Babymoon #2: The Carolinas and Savannah





OK, I'm going to rewind here and tell you about our recent trip to the Carolinas and Savannah, Georgia. The last week of October, we flew into Charlotte and drove to Raeford, NC to see our wonderful friends, Lisa and Steve (Couch Guy). They were our roommates in college and are now married and living near Fayetteville where Steve is stationed in the US Army at Fort Bragg. They are also expecting a baby (a boy) and are due right around Christmas!

They were kind enough to host us for three days. Staying at the Zaun's house is an event. There were literally roses and candy on our bed when we arrived. Ms. Lisa has got that whole southern hospitality thing DOWN. We had a blast exploring all kinds of fun places, including the army base, downtown Fayetteville, Wilmington (where Dawson's Creek was filmed), Wrightsville Beach and Myrtle Beach.

While in Wilimington, we toured the Bellamy Mansion. Lisa and I spotted a well in the backyard and  re-enacted our favorite scary movie, THE RING. I think Nate and Steve were a tad bit creeped out by this...

Here are some more pictures of the Bellamy Mansion, Wrightsville Beach and Myrtle Beach...

We said goodbye to Lisa and Couch Guy, knowing the next time we all see eachother, life will be very different. It seems like yesterday we were climbing telephone polls and spring breaking in Daytona Beach during our time together in college. But we couldn't be more excited for the future, knowing we are all on the cusp of one if life's most interesting journies: PARENTHOOD :)

Nate and I left Myrtle Beach and drove south to Hilton Head Island, where we did a lot of beach walking, pool sitting, eating...and that's about it. It was SO relaxing.



The final leg of our trip was Savannah, Georgia. I can't say enough about this place...it's beautiful, historic, artsy, and overflowing with friendly people and some of the best food we've ever had.

We stayed in a Bed and Breakfast that was located on Forsythe Square which also happens to be one of the Forrest Gump filiming locations throughout Savannah (not the B&B itself, but the sqaure):

If that last picture looks a little eerie, it's for good reason. We learned after we checked in (of course) that the Forsythe Park Inn is haunted and has been featured on the Travel Channel. I won't post any details on here for the sake of those who might get nightmares from reading about it, but here's a link to the story if you're curious: http://hauntedsavannah.blogspot.com/2005/12/forsyth-park-inn.html. Upon learning about this, I was fascinated and Nate was horrified but we decided to stay anyway.

That didn't stop us from following through with our plan to take a haunted tour of Savannah. Our guide's name was Lunatic Laura and she picked us up in this beautiful hearse:



Then we drove around in the darkness, visiting some of the city's many haunted destinations. Walt Disney visited this home many years ago and liked the design so much that it eventually became the inspiration for the Haunted Mansion at Disney World:



The building below is an abondoned psychiatric hospital...it gave us the creeps more than any of the other stops on the tour. Could they even try to make it more gross?



Once we got tired of being scared, we turned our attention to the more beautiful parts of the city...the architecture, the food, and the history.

Our favorite meal was at Ms. Wilkes Kitchen. This is a lunch spot that's only open from 11-2 each day and there is always a line down the block of people waiting to enter. You sit at huge tables with whoever they happen to seat you with, and there is no menu. They just keep bringing out bowl after platter after bowl of classic southern fare...collard greens, sweet potatoes, macaroni and cheese, fried chicken, black eyed peas, you name it. A family style meal with a group of strangers is a good way to make new friends.

We also took a walking history tour with an awesome guide known as Savannah Dan and spent a lot of time just wandering around, taking everything in.



I'll wrap this up with some observations about the south...

• Lots of Waffle Houses, pawn shops and people selling baskets in ditches.
• Actual road signs warning you that a Church is just up the road. Children at play, deer crossing...and Churches. Watch out for the house of God, it can sneak up fast! 
• Things seem to move at a slower pace...especially the way people drive in the left lane.
• People are more talkative, open and friendly. I got more comments on the belly in one week in the south than I have the entire time I've been pregnant in Minnesota. 

Nate and I loved every minute of our Babymoon. We know that traveling in the future will be very different because we will either have our little one with us, or be missing him and wondering how he's doing the whole time we're gone. We're excited to share these photos and memories with Baby O someday. It makes it all the more special knowing he was there with us the whole time.