Farewell Party & Charleston

On Carnival cruises, they have a farewell party they don't really advertise. It's up to you to see it listed as things to do and then go. Why go? Because the drinks are free! As many as you can drink. I'm not kidding (See that picture-courtesy of Kathy? There were 10 of us drinking and less than half of that table can be seen). I had two lime daiquiris (which were a bit too sour for my taste), then three (I think) screwdrivers. Yeah, I got wasted. But you know what? When you're drunk on a rocky ship, the ship doesn't seem so rocky!

We were 15 minutes late to dinner, too. Since we were with two other couples from our table, it wasn't too bad. The other two couples who arrived on time, enjoyed watching us make asses out of ourselves. I can't remember the last time I drank that much. Luckily, I didn't get sick.

On Friday, our ship returned to Charleston. Our turn to exit came around 9:30 and by 10:30ish we were at our car. Our next stop was to visit Ft. Sumter and we kind of knew where it was (we had passed it on the way to the cruise ship). The parking spots on the street were already full of cars waiting for the gates to open for the cruise (our ship came in and was getting ready to leave that same day – no waiting around for them!), but finally found a spot not too far. Stuck every quarter I had in the meter, giving us about 3 hours. We walked up to the museum and was able to make the next boat within minutes (it left at 11:00 and we were there around 10:55). The next boat was at 1:30. At least my husband said he wouldn't have bothered if we missed the 11:00 boat.

I'm not a huge fan of the Civil War or any kind of historical stuff – that would be my husband. I just tag along and maybe something will sink in (or rub off). In this case, not really. Ft. Sumter is a tiny little island and it apparently was where the first shot of the Civil War occurred (as well as the first casualties). Most of the building that is still standing was built back then, but the big black metal building inside was built in 1898 for some other war (told you, I didn't pay attention).

All I really remember was freezing. My coat was still in the car because I didn't realize we had to take a boat out to Ft. Sumter. And frankly, I was still used to those 80 degree temps. It was overcast and windy and probably 60 degrees.

When we got back to Charleston, we then had lunch at Bubba Gump (where I got my magnet) and afterward took a carriage ride. A woman on the cruise ship suggested doing that. Of course, if she hadn't, we might have figured it out for ourselves. They were everywhere! By this time, the sun had come out and warmed up nicely.

I didn't get any pictures from the carriage (I was sitting in the middle) and my husband has yet to download his camera's pictures, but I did get a picture of Bob. He was the horse that pulled us along.

We spent the night in Charleston and drove home the next day. It was nice not having to rush going home. And my favorite site on the drive is when we approach Cincinnati. I know I don't live there, I just like the view from I-75. But normally I'm driving it, so I can't take the picture. This time I could (not that my picture is all that great, but I just love the way the city shows up out of nowhere-go around the bend and wham! there it is!).

Thanks for letting me share my vacation with you. Hope I didn't bore you too badly!