Battery/White Point Gardens
"The Battery" is the site of a fortified seawall on the southern-most part of Charleston (or, more accurately, what's known as "historic Charleston," as opposed to "current sprawling Charleston"). You can see it at the very bottom of this map (courtesy of Travelor of Charleston magazine).
The seawall is still there, as are a bunch of cannon, presumably no longer operative. (Side note: I'd love to hear your opinion on whether the plural should be cannon or cannons. Which just goes to show what a grammar geek I am. So indulge me.) Once upon a time, that tip of the peninsula was called Oyster Point because of the shells that washed up there. The name evolved into White Point (the oyster shells presumably being white), and the park now nestled in an angle of the seawall is called White Point Gardens. Not only is it a charming park with great sea views; the road between it and the seawall has FREE PARKING—a commodity not easily found in the city.
I am totally enamored of live oaks.
Yes, we are in the South:
Sunset (and view of FREE PARKING!) from White Point Gardens:
These next few houses border White Point Gardens, which is a pretty good place to start if you want to gawk.
This next one is actually an inn. I was dying to see inside, so I made up an excuse to go in. In case you're wondering: no; they do not host wedding receptions. (In case you are also wondering: no; no one in our family is currently planning a wedding. I told you I was dying to see inside.)
I'm pretty sure this one must have been owned by the founder of Pepto Bismol:
Colorful houses are not uncommon here. This next photo is of "Rainbow Row" (you can see it on the map), but the one after that apparently doesn't merit any designation; it's along the seawall near White Point Gardens.
 |
| map source: http://travelerofcharleston.com/maps/ |
The seawall is still there, as are a bunch of cannon, presumably no longer operative. (Side note: I'd love to hear your opinion on whether the plural should be cannon or cannons. Which just goes to show what a grammar geek I am. So indulge me.) Once upon a time, that tip of the peninsula was called Oyster Point because of the shells that washed up there. The name evolved into White Point (the oyster shells presumably being white), and the park now nestled in an angle of the seawall is called White Point Gardens. Not only is it a charming park with great sea views; the road between it and the seawall has FREE PARKING—a commodity not easily found in the city.
I am totally enamored of live oaks.
Sunset (and view of FREE PARKING!) from White Point Gardens:
Amazing Houses
One of the main things to gawk at in Charleston is the architecture of the houses. So gawk we did. These houses are mostly "south of Broad"—Broad being the street that you can see on the map above roughly even with the words Cooper River on the far right.These next few houses border White Point Gardens, which is a pretty good place to start if you want to gawk.
This next one is actually an inn. I was dying to see inside, so I made up an excuse to go in. In case you're wondering: no; they do not host wedding receptions. (In case you are also wondering: no; no one in our family is currently planning a wedding. I told you I was dying to see inside.)
I'm pretty sure this one must have been owned by the founder of Pepto Bismol:
Here are some examples of the "Charleston Single House." It's a single room wide so that every room can have windows on both sides, allowing for cross ventilation. The porch/piazza functions as an outdoor hallway, although generally the rooms are also connected to each other indoors as well. Notice that the front door opens from the street onto the piazza. You can read more about it here if you wish. I really wanted to see inside one, but I couldn't figure out how to manage that. (Although there was a fancy party I seriously would have considered crashing if we'd been dressed for it.) If you, too, want to see the inside of one, here's a link.
Fountains
A close-up of the fountain in White Point Gardens:
The famous pineapple fountain in Waterfront Park (with me in the photo, just so you know we were really there):
A lovely fountain we just happened to see:
Historic Places
Charleston City Market:
A guide book told us this was one of the most photographed sites in Charleston, so we jumped on the band wagon. Unfortunately, I couldn't remember what it is and had to use google images to find it. In case you're wondering, it's St. Philip's Episcopal Church, the oldest congregation in South Carolina.
The "Pink House," the oldest residence in Charleston. We accidentally viewed it with a realtor, but that's a story for another post . . .
Something we originally thought was Fort Sumpter but turned out not to be. Again I tried google images, but it thinks it's an island called Caramoan in the Philippines. Which would be really cool, but that's not where we were. Anyway, it's the ruins of something historical:
A few seasonal photos
Cotton boll wreath:
More Photos
