A Visit to Savannah

What a beautiful town Savannah is! Such rich history and beautiful architecture, with lovely antibellum homes. . . Twenty-one town squares, each with their own history. . . Beautiful churches. . . I will have to say, that people in Savannah are the friendliest people I've ever encountered. It wasn't just the shopkeepers. . . even people who live there and pass you on the street were so friendly. It was typical to encounter at least a couple of people per day, who just came up to you and asked if you were enjoying yourself! How nice it would be to live and work there . . . but those beautiful historical homes are off-the-chart expensive!!! Tybee Island is 30 minutes away, with a lovely, peaceful beach. . . just a quaint little beach town with its own history. "Tybee" was the Creek word for "salt". I would love to go back to the St. Patrick's Day celebration. Their St. Paddy Celebration is the 2nd largest in the U.S., with NY City's being the 1st. Savannah, the oldest city in Georgia (and its 1st capital), is also the oldest "planned" city in America, having been established in 1733 by John Oglethorpe, a colonist from England who first brought 114 colonists, along with a priest and a doctor to create the town. The residents of South Carolina's neighboring Charleston, aided the colonists in building Savannah, along with the Yamacraw Creek Indians, led by Chief Tomacheechee. It is in Savannah that you will find the only Jewish Synagogue built in the Gothic style, and the first African-American Church, built BY African-Americans, FOR African-Americans. (I find this particularly interesting that this event happened in the South, rather than the North.) General Sherman, despised in Georgia during the Civil War, promised the leaders of Savannah that he would not destory their city if they surrendered to the North; a promise he kept, sending a letter to President Lincoln that he was presenting the City of Savannah to him as a "Christmas gift". There is so much more to tell, but it would take a few days! I hope to one day go back to Savannah and spend more time there, and to also visit neighboring Charleston, SC, which is about 1 hour from there.