In the minds eye.

Sometimes the best stories and memories come from pictures.

Sunrise at Virginia Beach

View from our balcony

On the boardwalk

The Giant neptune statue.

Freezing water!!

Game of thrones beer tasting!

Boys watching baseball over long late lunch.

Zzzzz.

Magic ink books. I love these as a kid.

Feeling manly in Myrtle Beach.

Fish feeding, Myrtle Beach.

Under the Boardwalk. Myrtle Beach.

Wreck-it Ralph.

The little Magi

Magiquest.

Giant bubbles.

A giant bubble screen.

Streets of Savannah.

French Bistro for dinner

The Velvet Elvis Lounge in Savannah.

A park amongst the beautiful oak trees.

Ms. Jenny’s Diner from Forrest Gump.

Pirate Hamish

Heeheehe.

Savannah, waiting for our table.

A brilliant pizza eatery

Asleep…

Awake!

A baby cannon.

USS Yorktown.

Southern food…

Soles of shoes stuck to a bathroom wall in the restaurant.

Today brings no words, just some more highlights of the trip away.

Start your engines.

We finished up in Savannah and headed north to Charlotte, North Carolina. The weather was following us and the rain settled in on Charlotte as we arrived at our hotel around lunch time. Instead of walking around the city we went across the road and looked in the Nascar Hall of Fame. What a great museum. The entry ticket is a card that you take to different stations around the place and then use interactive screens to learn about different aspects of the race. I have fond memories of Dylan as a toddler watching Nascar races in our lounge room and I knew they were going to enjoy this.

The museum has a great entrance area where you come in and there’s a view of the angle of the race track and lots of cars from the vintage era until recent times. There’s simulations of what it would be like to drive the different cars from the different eras and a big display of women who have changed the face of the sport, including Danica Patrick, the poster girl of today. You can walk through the big racing trucks that hold all the equipment and there’s a timing challenge where you can pretend to be the pit crew and change tires and refuel the car while being timed.

The museum is so light and colorful, shamelessly American and southern in style. It talks about it’s history and beginnings as fast cars racing to get out their moonshine to the community while outrunning the law. You can buy all sorts if hillbilly moonshine jugs and souvenirs in the gift shop. Fun, fun, fun.

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The next day it was still raining and we were a little stumped on what to do. There are lots of parks which I’d planned on taking the boys to, but that was not an option. So we took them to a science centre. We got there early and they had plenty of time to wander around and it wasn’t too crowded. My boys love science centers and we’ve seen a few while we’ve been here!

We love “cool stuff”.

Around lunchtime we head around the block to find a restaurant that is all about soul food. I’ve not really had any southern fried chicken at all in the US, but I figure now is the time to try. We pick a restaurant which has a lovely vibe, casual and relaxed. We order big plates of saucy BBQ pulled pork, fresh cole slaw, fried chicken, warm cornbread with salty whipped butter, Okra in a tomato and onion base, macaroni cheese and mashed potato with thick rich gravy. There’s no calorie counting here y’all. This is the heart of southern cooking and it was worth the walk in the heavy rain. We come out of the restaurant with full bellies and head back to the centre see the whole other floor that we have not been into. Poor Dylan gets a little sick with tummy pains (the rich food is sending his system into shock!) – so we head back to relax in the hotel.

Lunch at Merts Heart and Soul.

Plenty of food to try.

His pains pass and they figure out there is an indoor pool that needs their attention. Which is actually perfect for working off all that food! It’s interesting to reflect on our food choices while we’ve been on holidays. Some days I was very lax in what I let the boys eat. There wasn’t much fruit or veggie content and by the end of the trip, I think they even craved the fresh and healthy things we were used to. We tried to push fruit into them at Breakfast but they loved making waffles which fill them up. They drank a little more sprite and juice then they normally do, same for the fries on the side. But hey, that’s holidays done and now it’s detox time.

Today brings no words, and pass the carrots sticks with just a little ranch dressing (Hamish’s new favorite snack).

In Southern Style.

After Myrtle beach we keep heading south to Savannah, Georgia. We arrived in the wet and cold and I did not pack for wet and cold. There was no expectation of wet and or cold anywhere on a spring vacation in a southern direction. That was the whole point of going south!

But it doesn’t stop us. We walk around by the river and old antiques areas and have a lovely afternoon. There’s a big candy shop with taffy machines and praline samples and beautiful cobblestone roads and old buildings.

Beautiful little square gardens and old grand buildings and homes.

The next day the sun came out, though it was still cold enough to need a jacket. We went on a bus/trolley ride and got a really good feel for the city. It’s one of those hop on hop off tours and we stopped at a lovely big park and the boys play in a playground amongst really old and very unique oak trees. I’ve never seen anything like it. They have a spooky look to them, with all this moss that hangs down in long strings from the branches. There’s lots of beautiful little communal town squares in Savannah and then the houses are built around them. Each square is unique and has little monuments and commemorative plaques to prominent people of the town. It really is a beautiful town to just roam and see the different town squares and house. Unless you have little legs with you. Then you take them to more outdoor areas so they can run and let loose.

Magnificent trees.

Grand old buildings.

Savannah has featured in some of the movies I’ve watched. We go past the house that is the focus in the movie “Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil“. The scene where Forrest Gump is sitting on a bench telling his story is just up the road from where we were staying. We ate in a very simple diner that Jenny waitresses in when she sees Forrest on the news.   The food In Savannah is great – southern cuisine at it’s best and lots of proper restaurants rather than the same old chains that we see time after time on the road.We ate in a French Bistro one night and the boys thought it was great.

Dylan puts his DS down, just for a minute.

Oh Dear!

The day after we hopped in the car and did a side trip to Charleston. We took the boys to an aquarium and then had a boat cruise over to Fort Sumter. It was really cold and windy on the sea and in the Fort but the boys really liked it. Anything with cannons and they are in for the ride. I was a little disappointed the boat wasn’t a paddle steamer. I had visions of us going down the river in style, me in a bonnet and holding a parasol like in the movie “Maverick“. Perhaps they have them on the Mississippi (Thanks for the help on that one autocorrect).

We had a little wait in between the aquarium and our boat ride and we asked one of the staff where was a good place to eat. He clues us in to an American style Deli and we are so happy to not be eating the greasy fish and chips from the aquarium cafe which every other visitor there is in line for. We were so appreciative for the tip-off, being on the road for a while we were starting to get a bit sick of chips and burgers.  You line up and pop your order in and out comes the most lovely, fresh sandwiches and salads.

The American deli scene.

To be honest, Charleston could have been planned a little better on my behalf. Because we drove, we didn’t get there till late morning and then we decided on the river cruise which meant we were tied to staying in the wharf area which only really had the aquarium to look at. So we did not really see the city per see, which is supposed to have a beautiful charm to it. You can take a pirate tour around the city and find out about all the famous pirates ties to the town. But in the afternoon by the time we got back from the river cruise it was late and we needed to start the drive to Savannah. So this leg felt a little rushed and in our ambition to get so far south we probably could have used a couple of extra days to really take it all in.

Today brings no words, just a whirlwind trip through the most southern part of our tour. Next stop is Charlotte, North Carolina.

 

 

Beaches and Wizards.

It’s been a busy day hanging out in Myrtle Beach. It started with a visit to the beach of course. Hamish was a little worried we were going to walk him up and down the beachfront again like we had at Virginia Beach and I reassured him we’d stay in one spot, the poor thing was worn out when we walked him last time.

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The sand is lovely and cool, it’s a dark and gritty sand that makes the water appear dark too. The water here is still too cold for swimming, but the boys enjoy wave jumping and shell skimming in the water. They are biding their time because they know that after lunch we are taking them somewhere that they’ve been busting to go for a while.
There’s this place called Magiquest which they’d learnt all about when we were staying at Great Wolf Lodge. It’s a big interactive magical realm and you run about the place waving a wand and collecting things on a big elaborate scavenger hunt.
The wands are selected before you start and the boys can choose from a number of different wand “toppers” depending on the type of magic they want. It’s a little pricey as you pay for the wand, then you also pay for game time, and the adults are charged a small entry fee too. But it was really good fun once we knew what we were doing and the boys just loved it. It’s a really big game though, designed to get you visiting more than once. We were only half way through the scavenger hunt and after you do that then you get to the adventure part where you use your magic to interact with characters. It is designed so that you repeat your visits and buy more game time. I can certainly see our boys wanting more game time!

In the afternoon we went into a kids museum called Wonder Works. It had loads of interactive exhibits and games. The boys favourite exhibit was a dancing screen that flashed up their moves as they wildly flayed their limbs to the music. It’s probably suited better for kids a little older than ours, but overall we were quite impressed.

I’ve enjoyed our brief stay in Myrtle Beach. We could definitely find enough to do if we were here for longer but we are on the road again tomorrow.
Today brings no words, just some very tired boys who will appreciate a quiet car ride tomorrow (I don’t think so).

On the road again.

Break out the Willie Nelson bandanas. We are off and away. Spring break is here and so we get 9 days off for rest and recreation! Last year we went north into Canada which only extended the cold season, but this year we’ve wisened to the cause and are venturing south – much smarter!
I am intrigued by the American beach culture and really want to experience something of it before we leave. When I think of US beaches I think of Venice Beach and Californian surfie dudes hanging out. I also think of the privileged beautifuls, a la Revenge style, looking out of there mansions on the beach in the Hamptons. But where do the every day people go to have a beach getaway? Well there’s definitely no shortage of places here in Virginia Beach and it is very similar to the Gold Coast with miles of high rise hotels and accommodations that sprawl out onto a bustling foreshore and boardwalk area.
We wake up to see a magnificent sunrise and then scoff down a quick breakie before heading to the beach for a long morning walk. We have races, collect shells, write names in the sand – all the things I remember doing as a kid growing up on a beach, just not in such faraway locations. Dylan, who is a kid that likes structure and routine, drives us crazy by asking every five minutes what we are doing next. Is it possible to not have a plan and just go with the flow? That’s what holidays are all about. Try explaining that to him!

The Lonely Planet guide had talked about Virginia Beach cleaning up it’s reputation as the “redneck riverina” and red flags went up a little, but to be honest it’s fine. Even though there’s not a huge amount of kids activities it was a great excuse to sit on a beach and swim and play in sand. In saying that though, I did see some inked young guys with deer hunter beach gear on, one of them sporting a police “ankle bracelet”. I tried to inconspicuously get a photo.

Did I go for a swim? No way. The water was freezing. I don’t remember ever hopping in beach water that cold! Fletch said it reminded him of South Coast NSW beaches. We were wondering why nobody was in the water. “Maybe there’s a designated swimming area,” I said to Fletch on our morning stroll. I guess there’s no need for lifeguards because it just still is too cold to swim! But Hamish and Dylan still put their feet in and splashed in and out of the waves. Crazy kids.

So we have two exhausted kids tonight after our day at the beach and tomorrow we are heading to another beach area in South Carolina.
Today brings no words, or thoughts that could express the shock of stepping into the waves on the beach today!