasn't as eager as I was, but we both really liked it.  The performers were excellent, and they did much more that just country music, as their name would imply.  Comedy was part of the show, which made it even more enjoyable.  One song title, "It's hard to kiss the lips at night that chew your butt all day" reminded us of the show we went to in Cody, Wyoming when they sang, "It takes a whole lotta liquor to like her."
And the comedian gave me a new pick-up line to pass along to our boys:  "If you were a buger, I'd pick you first!"  He then did a little ditty about dollar stores (which seem more plentiful down here than elsewhere) that was quite hilarious.  Did you know Fiddle Faddle is the poor man's Cracker Jacks?

So, we are up to today - Thursday.  We left Pirateland under sunny skies but cool temperatures.  Not far outside of Myrtle Beach, we drove right past Coastal Carolina University.  We had heard of it, but never knew where it was.  We saw a sign advertising "Fresh Mountain Apples - turn right".  Would mountain apples be different from those grown on flat land?  Mike was not willing to make that right hand turn so I could find out.  And we decided that Sparky's must be the South Carolina version of Wall Drug, judging by the number of billboards encouraging us to stop there.   (clean restrooms seemed to be the biggest draw).  And really, does anybody actually like boiled peanuts?

We are on our way to Charlotte, North Carolina, home to everything and anything NASCAR.  I'm disappointed that I won't have a chance to bump into Jeff or Jimmy or Junior at a local restaurant as they are in Virginia for the race at Martinsville this Sunday!

                                                            With Jayden and Taylor

                                                                     PJ and Brad

   Ocean fishing.   We don't see people fish right from the beach at Lake Michigan back home.

                                                           Those cute sandpipers

                                             A creative way to use the picnic table shelter!

                                                  We've passed a lot of cotton fields

Myrtle Beach, SC

Watching the Tigers again gives me time to post, although as Mike will point out, "We didn't do anything today except drive 4 1/2 hours south.  (and he is correct)
In fact, when he read the Richmond post, he said I was getting long winded.  Gosh, he didn't say that on our western trip until near the end of the three months.  If I am starting out that way, it is a good thing this journey is only for one month or you could be reading my version of "War and Peace"!



Mike wanted to leave by 9 this morning (Thursday) and we were pulling out at 8:45.  Let me tell you, that goes a long toward marital harmony.  I can't tell you how important that is when traveling together 24/7.

When we turned out of the campground in Wilson, NC we were on US 301.  That rang a bell.  That is the main highway that runs through Zephyrhills, Florida, our ultimate destination.  I told Mike we could just stay right on 301 for the rest of the trip.  (That would never happen.  Too many stoplights!)
But before we got back on the freeway, we did drive through Mount Olive, the pickle capital of the United States.

The most interesting thing to happen today:  We were on a two lane divided highway about 30 miles from Myrtle Beach.  Mike said to be watching for two things: a place to get fuel (that we can easily get in and out of) and if we can't, a stretch with a wide shoulder so he could pull over, put the RV in park and go back to use our bathroom.  We never found a gas station big enough for us, and he couldn't wait any longer.  With the cruise control set at 60 mph, I grabbed the steering wheel, Mike slid out of the drivers seat and I slid in while he hustled back to the bathroom.  First time I have driven the motorhome in two years.  I usually drive it once a year, home from East Lansing after we tailgate at a Michigan State football game.  A few minutes later, after rounding a bend, we made the exchange back.

I called each of our boys today.  I scolded each of them as we hadn't talked to any of them since we left Michigan.   You would think they had conferred on an response, because I got the same one from all three:  We are keeping up with you on your blog.  I said that was all well and good, but since they don't write a blog, I had no idea how they were doing and they need to call their mother!
As we were nearing Myrtle Beach, I was talking with Matt.  I said, "We are in Myrtle Beach and driving past golf course after golf course.  It is sunny and the temperature is 81."  There was a long silence and then Matt said, "You are not complaining, are you Mom?"
Absolutely not!  I guess I needed to have a little more enthusiasm in my voice.

We are at a campground right on the beach.  We will be here for a week, as Mike is flying back to Michigan for a board meeting.  So like last April in Utah, I will be here by myself for a few days.  We chose Myrtle Beach and the campground for that reason.  The park is very big with lots of space to bike  ride. so between that and miles of beachfront, I'll keep busy.  Not to mention the RV needs a good cleaning inside.

There really won't be anything to write home about in the next few days, so I won't be posting.  Unless of course one of us hits a hole in one.  We already have a tee time for Friday.  First on the agenda in the morning is a walk on the beach.  Mike said when he was in Myrtle Beach (over 13 years ago) he saw dolphins every morning from his hotel window.  I'm hoping they are still there .  .  .

With our windows open or sitting outside, we can hear the waves crashing on shore.  And our claim to fame?  Within the last 5 months, we have put our feet in both the Pacific and Atlantic oceans!

                                  Welcome to South Carolina - Smiling Faces Beautiful Places

                              The view out our front windshield.  We are this close to the beach

                                                                      Priceless!

On to Richmond

The title of today's post is taken from a headline in the New York Tribune in 1861 that called for a push by Union Forces to make haste and take Richmond, the capital of the Confederacy.

We have almost a 4 hour drive to North Carolina this morning.  My goal is to finish this post before we get there.  (I'm not kidding.  Between looking out the window, listening to a book on tape, getting munchies, stopping for a turkey sandwich at a rest area, I have a lot of distractions!)

Before we left for Richmond, while in the motorhome, we saw a front-end loader rumbling through the campground with a coffin in the bucket.  We did a double-take. . . it was a little eerie.  I knew we were out in the boonies, but not THAT far.  We then remembered that the campground was hosting their Halloween activities this weekend.  They were setting up their haunted house.  (this is a very popular thing with campgrounds.  We have camped with our two oldest grandchildren at such events in Michigan and they love it.)

We did a Trip Advisor search of what to see and do in Richmond.  Our first stop was St. John's Episcopal Church, site of Patrick Henry's famous speech.  The existing building was erected in 1741, but the parish itself dates back to the early 1600's.
Many churches (especially rural ones, which this certainly once was) have cemeteries on the grounds.  Usually off to the side or in the back.  Not St. John's.  The main sidewalk up to the front entrance goes right through graves and tombstones, including Elizabeth Poe, Edgar Allen's mother  (our second creepy feeling of the day).

We were reminded by our guide that for decades, the colonies in America were loyal British subjects, mainly because  Britain ignored us.  Only when the Crown started to impose taxes upon us did the rumblings of self-government and independence begin.  Taxation without representation. . .
In 1775 the Royal Governor, Lord Dunmore, disbanded the Virginia House of Burgess because of the  revolutionary rhetoric and prevented them from meeting in Williamsburg, then the capital of the colony.
Facing imprisonment, members gathered at St. John's church in March for several days.  On March 23, 1775, with George Washington and Thomas Jefferson sitting in the pews, 38 year old country lawyer Patrick Henry delivered his fiery speech:
 "Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery?  Forbid it, Almighty God!  I know not what course others my take, but as for me, give me liberty or give me death!"
(that bears a striking resemblance to Joshua 24:15 - ". . . choose you this day whom you shall serve, but for me and my house, we shall serve the Lord.")

It is said that Washington was the sword of the revolution. Jefferson was the pen of the revolution.  And Patrick Henry was the voice of the revolution.
The church holds reenactments of the speech on Sundays from May through September, so we just missed the opportunity.
Patrick Henry went on to organize the militia and briefly command the Virginia forces until Washington persuaded him that his greater service would be to direct the organization of a new government of Virginia.  He did and became the first governor of the Commonwealth of Virginia and was re-elected four times.

From St. John's church, we headed into the heart of downtown Richmond.  (both Charlottesville and Richmond are very hilly cities).  The Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center was built around the White House of the Confederacy, our destination.  In fact, we were directed to park in the hospital parking garage, because the museum was right next door.  Tours are given on the hour and we had about 40 minutes, so we took a 10 minute walk to the State Capitol, designed by you-know-who. (Thomas Jefferson).  Mike commented on how convenient it is because all the state government buildings are in a circle around the capitol.  (unlike our capitol in Lansing).  We entered at the back of the building and I wanted to walk to the front to get a picture.  Not much of a picture because the entire front was covered in tarps for remodeling.
Continuing around the capitol, we saw the Governor's residence.  It was pretty, but I wasn't going to take a picture until we read the plaque and realized the historical significance (see picture below).  While I was taking a picture, we experienced our first example of southern hospitality.  A Virginia State Trooper came out of the guard house and asked if we would like a tour of the mansion!  We said we only had about 10 or 15 minutes because we had to be back at the Confederate White House by 3.  He quickly got on the phone and a lady came out and said, "Come on in.  We'll make it quick."
The first floor is like the White House, open to the public and the second floor is the private living quarters.  She said the governor had just walked in, but we didn't see him. (we actually had to ask just who is the governor of Virginia?  FYI - Bob McDonnell).
I asked if there were any children living in the mansion.  She said no, that the governor's youngest are in college.  But she showed us pictures of previous governor's children (including Charles and Lynda Robb's, LBJ's daughter) with their lemonade stands in front of the mansion.
The tour was quick, but so nice.

Oh oh. . . we are pulling into the campground and I am not finished.  And even worse, Mike wants to wash the motorhome!  Darn, darn. . .  I'll continue typing in a few hours.

This is a tangent, but when we got set up in the park, I told Mike I was glad we didn't have to use their restroom facilities.  On the other hand, it is a great, long pull-through site and cheap.  We were half-way through washing the RV when the owner came by and said it wasn't allowed.  (The reason we picked this park was when I called to make a reservation, the lady said we could).  On the other hand, it is not raining, so we are grilling burgers for dinner and when I went to the office to buy a bundle of wood, I got the biggest bundle ever for $4.  So it is a campfire, burgers, and watching the Tigers on our outdoor TV.  We have found very few campgrounds out east here that allow you to wash your RV. Every park we stay at in Michigan lets us.  One park's motto is "When you look good, we look good".  Maybe we have a different view of water, what with being the Great Lake State!

Back to Richmond:
We literally ran and got back for our 3:00 tour of the Jefferson Davis White House.  I found a kindred spirit when our tour guide (a young man in his 20's) encouraged us to ask questions because he had a head full of useless information.  That is what Mike says about me!  I smiled.  Mike just rolled his eyes because he knew what he was in for.  This guy was enthusiastic, to say the least.  These are the kinds of questions I ask:  "Why Jefferson Davis?"  "Why Richmond?"
Jefferson Davis was a senator from Mississippi when he was tapped to become President of the Confederate States of America.  He and his wife Varina and their three children moved into the home that the Confederate government leased from the city of Richmond in August 1861.  Two more children were born in the 4 years they lived there.  They were forced to flee during the evacuation of Richmond on April 2, 1865.  Robert E. Lee was a frequent visitor and 36 hours after Davis fled, Abraham Lincoln came to the house to discuss post-war plans.
The house has been very well preserved and restored and the tour guide really brought it to life.  (we have found that so many times, a tour guide can really make or break your experience).

We then drove 3 miles to the Hollywood Cemetery.  It is one of only 3 places in the country to have two presidents buried there. The other two are Arlington and United First Parish Church in Quincy, MA.  With Jefferson Davis interred here, Hollywood actually claims to have 3 presidents.  I'll tell you the grave sites we saw at Hollywood and let you guess the names of the presidents who have their final resting place at the other two.
This cemetery is HUGE, but easy to navigate by following the painted blue line and using the $1 map.
We saw the tombs of James Monroe (5th president) and John Tyler (10th president), along Jefferson Davis, his wife and and all 5 children.  They have a large confederate memorial, also.

Running out of daylight, we drove to Monument Boulevard.  We thought this was going to be a several block section of statues, one right after the other, that we would walk.  Instead, there were several blocks between the statues, and we drove it.  I didn't get pictures of them all, including a really neat one of Arthur Ashe who grew up in Richmond.  And we also didn't see the Robert E. Lee monument (another darn it).  Considering that Lee is one of Virginia's favorite sons, the fact I didn't see a statue of him the whole week we were in Virginia is unbelievable.  The houses on Monument Blvd. were almost as impressive as the statues.

Next up was a place to eat and try to watch the Tigers.  We found ourselves on the campus of VCU - a very urban campus.  Walking down the street, we passed City Dogs, and we could see they had the game on.  They had every kind of hot dog we've ever heard of, along with lots we hadn't.  They had a Boston Dog, Manhattan Dog, Tennessee Dog, Wisconsin Dog (to name a few), but no Michigan Dog, so we opted for the local Richmond Dog.  The fact that Tuesdays are $1 Richmond Dog Day played into that decision.

Experiencing history isn't free.  We paid 3 tolls getting to Richmond, and paid them while getting around Richmond.  But we found gas for the Jeep at $2.99 and diesel for the RV was some of the cheapest we have seen.   You have to be thankful for the little things. . .

We easily could stay in Virginia several more weeks, as there is so much to see.  I am envious of those that live here amidst all this history.  And just so you know this is a site seeing trip and not a shopping excursion, there was an IKEA a mile away from our campground in College Park and we didn't go.  How often do you get to one when you live in rural Michigan?  And I need a 9 x 13 pan for the motorhome!

The number of horse farms we saw in Virginia surprised us.  You would think we were in Kentucky.

Our stop in North Carolina is just for one night on our way to Myrtle Beach, SC.  Again, not enough time to explore everything.

(Answers to presidential burial sites:  Arlington has Kennedy and William Howard Taft.  Quincy, MA has John Adams and his son John Quincy Adams)

                                                    Entrance to St. John's Church

                                                   

                                                         Guide at the church

                                     Markings stamped on the sidewalk in downtown Richmond

                                              On the grounds of the Virginia State Capitol

   Also on the grounds.  Statue of General Washington, with other famous Virginians around it

                                                       Front of Capitol building

                                                          Side view of Capitol

                                             

       Read the plaque.  It explains the history of the house.  It is the oldest continuously occupied          governor's residence in the United States.  Everyone has a claim to fame.

                                                The rear of the Confederate White House

                     The front and side of the house.  Notice the modern building next door.

                                                            Tomb of James Monroe

                                                            John Tyler's grave site

                                                   Jefferson Davis and family grave site

               Stonewall Jackson on Monument Boulevard.  I got this picture because we were waiting at a stoplight.

                                           One of the beautiful houses on Monument Blvd.