Good news! We made it through the night in the sketchy hotel. Eventually the party quieted down and we got a little sleep...and by a little I mean very little because I probably woke up every time I heard a car door close, someone walked by, a leaf rustled in the slight breeze - you get the idea.
We arrived at Savannah around 1pm which was a little later than we wanted because some friends were going to meet us for lunch. They however were kind enough to wait on us (thanks guys, because I know waiting on people when you are hungry can be the worst). Where should you eat if you come to Savannah? Well, naturally they have a million restaurants, but we ate at The Shrimp Factory! It's in the historic district and right on the river. It had great food (I got the Shrimp Puff Pastry. It was kinda like a chicken pot pie but with shrimp obviously if that helps).
Commentary by Z: You know how some restaurants give you chips or bread or something to snack on while you wait for your food? Well if you put your name down to be seated and there's a 40 minute wait you should be able to put your credit card on file and eat snacks while you wait. That'd be amazing.
While we were looking up things to do in Savannah we saw great ratings for the Wormsloe Historic Site which is the oldest structure in Savannah. I thought it was going to be more like the classic plantations with the wooden homes, pillars..that kind of thing, but this plantation was much older. All thats left are some ruins, and one of my favorite parts, Oak Avenue that has 400 oaks lining the 1.5mile stretch leading into the property. The grounds were beautiful - trees _everywhere_, which is good because walking around and enjoy the grounds was pretty much the main thing to do. There is a small visitor center however with a movie you can watch about the historical significance, but that's about it. You are left on your own to enjoy the scenery and acres upon acres the Jones Family owned.
Commentary by Z: Why did people want 500 acres of jungle to "farm" in the first place? I can't imagine clearing a single acre of that and then trying to farm it, let alone 500. Better have lots of kids to help with the labor! Or you know, introduce slavery into the colonies. Should have stuck with larger families IMO.
After the ruins, we went back into the city to further explore the historical district. Downtown Savannah has beautiful planned communities with parks in the center of each block. Houses, churches, and shops then surround these parks making it very friendly and fun to walk through each street. We walked into the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist to sit and take in all the stained glass and intricate details in the church.
One regret I have is that we didn't do a haunted tour. Our friends recommended that we do one and said that they "LOVED IT", but we looked at tickets the day of and they were all sold out (dang it). This tells me two things 1) other people think they are awesome and worth doing because they are not just selling out the day of, but several days in advance! 2) We should have planned ahead. I was conflicted I mean I really hate being scared. I don't even like watching scary movies..sooo why would I want to be told scary stories in creepy buildings?! But I want what I can't have and now I just really want to go on a haunted tour! I don't want to miss out and I keep thinking about it! It will just be something we can do next time we come back!
Commentary by Z: I grew up 10 minutes from the beach, but since I've been living in Utah for the past 10 years I forget how much I love it. This made me really want to find a home within a short drive of the coast.For dinner our friends made Korean BBQ. It was the real deal with bean paste (didn't know that existed), kimchi (surprisingly good - you know, for being fermented cabbage), dumplings and of course, the BBQ itself. And for dessert??? Cupcakes!! It was authentic - something I could only dream of cooking (that's why I will leave it to the professionals).
