Boy, is it good to get out and doing a little traveling! Even if it just a two night trip. Took the Black Beast (AKA R8) to the historical section of Charleston. Leona and I had been there over 30 years ago, however, it was mostly a tennis trip with a week spent at Wild Dunes. Unfortunately, the week after we left in 1989, Hugo caused a lot of damage to the area. On this trip, the focus was more on understanding the history, appreciating the diversity of cultures and the booming food scene. We stayed at the Wentworth Mansion which was built in 1886 and is one of the top historical boutique hotels in the nation. First stop on the way was the Boone Plantation. The Jamaicans have the language Patois while the slaves of this region had Gullah. Rice was the primary crop in this region. Listened to some very interesting lectures on the history at the plantation. Next day, took in some of the sites in the historical section of Charleston including the city market, waterfront park, Rainbow Row with its 1600s homes, exchange building (slave auctions) and the French Quarter. We ate at Magnolias the first night
and a shout out to Leonas diver scallops! The second night was at Circa 1886 which is associated with the Wentworth Mansion. The restaurant is very popular and we could not get a reservation until 8:15 six weeks ahead of time. Well worth the wait! The restaurant has a very unique menu reflecting the cultural diversity of the area. There are four areas including European, Low Country, African, and Native American. However, the dishes are done in a modern upscale presentation. An example is the shrimp and grits are done with short grain rice with goat cheese, ham hock flavored broth and chopped tomatoes, cabbage and chives. The restaurant also wine and hors devours to the hotel guests every evening and they were very impressive. The food and service at Circa 1886 was excellent and the restaurant lived up to it many rewards.
