Page 21 - AAA Magazine – Ohio Auto Club – September 2022

gray skies and low temps to cling on. In like a lion – always. So, when we arrived in Charleston and were met with a cloudless blue sky, a full sun with gentle heat, palmettos and shrubs in full bloom, it was absolutely stunning.
FRENCH QUARTER
We knew we wanted to be in the heart of the historic district where we could walk to experience Charleston’s grandeur and attractions. We checked into The Meeting Street Inn, quaint and perfectly preserved, on the edge of the iconic French Quarter.
After we dropped off our bags, we set out by foot ready to be bathed in Charleston’s rich history. The cobblestone streets were bustling with eager tourists like ourselves, including those in horse-drawn carriages looking up, down and around, soaking it all in as I was. It wasn’t overcrowded, but alive with eager energy.
At the Historic Charleston City Market, local vendors boasting one-of-a-kind art, food and clothing kept my head on a swivel. The Gullah people created their woven sweetgrass art right before us, their fingers working in a smooth, strategic, knowingly manner.
But it wasn’t until our two-hour Historic Charleston guided sightseeing walking tour that the cover was lifted from Charleston’s centuries-old truths. Our guide,
Kay, who beamed with pride and energy, rattled off facts about each stop all along the way. From St. Philip’s Church, which is the city’s oldest congregation (built
in 1838), to graveyard tales, America’s first theater and secret brick paths complete with stories about the female slaves who worked in 18th-century brickyards filled my mind with astonishment. Looking down at the bricks, you can still see handprints of the enslaved mothers’ children.
Our stops continued to The Pink House, which miraculously still stands, though slightly off-kilter since it dates back to the 1690s. By the time we hit Rainbow Row, Instagram-worthy window boxes overflowing with blooms of every color had my mind blown and my senses bursting.
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