Quickie to Chuck Town

My sweet baboo and I got away recently for a short visit to Charleston, SC. It was a belated celebration of our 15th anniversary. We did it up right and stayed in a foo foo bed and breakfast right by the water, HarbourView Inn (thanks to Sniqueaway). You should have seen our room(s). Room(s) because we were moved from one beautiful room to a beautiful-er penthouse room on the second night, overlooking the harbor with our own balcony. We kept congratulating each other on our good fortune. It was such an elegant building and the service was fantastic (thanks, Drue), but more importantly, there were two large glass containers filled with plain and peanut M&Ms at our 24 hour disposal in the lobby. Also there was this lovely smell in the hotel all the time. I asked about it and they said they pipe in special lemon grass aromatherapy. Oooh. Fancy.

This photo courtesy of anonymous friendly woman reading her iPad on a bench next to her hubby who was reading his iPhone in Battery Park. Sorry we bugged you. Thanks for the picture! Nice shot. (I can safely assume they were married, right? Who else would be sitting in the park completely ignoring each other? ha.)

We just took it easy and schlepped around town on foot to see the sights, watching the local kids play in the fountain, swinging on the pier, haggling for jewelry in the open air market (well, that was just me) and eating a lot of seafood and gelato. It was just what we needed.

We went to several really good places to eat sea creatures (here, here, and essssspecially Hucks Low Country Table, which is pictured above), and also went…

…to one wildly popular place to eat. We saw the line of folks stacked up outside every time we walked by, so figured it must be the place to go. Very nice folks, friendly atmosphere, but the food did not inspire. My she-crab soup was way too salty (and this is from Larissa Holland, Salt-A-Holic). Still, I sat in the same seat as Neil Diamond. How many other people can say that? All the walls were three-deep in celebrity photos and signed dinner plates. The pre-dinner offering of slightly smelly boiled peanuts remained untouched. Bleh. I’m southern as they come, but I’ve never understood the attraction of soggy odiferous peanuts.

We happened to be in town at the same time as Spoleto Festival, so we decided to walk downtown and see the art tents in the park. I’m really glad we did even at the risk of heat stroke, because I discovered a woodcut artist I really like.

He is Kent Ambler, very talented and also a super friendly guy. He was in the middle of a demo when I was shopping his booth (that’s me wilting on the left there, losing precious fluid and electrolytes by the second), so I got to see his process in detail. Lemme tell you, he earns his money. It’s pretty involved. He only prints an edition of 20 for each design, which I think is insane. He says he is ready to move on by the time he cranks out 20, but that kills me after all the work he puts into the cuts. He even destroys his plates by cutting them into 5 inch squares and making sort of framed wooden quilts of them.

I especially adored his bird pieces but I told myself I was not going to cave again and be such a bird nerd, so I bought one of his other pieces and I’m so glad I did. I keep staring at it in my living room and congratulating myself. I have to get a frame for it and a permanent place on the wall.

All in all, a delightful getaway for me and my Schmoop. Robyn, do you see all the gray hair Michael’s getting? And me with not even one gray hair after all these years. (clearing throat in exaggerated manner)