Hilton Head Island, Beaufort, and Charleston, South Carolina - Saturday, June 27, 2009

Saturday, June 27, 2009

We drove a bit around Savannah on the way out. We went to Hilton Head Island via a scenic road rather than the highway. It was nice and after several stops, like TJ Maxx and Ross for items we needed to buy and Moe's for lunch, we finally arrived at Hilton Head Island (HHI).  It is an upscale community with mostly with seasonal residents.

We parked by a playground with an amazing treehouse. It was shaped like a ship. We took many pictures there and the kids enjoyed playing on it. We climbed to the top of the HHI Lighthouse in Harbour Town. It has 114 steps. We were a tiny bit out of breath when we reached the top. They have a webcam at the top of the lighthouse and people can see you on the internet. We called Uncle Tio to look at us, but he wasn't home. By the time he got home and looked we were already gone. It would have been nice for him to see us. It gave us the idea to set up the webcam on my laptop so we can communicate with family and friends, but we haven't had time to set it up yet.

We had a lovely time in HHI. We got virgin daiquiris and sat on rocking chairs to drink them by the marina. What a relaxing and beautiful moment!  We drove to the other part of the island called South Beach where they had several beachy shops, a place called Jake's Pizza and a Life is Good store. WE love the Life is Good stores and we will see them throughout this trip.  They go into every one they see.

We drove through Beaufort, SC on the way to Charleston. It was small and cute and saw a wedding and a house set up for a reception. Jake took moss from a tree for me, because I made a comment that I buy the moss for my plants and the people here have it just hanging from their trees.  We arrived in Charleston around 6 p.m. and there was a horrible thunderstorm. It was so bad they had tornado warnings and hail. We arrived at our hotel (a new SpringHill Suites right outside of the city center in North Charleston, but it was brand new) and unpacked.  The hotel just opened weeks before on June 4. It was very clean and decorated nicely with free breakfast. We attempted to go sightseeing, but the weather was so bad and we turned back and had dinner at Cracker Barrel.  Later, we turned in to get ready to explore Charleston tomorrow.