Third Day in Charleston and the Return Home

Finally it was the last day in Charleston to see the sights. Checkout time at the Mills House was 11 AM. I was going to spend my final night at the airport Hilton Garden Inn since I had a 6:30 AM flight. I called the Mills House front desk and asked if I could have late checkout. They said I could have until 2 PM. That sounded good.

The previous morning I had spotted several nice restaurants along Meeting Street. I thought I would try something different for breakfast. I went in a restaurant called Joseph’s. It opened at 8 AM and soon thereafter every table was filled. I ordered a ham and cheese omelet and breakfast potatoes. I was expecting the usual hash browned potatoes. The potatoes turned out to be something very unusual. They were cut like French fries and skillet fried with onions and green peppers. They were rather greasy but very tasty. I wondered if this was typical of the low-country cuisine I had read about.

After breakfast I went back to the City Market. The market is very old and dates back to the beginning of the city. One of the buildings was used as the slave market. It is a shocking reminder amidst all the beautiful historic homes of the ugly past of the south. The buildings now are filled with numerous shops. I am not much for shopping in such places so I quickly got the feel for the place and decided it was time to move on. The City Market is the origin point for the horse-drawn carriages that transport tourists through the historic district. I had resisted the ride until this point but decided my trip would not be complete without one. I started inspecting the different companies and checking prices. Some carriages had one horse and others used two but all seemed sized for twelve passengers. Finally I chose one. They sent me around the corner to their stable. It was really nice. They had platforms built up to the level of the carriages so all you had to do was step right into the carriage.

The ride lasted approximately one hour. It looped through the historic district and went down to The Battery, and then worked its way back to the City Market. The driver/guide was dressed as a Confederate soldier. He was a college student and told some interesting tales about the points of interest that we passed on the ride. After the carriage ride I started walking and taking more pictures. I finally became saturated with the picture-taking and decided it was a time to call a halt. I called the Hilton Garden Inn and asked if a room would be available for me if I arrived within the hour. They said yes. I went back to the Mills House, checked out and asked the desk clerk to call a taxi for me.

The Charleston Hilton Garden Inn was very new and very nice. Their airport shuttle service operated 24 hours a day. I had checked that point prior to making my reservation. The Savannah Hilton Garden Inn was also very new and nice. Due to my late arrival in Savannah and early checkout I did not thoroughly explore the hotel. The Charleston Hilton was a different story. They had a restaurant that served breakfast and dinner, but no lunch. I had not had lunch when I checked in. I asked what was within walking distance. The desk clerk pointed, and I looked out the window and saw a Wendy’s next door. After I settled into my room, I went back to the lobby. On my way out I spotted a business center with four computers. They had printers, fax and copiers too. All the equipment was very new. They did not charge to use the computers. I stopped and caught up on my email. I checked the weather reports and saw that Southeast Texas was under a tornado watch. Then I went over and got a salad at Wendy’s and took it back to my room.

I asked for a 4 AM wakeup call. That really hurt. I had used frequent flyer miles for my Continental flights. They had given me the dregs of their flights. The van took me over to airport. The TSA person made me lift my heavy bag up on a waist-high table. Then she made me unlock my bag. I had a TSA approved lock on the bag. They are supposed to have a special tool to open the TSA approved locks. I politely complied with the all the orders she barked at me. She swabbed the sides and pockets in my bag for explosive traces, and then replaced my lock. Most of TSA personnel I have encountered have been extremely polite. This one was the exception. I was glad that was over.

The flight left Charleston on schedule. The flight to Houston was two hours and 39 minutes in duration. It was on an ERJ 145 regional jet. The flight from Houston to Savannah was also on a regional jet. Regional jets are fine for short flights, but the planes are too cramped for longer flights. The only good thing about these flights was the price I paid--$10 security fee. The storms had left the Houston-Beaumont area, and the weather was quite nice. The flight to Beaumont arrived ahead of schedule. The baggage was promptly delivered. As soon as I had my bag, the airport limo driver was ready to take me home.