3/29/2015

Weekly Update 3/29/2015

Monday was a very nice day. I went with Lisa and Donna on a Newcomers Group day tour to Brunswick, GA. Although there are many friends and people I know in Savannah who are members of this group, I usually don't like it - I'm too fat, not rich enough, and too fumpy to feel comfortable in the group. But Lisa asked me to go with them on this adventure, and at the time it sounded like a good idea. It surely was! The only cog in the wheel was that I was supposed to meet Lisa to drive to the pick-up point together at 7 am, and I didn't open my eyes until five minutes before we were to meet, but we made it to the bus in plenty of time, and everything after that was perfect. It was cloudy and cool (so I had an opportunity to wear my Easter Bunny sweater), but it didn't rain until the bus ride back.  

Lisa, me & Donna at Hofwyl-Broadfield

We began at Hofwyl-Broadfield Plantation, which has been a rice plantation since the early 1800's. When rice cultivation became increasingly difficult following the Civil War, the enterprising siblings of the fifth generation resolved to start a dairy rather than sell their family home. Ophelia Dent was the last heir and she left the plantation to the state of Georgia in 1973. Today, it is a Georgia State Park, and a visitor center has been added on the grounds of the plantation. Many family photos and heirlooms remain in the house, and that makes it even more interesting to me. There is also a lovely lawn, with many live oaks trees, and a magnificent view of the marsh where the original rice fields were planted. 

the house is as it was when the last family member lived there, and many pieces are antiques. I love the family photos throughout

 

We then continued on the Brunswick GA. Who knew that there is a fascinating historic district in Brunswick? I always thought it was just a bridge (we were told that this suspension bridge is 4” taller than the Tallmadge Bridge in Savannah) and a HUGE parking lot because Brunswick is the primary export facility for Ford and GM, and the central import facility for Hyundai, Jaguar, Kia, Land Rover, Mitsubishi, Porsche, Volvo, and is also used by Audi, BMW and VW. There are always thousands of cars at the port waiting to be processed for sale in the US. But this area is rich in history. It was settled by English settlers beginning just before the Revolutionary War. The residents were British loyalists during the war, and needed to relocate during the conflict, but returned to their homes following the war. The town was not officially incorporated until 1856. During the Civil War, the citizens abandoned the town, and then suffered from post-War depression, not unlike many areas of the South. The lumber and paper business, as well at the port, helped Brunswick to recover economically. During WWII, German u-boats threatened the coast and blimps became a common sight to guide US ships along the coast. During this time, Brunswick built nearly 100 Liberty Ships. Today, the economy is built around the port and tourism, as well as a Federal Law Enforcement Training Center. The Historic downtown is undergoing an revitalization - we ate lunch at a restaurant on Main Street. We had tour of the Old City Hall, which I enjoyed comparing to my past. The lovely residential area in the older part of town has many lovely Victorian homes - we had wine and dessert at a fabulous B&B. 

Main Street historic Brunswick

Brunswick Manor, where we had wine and dessert

 

The tours at DH on Friday were really crowded, probably because there was a lot going on in Savannah this weekend. There was a Women's half marathon and 5K race on Saturday, the Savannah Music Fest is ongoing, and the wildly popular annual Tour of Homes and Gardens was being held. So, I had full tours on Friday. No one was going to be at 17 Hundred 90 for drinks this evening, so I skipped it and just went home after the tours. I wanted to see the performance at the Savannah Children's Theatre of Little Red Riding Hood, and since I was just sitting at home, I decided to see that on Friday instead of Saturday night. It was fabulous, of course.

Saturday was an early morning for me. Since I'd overslept on Monday, I set not one, but two alarms for early Saturday. As they both went off at the same time, I went into my Three Stooges routine, as I was desperately trying to turn the one alarm off before it woke all my neighbors, while it was OF COURSE the other alarm that kept ringing. But I was up and ready to go downtown to ride the trolley full of tourists to Bonaventure for our part of the Tour of Homes. This is one of the few times each year that we have costumed portrayals of individuals in the cemetery to tell their stories. Although I would love to be Little Gracie, the make-up involved to turn me into a 6-year-old girl has not yet been invented, so I'm a guide. I talk on the trolley ride about some of the history, and then at the cemetery, I herd the visitors from site to site and answer questions. The Tattnalls are the family that owned Bonaventure plantation before it became Evergreen Cemetery. Josiah Tattnall III (1791-1871) sold the plantation to Peter Wiltberger in 1847. Sarah Lawton was the wife of prominent lawyer, statesman, railroad president, brigadier general, and diplomat Alexander Lawton (1818-1896). Johnny Mercer (1909-1976) is the prolific songwriter and lyricist, and probably Bonaventure's most famous “resident”. Dr Richard Arnold (1808-1876) was the mayor of Savannah at the end of the Civil War and was a part of the group that rode out to meet General Sherman as he was making his march across Georgia. 

Commodore Tattnall

Johnny Mercer

Sarah Lawton

Dr Arnold

 

Sunday was the day I had been looking forward to all week. Dave Winkler had challenged me, Lisa & Donna to an Easter craft project. We were tasked with creating a bunny or chickie, 3D, 12 inches in height. As I was thinking about my bunny, I had visions of this extremely cute rabbit that any Fifth Avenue shop in NYC would be proud to have in its display window. As I began to glue cotton balls to a glass vase from the Dollar Store, I realized how overrated I'd valued my skills as a crafter! I had cotton stuck to my glue gun, hot glue all over my kitchen counters, and I burned my fingers more times than I could imagine before I was finished. But I think all our projects were great! Donna's even tasted wonderful!

Lisa's Chick, my bunny, Donna's cake & Dave's rabbit.  good work!