Valerie – Page 24 – Valerie's Voice

Unexpected Treasure

The morning of our second day in Savannah, Georgia, Gary and I were the only two people in line for a tour of the historic Davenport House.

The Davenport House was built in 1820 by Isaiah Davenport, and is a beautiful example of Federal-Style architecture. He built the house for his large family, but also to demonstrate and promote his carpentry skills.

I took this photo in the Davenport House because it reminded me of the canopy bed my dad made for me when I was a little girl.

Our docent was knowledgeable and happy to share information on the house and family with just the two of us.

A lovely staircase in the Davenport House.

We only toured this one historic house while in Savannah, although there are many others. I do enjoy touring houses.

The JW Marriott hotel in Savannah, Georgia.

After our tour, we told our docent that we were going to the Riverwalk next. It was a beautiful, sunny day. We asked her if there was anything in particular we should look for, and she suggested the lobby of the JW Marriott Hotel. She informed us the manager/owner of the JW was a collector and had some of his collections on display. But she didn’t tell us what the collections were.

“OK, thanks, we’ll look for it.” And so we did.

One, of several, geodes on display at the JW in Savanna.

The JW Marriott’s are luxury hotels. The JW Marriot in Savannah was built on the site of an old electric power plant. You could see part of the electric plant’s antique workings exposed on one wall. The modern hotel covers a lot of ground, using the space for conference rooms, ballrooms, restaurants, hotel rooms, etc.

A hanging light fixture made of amethyst in a conference room off the lobby.

It was difficult finding the right door. Of course, lobbies of hotels should be not hard to find, but we found we were coming from the opposite side of a very big complex. It took us several attempts, going through different doors, to find the lobby. But we persisted, and we were glad we did.

A perspective as to the size of the geode on display.

We found the collections the docent was talking about. Among other antique artifacts, there was a large collection of geodes…stunning geodes…from all over the world.

Another perspective showing the size of this amethyst, found in Brazil.

We enjoyed oohing and ahhing over the splendor and sizes of the geodes, all the while hearing a pianist in the background, playing a grand piano in the lobby of this luxury hotel.

An overview of the piano player and display cases in the lobby of the JW.

I’m so glad we found this display on the Riverwalk. We would have never gone inside this hotel if we had not asked a “local” for suggestions of things to see. We did not find this lobby listed in any tour guide book.

A citrine geode. The sign said this is one of the largest in existence and took years to prepare for display. It was found in Brazil.

A side view of the citrine geode…ordinary gray rock on the outside, surrounding stunning crystals on the inside.

We often do that… ask a local… and we find hidden treasures, in unexpected places.

Savannah, Georgia

Our first full day in Savannah we took off on a self-guided walking tour and were determined to walk to every “square” in Savannah’s historic district. There are 24 squares…a square is a large block of green-space in the middle of neighborhoods, all with trees, some with fountains or statues, benches or gardens.

Oglethorpe Square. James E. Oglethorpe was the founder of the Georgia colony, and a champion of the oppressed.

They are laid out very orderly and each one a few blocks from the other. After eight miles of walking, we accomplished our goal.

We took a photo of each sign at each square. We’d stop to rest at times, read history plaques, drink a cup of coffee, enjoy a picnic lunch. It was a beautiful, sunny day and a nice temperature for walking. It gave us a great overview of the historic district in Savannah.

The John Mercer house. John Mercer was a popular figure from Savannah. He was an American lyricist, songwriter, and singer. He was also a record label executive who co-founded Capitol Records. His house was featured in the movie Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil.

Warren Square sign with a lime green lizard (Green Anole).

In the afternoon we stopped for ice cream (of course!) at a wonderful little shop we walked past, and found it to be a long standing, well-known ice cream parlor, with wonderful treats.

A delicious Southern Socialite flavor at Leopold’s Ice Cream.

As we were waiting for the walk sign to change so we could cross the street to Leopold’s Ice Cream, I read a plaque on the building we were next to. It happened to be the old department store where, in 1960, black students led by the NAACP Council staged sit-ins at white-only lunch counters in eight downtown stores. Three students, were arrested in the Azalea Room at this Levy’s Department Store – now a SCAD’s (Savannah’s College of Art and Design) library. We didn’t remember sit-ins took place in Savannah. It was interesting to see the building where one took place.

The previous Levy Department Store, now a library for SCAD (Savannah College of Arts and Design).

We returned to our hotel, happy and exhausted. Each day I loved climbing the stairs to the second floor where our room was located. It was an older hotel and it had a lovely wooden staircase. Each time I climbed it I imagined myself in an old southern mansion. It added amusemnt to our stay.

The National Quilt Museum

As I mentioned in my previous post, we stopped at the National Quilt Museum in Paducah, Kentucky on our way home from North Carolina. I had heard about this museum, and, since it was not too far off our route, we decided to stop and check it out.

This forest scene is probably my favorite quilt.

It did not disappoint, however I thought it would be larger and Gary thought it would be smaller, but it was just right.

This national museum displays, and collects, contemporary quilts…made within the last thirty years. There are no antique or restored quilts here.

In the main gallery there are several astonishing quilts to peruse. What craftsmanship…

What artistic ability…

What creativity…

We learned a few quilts are changed out every few weeks in the main gallery, so the exhibit is constantly changing.

There were various quilts on display. All lovely…

All intricate…

All interesting…

All spectacular…

All different…

There were temporary exhibits too, which were interesting and fun to see. One was an exhibit of quilts students K-12 had made, as their first attempt at quilting.

There was an exhibit of miniature quilts.

This is a miniature quilt. A miniature quilt has to be 24″x24″ or less. I think most were 12″x12″.

There were two temporary exhibits by two different textile artists.

Special exhibit: Valerie C. White “Roots and Refuge”

Another piece by Valerie C. White. I liked this one because we saw Guinea Fowl in Africa and I loved their polka dot feathers.

Quilts are truly works of art. We both enjoyed this stop. It was worth our time to stretch our legs, relax, and enjoy exquisite artistry of quilt making.

Driving Back Home

We left North Carolina early Thursday morning to start our journey back to Minnesota. We planned a new route home, because we wanted to see a part of Mississippi.

We wanted to stop there because there are only two states I do not recall having been in…Idaho and Mississippi. Since Mississippi seemed a reasonable distance to include on our trip home (Idaho, of course, was not!) we decided it would be fun to stay overnight in Tupelo, Mississippi.

Therefore, on Thursday we drove from North Carolina, through South Carolina, through Georgia and through Alabama to Mississippi. We stopped at the birthplace of Elvis, a must-see attraction in Tupelo, before checking into our hotel…then we went out for dinner. It was a pleasant day.

The house where Elvis Presley was born, in Tupelo, Mississippi.

The clouds put on a pretty display for a pleasant evening in Mississippi.

The next morning we drove on the Natchez Trace Parkway, a 444 mile national scenic byway, that goes through three states.

The road roughly follows the “Old Natchez Trace” a historic travel corridor used by American Indians, European settlers, slave traders, soldiers and a few presidents. It has a lot of history to tell, dating back to the late 1700’s.

A scenic two-way parkway, with little traffic.

We drove on the parkway for thirty miles before getting off to head towards Kentucky. There was another attraction we wanted to see on our way back to Minnesota…the National Quilt Museum in Paducah, Kentucky.

A wonderful museum in Paducah, Kentucky.

The quilt museum was interesting. I have more thoughts and photos to share in an upcoming post.

Our third morning was a bit different than the others. We spent the night near St. Louis, Missouri, and woke up to a snowstorm (unusual amounts expected for this part of the country). We got an early start, but it was slow going the first few hours, until we drove out of the storm and the roads cleared up.

Snow-packed road conditions as we traveled north through Missouri. Fortunately there was not a lot of traffic.

As we checked out that morning in St. Louis, the clerk at our hotel gave us a blessing for our safety while traveling through the snow…she was a kind-hearted woman and a delight. It felt right, and special, to start our journey that day with her blessing.

Heavy snow-cover along the side of the road.

We were thankful we made it back to Minnesota safely.

Leaving

It was hard leaving North Carolina Thursday morning. We arrived in North Carolina before Christmas, to visit our son, his wife and their two children.

Together, we celebrated Christmas. We were there for the new year, and the grandkid’s winter break from school, and also for a time after they returned to school. We had a lot of fun together.

Hedgehog craft project from pinecones we found at the nature preserve.

It was so good to be there, to catch up with our son and daughter-in-love, and to see our grandchildren so happy in their new home, and thriving.

It was difficult to say good-bye as they headed out for school and we headed out for our three-day journey back to Minnesota. We already miss them…their excitement and smiling faces.

Spanish Moss and Southern Live Oaks

It hangs like icicles dripping from the trees…not a certain type of tree, but any tree. And it’s everywhere in Savannah, Georgia, where we took a mini road trip from our base in North Carolina.

The grey-green moss dripping from southern live oaks.

I admit it took me awhile to come to appreciate the appeal of these plants but I now think Spanish moss is a beautiful sight. It is not Spanish, nor is it moss. Its name is derived from French settlers naming it Spanish beard and later it became Spanish moss.

Spanish moss is a member of the bromeliad family, an epiphyte, or air plant. It uses trees only for support, but gets its nourishment from air, sun, and rain. It does not hurt the trees it grows on.

And even more beautiful is when you see the Spanish moss hanging in the southern live oak trees. The Southern live oaks are majestic trees. Although usually identified as evergreens, because live oaks retain their leaves nearly year-round, they are not true evergreens. Live oaks drop their leaves immediately before new leaves emerge in the spring. The leaves do not resemble the oak leaves we find in Minnesota.

Southern live oaks grow to about 50 feet in height, with large looming branches hanging low and spreading far and wide, its limbs may spread out 100 feet or more.

A beautiful, sprawling southern live oak tree.

They can grow to be several hundred years old. They are the official state tree of Georgia. Southern live oaks are magnificent trees, and found all over Savannah, and the deep south we’ve read. They are picturesque.

At one historic place we visited, Wormsloe, there was an avenue of southern live oaks lining each side of the road for one mile, forming a canopy overhead. I was in awe as we drove through this exquisite scene.

A mile long avenue of southern live oak creating a canopy overhead.

This is one of the prominent features I will remember about our enchanting trip to Savannah, Georgia: Spanish moss and Southern live oaks.

Time Away

We’ve had some fun adventures on this lengthy (for us) time away from our home in Minnesota. We took a road trip to North Carolina and are staying with our son and his family. The time is going by fast; maybe because it started over the Christmas holidays, and is extending into the New Year. Or maybe because we’re visiting family and grandchildren – that is always special. I always anticipate having all kinds of time to write, but that never proves true for me. I get distracted with the days activities. We are still here, but I’m taking time to write now.

On the front porch at our son’s home in North Carolina.

Initially we had some warm days in North Carolina. We were able to sit on the front porch and drink our morning coffee, and go to a park on a sunny, 75* day and play with the new Stomp Rocket.

We also had a couple warm and sunny days in Georgia, and I wore my sandals while walking along Savannah’s Riverwalk, but now a cold front has come through and it’s a bit chilly…but not as cold as it is back home in Minnesota.

We did take a mini road trip to Savannah, Georgia (a road trip within a road trip!) and enjoyed exploring that lovely, southern city. We had four wonderful days there. One, of many, interesting tidbits from our time in Savannah is from our first afternoon when we drove through the beautiful, historic Bonaventure Cemetery, which is on the National Register of Historic Places and located on a scenic bluff on the Wilmington River.

The cemetery has acres of old, interesting tombstones and monuments with mature southern live oak trees with Spanish moss dripping from them, and rough gravel roads that create a very mystical place.

This was not your typical manicured cemetery, but it was eerily peaceful in the late afternoon as we drove around.

Rod iron gates around clusters of marble and granite tombstones, large and tall monuments, cement angel and crosses, and all manner of cemetery props are within its gates with mature trees and other greenery.

On our way out we stopped at the info center just outside the cemetery where someone commented on our Minnesota license plates. He stated we’re a long way from home and asked what part of Minnesota we were from? “Northfield,” I said. And he said, “we are too!” Two couples from our hometown had just toured the cemetery. It was a fun moment.

Happy New Year!

And so we begin a new year…new opportunities…new possibilities.

Welcome 2022!

Merry Christmas

Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying, “Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to those on whom his favor rests.”
Luke 2: 11-14

God Bless us one and all!

Sunsets

It felt like we were driving through a sunset.

We were on our way to visit our youngest son and his family in North Carolina. Another road trip…YAY.

As the daylight came to an end on the shortest day of 2021, we found ourselves in the southwestern region of West Virginia. It was very scenic, and we were going up, and over, and down the “lesser” mountains (of the Appalachian Mountains), like a roller coaster, with a lot of curves too.

The sun was setting and the conditions were just right for a gorgeous sunset…poofs of clouds, reflecting the sun, catching the rays, turning red.

It surrounded us, and it lingered for a several miles! It was magnificent. I felt I was on a Disney ride, driving through a sunset.

It was dark when we drove into Charleston, West Virginia where we stopped for the night. The next stop…grandchildren!