How Savannah Georgia Won My Heart


Savannah, Georgia caught me by surprise.

I didn't expect to fall in love with it, but that's exactly what happened.

When we drove into town, we headed straight for the visitor's center. We've learned that visitor centers are great places to get our bearings: they have maps, bathrooms, drinking fountains, and of course information about local attractions.

Unfortunately, we arrived 2 minutes after they had closed for the day. Bummer.

So, instead, we drove to Brighter Days Natural Foods to get some supper ingredients and use their bathroom. As an unexpected surprise, it was located on the north end of Forsyth Park, the place to be in Savannah.

As we strolled through the park, we saw soccer games, football practice, picnics, bikers, walkers, fountains. Everybody was hanging out in this park.

The spanish moss hung from the big oak branches making gothic-looking tunnels of trees, providing much needed shade. It was hot. The temperature was hovering around 100 degrees Fahrenheit, and the humidity was so high I could see it hanging in the air.

We sat. We sweated. I smiled. This was my kind of city.

We stayed with a kind, travel-loving man in a golf course development about 30 minutes south of downtown. It was fancy: we needed a pass just to enter the neighborhood.

Our couch host had traveled extensively throughout the world; it was a joy to chat with him and get tips on where to go in Savannah.

Our first full day in Savannah was tough. I was exhausted. Maybe it was the heat. Maybe it was my long workout in the morning. I just know that I didn't feel like doing anything. Here we were in Savannah, a city Martin had been wanting to see for years, and all I wanted to do was take a nap.

So I did. In Forsyth Park. Because it's that kind of park.

Afterwards, I felt awesome, but the day had already disappeared. So, we went back to our couch host's house and made a plan for the next day.

We put our tourism hats on and EXPLORED!

Bonaventure Cemetery: Famous for the famous people buried here and for the book Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil (which you should read if you haven't). Plus, it is hauntingly beautiful.





Forsyth Park - the place to be! Check out the xylophone street performer in the photo below - not the most portable instrument... haha! She was awesome.



Savannah has wonderful museums and beautiful old houses including (from upper left, clockwise): Andrew Low House, Mercer Williams HouseThe Olde Pink HouseTelfair Art Museum.


A lot of art is outside! Either in the various squares (parks in the middle of streets) or along river street, art abounds. 

From upper left, clockwise: Oglethorpe Monument, John Herndon Mercer Statue, African American Monument, Olympic Yachting Cauldron, The Waving Girl


From top, clockwise: Washington's Guns, World War II Memorial, Vietnam Veteran's Memorial


The entire city was so beautiful!


Delicious "Kitchen Sink" salad from Starland Cafe.


You can buy a beer and drink it while walking down the street! So we did, of course. It made Savannah feel a little bit like the MN State Fair with everyone walking around with beer. That made me not miss home as much.





We said good-bye for now to Savannah after spending four nights in the lovely town. I didn't leave without first making a stop at the Farmer's Market! Check out my next post on Wednesday for a new recipe featuring ingredients from the market!


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