We’ve been planning for months to include a visit to my Aunt Camille this leg of our journey. Her beautiful home in Mt. Pleasant is close to Charleston, South Carolina, a city we have been wanting to explore. Aunt Camille proved to be the perfect tour guide as she showed us the charming city she dearly loves.
Just by coincidence, her sister Maureen and husband Jon were visiting at the same time we were. The five of us wandered through the spectacular, never-ending Charleston Market – where we saw many examples of sweet grass baskets, jewelry, art and everything else that Charlestonians can craft. We tasted Benne cookies – a melt-in-your mouth delicacy. We savored the best pizza we’ve had in years at di Giovanni’s Pizza – thin crust, huge slices, chewy greasy cheese and perfect sauce! We loved the Southern charm, lovely architecture and nice weather of Charleston.
We brought Aunt Camille to our RV where we served her a lemon chicken and rice meal. She loved our home and then the next day the five of us sat down for a quick lunch. It is a great treat for us to show folks our home on wheels and when they have no experience with RVs or campgrounds, we can share our happy existence and know that they leave having learned something new for them.
We got to see Charleston and walked on original slate and cobblestone sidewalks to Waterfront Park to see the ships in the harbor, the famous Pineapple Fountain and lots of horse-drawn carriages clomping through the immaculate streets.
Aunt Camille is a theater lover in a city with many old and excellent stages with modern productions. As a volunteer usher in many of the theaters, she knows the performers, the best seats and the greatest current plays. She treated us to a lovely night at a very popular rendition of a Southern classic – “Steel Magnolias”. It was amazing to see a favorite story portrayed by six talented women in a simple but meaningful set design while we were surrounded by other theater goers chatting in various Southern accents. It all made for a wonderful evening.
It was great to share memories with Aunt Camille and even better to know that we are all enjoying our current lifestyles. We hope to pass her way again in a few years.
The KOA where we stayed for this visit was only about 10 minutes from Aunt Camille’s home, but it was also a beautiful campground. Our large front window was positioned to look out on a lake – serene blue sparkling water, Canada geese and herons and egrets. Our site was large and grassy – a little expensive. The weather was cooler than we like but still a very nice stay.
Doug is meticulous about preparation and safety but even so sometimes stuff happens. We planned on leaving the KOA at exactly the check out time so that we could arrive at our next site at their check in time. We don’t usually wait until the last minute to leave. Of course, the one time we did, we had problems. I was checking the lights on the Toad and one was out. Doug repaired the connection and eventually that problem was fixed. Now we were a few minutes after check out and one of the staff was telling us that another camper was moving to our site and ready to pull in. As we got in the RV to leave, the stairs by the door suddenly groaned and shuddered and now we had another problem. We pulled onto the campground road to let the next RV pull into our site, but we couldn’t drive on the highway with our steps stuck out. So, Doug crawled under the motor home and disengaged the motor and secured the steps in with bungee cords. Thanks to Doug being able to fix anything, he ordered the parts and had it fixed in a few days. Until then, we had a huge first step!
We had five nights at Huntington Beach State Park just a little south of Myrtle Beach. We had planned on checking out Myrtle Beach but the beach in this campground was so quiet, huge and pristine that we spent our beach time there. We had a large pretty campsite in the North Campground, a 15-minute hike on a pretty woodsy trail and over a lush dune to our beach. We walked there a few times and had one perfect day of beach-sitting in fairly warm temperatures. One rainy day was a good chance to do some grocery shopping.
Sometimes, the campground itself is the destination to enjoy. When we plan our traveling route, Doug looks to land in a spot that has things to do – a big city to explore, a nature attraction with hikes or waterfalls, a special historical site or a museum. But always we hope for a beautiful beach – to sit on and watch the waves and dig our toes in the warm sand. Huntington Beach State Park is a destination in itself. We had five days of reservations there and we spent the whole five days right in that park. We’ve seen some wonderful State Parks in the South and this park is one of the best.
One day we walked over to the Atalaya Castle and toured through this strangely beautiful home. Mr. Huntington built it for his wife who was a sculptor and he fashioned it to resemble Moorish architecture – red brick walls, narrow corridors, wrought iron on the windows and large areas for horses, dogs and bears. Definitely a strange but intriguing home to visit. We had a great conversation with Jane, the volunteer, who shared her vast knowledge of this home and its occupants with us. Once again, we found an interesting volunteer opportunity to consider.
We loved this park. We managed to easily live comfortably with 30 amps and no sewer. We’ve got this stuff down now and with a little adjustment to our usual routine we are fine.
Now on to a new state for our map – North Carolina, number 37!
