Blue Boat Home

After a hearty breakfast, I rode to the Unitarian Church in Charleston, which is the second-oldest church in town and the oldest Unitarian church in the South.  Its exterior is under renovation, but I had been assured that the "perpendicular Gothic" interior would be open for tours this morning at 10.  It was not.  I waited for half an hour and called the office phone, but I couldn't wait all morning, so I left disappointed.

I slept in this morning and had a leisurely breakfast of complementary waffles with some other guests.  After a short shopping/sightseeing trip in the morning, I just hung out all afternoon.

Towards evening I decided to go find a bar with happy-hour specials on food, and I found an Irish-American pub that fit the bill.  Then I walked to the riverfront and watched the sun set.

I was exhausted last night and went to bed early, but the spring break crowd was up late playing a heated game of Monopoly.  After a few hours I put my earplugs in and was dead to the world... slept great!  The hostel provides free grits, which the college group's advisors prepared with cheese, and I got their leftovers.

[posted to the Wheeled Migration Yahoo Group on March 11, 2005]

Greetings from "The Most Historic City in the Country!" As you already know, I rode back through Savannah Monday morning and got a new bolt for my seat, plus a spare just in case, and I stopped at a gelato shop to send you all an e-mail.

I tried wearing my sweatshirt last night instead of using it as a pillow like I usually do, and I stayed warm until 6:00, half an hour before dawn.  I crawled out of my tent and onto my bike and was in the warm Waffle House in minutes.

It was not a happy morning at the Waffle House.  Near as I could make out, the shift that had just ended had left an overflowing dishwasher and a filthy grill for the new shift -- just one cook and one waitress to handle the morning rush -- to clean up.  The food was OK anyway, and I was glad to have it.

It rained off and on last night and still couldn't make up its mind this morning, so that I was tempted to stay put for another night -- the price was hard to beat.  What got me moving was the forecast of frost for tonight; there was no shelter from the wind at the campground in Bluffton.  In that regard, at least, I thought I could do better down the road.  So off I went.

I rode back into Savannah this morning and got a new bolt for my seat, plus a spare just in case, and I stopped at a gelato shop to send e-mail.

[posted to the Wheeled Migration Yahoo Group on March 7, 2005]

I spoke -- or wrote -- too soon in my negative assessment of the Savannah Hostel. Although you can see at hotel review sites that other people have had bad experiences with the manager as well, he warmed up as the weekend progressed, and I really enjoyed talking with the guests from around the world, and that made up for a lot.

I stayed at the hostel until lockout this morning (10:00) and then checked in on the Tree Climbing Championships on my way to church.

I took the recommendation of the folks from Alaska and went with them on a tour of the First Black Baptist Church, which was founded in 1775.  I missed the beginning of the tour, so I'm not clear on whether it was a stop on the Underground Railroad or a coordination center.  The best part of the tour was the guide, who has personally researched the history of the place and encouraged all her guests to question what they're taught in school about slavery and American history.  One curious feature of the church that's still being researched is Hebrew graffiti on the ends of the