In October John, his mom, and I went to Charleston, South Carolina to have a family celebration vacation! I was celebrating my 33rd birthday and we were also marking the occasions of John graduating from grad school and his mom’s retirement (both happened in June).
Charleston is a beautiful city – rich with history, culture, lovely scenery, great food, and outstanding people. Charleston fully embraces its unique and historic lowcountry heritage and it’s unlike any place I have ever been in the US.
On this trip we revisited a lot of what we did on our first trip to Charleston in 2013 so that we could introduce my mother in law to the city. That was a-ok with me, we had a wonderful time then and I knew she would love what we had planned.
We were in Charleston for four days and got the most ideal weather the entire time: clear, sunny, blue skies, low 70s, no humidity. It could not have been more perfect. I highly recommend a mid-October visit!
We did the Charleston Strolls Walking Tour again and it was just as great the second time. We walked all over downtown, learning a ton about the history of Charleston as well as the architecture, early settlers, religious diversity, and the quirks and eccentricities of the city.
We had a number of excellent meals that I would highly recommend: insanely good fried chicken sandwich at Poogan’s Porch (below), exceptional “southern pickins” appetizer at 82 Queen (below), tasty bagels at Tricera (above), perfect Italian food at Fratello’s, great breakfast at Another Broken Egg Cafe, beautiful beet salad at Slightly North of Broad (above), best BLT ever at Lowcountry Bistro.
On our last day in Charleston we hopped on an Adventure Sightseeing Tour to Magnolia Plantation.
I had always wanted to go on a plantation tour and was really excited. Magnolia Plantation was enormous! It has the historical home, gardens, plantation, tram ride through the swamp, slave quarters, snack bar, gift shop, petting zoo, etc. Our tour here was 4 hours but it could have easily been all day.
The house was amazing! Great history and the docents inside were excellent.
The grounds were perfection – minus the mosquitoes! That’s what you get when visiting a swamp, I guess!
What a fun and relaxing celebration trip! I am so grateful we could go on vacation together and have this time with my mother in law. When life is good, you’ve got to celebrate. And we did just that.
Until next time, beautiful Charleston.
