Charleston, South Carolina

Charleston, SC is one of those places that most of us not only have some vague awareness of, but also some mythical vision of what it might be like.  How many old movies have you seen based around the Americas and the American Civil war that don't refer to Charleston in some way.  I mean, if you have seen Gone with the Wind, you will most certainly have some knowledge of the place.  I can hear Scarlett cooing "Oh Ashley!" and I am already drifting off to some old antebellum plantation among the oaks and Spanish moss.

Well, Charleston sits on a lovely peninsula with the Ashley River on one side, and the Cooper River on the other.  Founded in 1670 in honour of King Charles the II of England, it was, on the eve of the American Civil War, one of the wealthiest cities in the country.  It was the hub of trade for deerskin, tea, silk, rice, indigo and cotton.  That industry relied heavily on slave labour who were the primary labour force not only on plantations but also within the city working as domestics, artisans, markets workers etc.  Consequently, the Port of Charleston was also a primary harbour for the unloading of slaves who were sold in the old slave markets dotted around the city.

Slavery, along with arguments around State's rights and problems with the economy were the catalysts which led to the first shots of the Civil War being fired.  And the rest, as they say, is history.

Within four years, Charleston was a shadow of her former self.  The war, coupled with devastating fires, years of shelling, a deadly earthquake in 1886, and then the great depression beginning in 1929, pretty much left Charleston in a tragic state.


It wasn't really until the late 1970s that tourism arrived and began to give a boost to the ailing economy of the area, and restoration of the city's beautiful old buildings and streets capes began.

So what you see today is a city still undergoing significant change.  Much of the downtown and French Quarter is beautifully restored giving a sense of its bygone magnificence and slowly other inner city suburbs are following suit.  So there is plenty of walking to be done just in the this area alone.

Fortunately, there are wonderful restaurants, bars and the like to provide sustenance as you wander along the beautiful streets and throughout the fantastic artisan shops and boutiques.  And the food of the Low Country is amazing!

But a visit to this area wouldn't be complete without a trek to one of the sea islands, or some kayaking on the swamps, or a visit to Fort Sumter, or a tour into the Gullah history and culture of the area.

It really is a fascinating place with so much history both tragic and remarkable and I only wish I had more time there, particularly so as to explore the Low Country around the city and to learn more about the Indian and Slave history of the area.


But I am grateful for the brief exposure to this wonderful city and perhaps....I may wander back into the Carolina's one day!

New York New York

New York is one of those places that most people have on their "must see" list.  It was on mine.  So its fair to say I was craning my neck to catch my first glimpse across the isle as we flew in over Brooklyn.   And even that somewhat obscured view is still pretty impressive.  But its a hard place to describe.  Yep, its big - bigger than I had pictured.  By that I mean, the magnitude of Manhattan Island and the tightly packed skyscrapers was beyond what I had expected, particularly given I have travelled extensively and to other mega-cities.  So I thought I knew what to expect.  But no.   It is quite overwhelming in that regard but not negatively, just awe inspiring.  I actually really enjoyed the spider's web of streets and wandering up and down the avenues finding something different around every corner.  Each district and borough is completely different with its own personality.  My favourites were Chelsea, Greenwich Village, Soho, and Brooklyn.  The Upper East Side was interesting but didn't light my fire.  I can't say that trailing around looking for the door step of some famous person or billionaire really is my thing and that is about all there is to the Upper East. The southern end of Manhattan and across the water to Brooklyn really drew me in and felt like individual little villages that I could live in.  Quirky shops and tiny restaurants and cafes, heaps of art spaces, more parks and green spaces than I had expected and of course, people from all over the world.  I thoroughly enjoyed the diversity.  The Bronx and Harlem were also well worth the visit. I found those locals I had the opportunity to encounter welcoming and equally awed by their city.


So my pick list:  walking the High Line and Brooklyn Bridge, meandering through Central Park on Sunday morning when the locals are all out enjoying the park, a great little wine bar in the Village or Chelsea, lunch in the sun in Brooklyn, catching a show on Broadway or off Broadway, and of course, finding some great live music in a little corner bar somewhere.

Next trip will definitely require better walking shoes and hours upon hours set aside for the museums and galleries!  Oh and shopping of course.

You better Belize It

The first question most people ask is "where is Belize?".  So for clarity, Belize is a country located on the northeastern coast of Central America.  Bordered by Mexico in the north, Guatemala in the south and the Caribbean sea in the east, its the only country in the region where English is the official language.  Its a small country of about 22,800 square kilometres and a total population of 320 thousand plus people.  But it is a beautiful, lush country that sits right on one of the most beautiful coral reefs in the world.

So with a pretty hectic and stressful month behind me, I decided to escape the hustle and bustle of the Houston front yard for some peace and quiet in Belize's backyard.  The first thing I noticed was how amazingly friendly and welcoming the Belizians are.  They love their country and are very proud to welcome you into it.  Everyone from the kids on the street, to the golf buggy about to run you over, is happy and smiling.  That's the other thing - no cars on Ambergris Caye where I escaped to.  Only golf buggies and push bikes.  So the air is clear, the sky blue and the ocean like bath water!!  And the water and beach was what I was really looking for.

The Belize Barrier Reef, as its known, is about 300km long (part of a much bigger 900km reef system making it second to the GBR in Queensland).  The reef is Belize's top tourist destination and has some brilliant snorkeling and diving.  Apparently, old Charlie Darwin described it as the "most remarkable reef in the West Indies" in 1842 and he wasn't wrong.

San Pedro, the main town on Ambergris Caye, is tiny and reminded me a little of Thailand.  It had some great little restaurants and bars - some of which are built out over the water, and serve not only great  Rum Punch but also more lobster that this gal could ever eat!  So that was a huge bonus.

But I guess the main attraction for me was its history.  Belize was (and still is) part of the Maya civilization which emerged three millennium ago on the Yucatan Peninsula.  This fabulous culture still persists in the area despite 500 years of European settlement and domination.  Locals will still tell you that they are Mayan and you can see it in many aspects of life from the architecture, to their paintings and sculptures and in the jewellery designs.

Having been to a couple of other Caribbean countries, Belize has a much slower pace and none of the big touristy glitz and glamour that you might find in say Grand Cayman.

Its old world and charming and is genuinely a place where "foot wear is not required"!!

A Brush with the HPD

Firstly, my apologies for my complete absence from the waves.  I have been without comms now for a few weeks thanks to some slick thieves who enjoyed a free reign in my home for a few hours.  Which brings me to this week's blog - my brush with the great people of the Houston Police Department.

Let me set the scene.

I started my day in a great mood as I had some pretty cool things on my morning's agenda followed by an appointment at the collision centre to get an estimate on the damage to my car door as a consequence of a brush with a pole (another story).  So following the usual 'toilette' process, off I went on my merry way and had a fabulous morning.  I was feeling on top of the world and buzzing when I then headed off to the collision centre.  Of course, Houston's freeways being what they are, part way en route, a semi-trailer sent a rock my way which made very quick work on my windscreen.  The cracks were pretty significant but the potholes and bumps on the freeway (yep the freeway) just made those little suckers grow exponentially such that I knew I would have to detour to an emergency windscreen repair joint or lose the whole thing.  So thanks to my trusty Garmin, I located the nearest place.  Driving in, I kind of got the distinct feeling that I really shouldn't have been in that particular suburb.  I felt like I had driven onto a movie set for the Gangs of LA or something.  Jacked up cars pumping and grinding down the street and pulling in beside me.  Gang members jumping out and having a heated conversation outside my car door.  All pretty disconcerting really.  Meanwhile, the windscreen dude calmly tells me "stay in the car, ma'am".  I of course did exactly as told.

With repaired windscreen sorted, I got the hell out of Dodge!  And then headed off to the collision repair centre.  All went well there, but by now I was about 3 hours overdue to be home.  A friend tells me it was the universe's way of making sure I wasn't home.  When I pulled into the garage and walked into our foyer - I knew something wasn't right.  My Sherlock like detective skills were ably assisted by the fact that there was broken glass everywhere and blood.  Needless to say, I freaked and immediately got out of the house and made my first 911 call.  I then called my lovely boy who came to the rescue.

So that brings me to the HPD.  Two officers initially arrived and with guns raised and instructions to "stay clear", they proceeded to search the house and ensure that we were safe to enter.  Amongst the things stolen was all my jewellery, all my beautiful cameras and associated equipment, my beloved laptop, iPod and iPads x 2.  Now I don't normally engage in advertising something, but the good ole' "Find My Phone" app came to the rescue in respect of one Ipad.   C's phone was showing that the iPad was on the move and in the neighboring back yard.  So before you could say alacasam, there were 4 squad cars, multiple police officers with guns out and a firetruck in the street.  It was all action and very dramatic.  They searched all the neighboring yards for people and our property.  No luck on finding the perpetrators but they did find one iPad.

Anyway, several hours later, with black fingerprinting dust on everything and blood samples taken, we were finally left alone to survey the damage.  Once the adrenalin lowered, the heartbreak set in as we discovered not only some very valuable jewellery was amongst the haul, but also our most treasured and sentimental and heirloom pieces were gone too.

The whole thing was a horrid experience, but given we live in Texas where everyone is armed, all I can say is thank you to the semi who threw up that stone and delayed my home time so that I wasn't there when our nasty friends arrived.  I don't want to even contemplate what might have happened to me home alone.

So with the experience behind us now and a new collection of stuff to shop for, I have to acknowledge the response and professionalism of the HPD.  They were excellent and treated us with sensitivity and priority!!  I don't however want to engage their services again....if possible.

Diving the Keys

Me and my dive buddy

Its been a long while since I last donned the BCD and plunged into the great blue, but one can't visit Florida and not take the unique opportunity to get wet in the Atlantic and explore the Florida Keys.

The Keys are a coral cay archipelago on the southernmost tip of the US.  Starting at the Florida peninsula and extending westward to Tortugas, the islands (or Keys) lie along the Florida Straits dividing the Atlantic Ocean from the Gulf of Mexico.

Its a wonderful tropical climate in the Keys and the water temperature is like bathwater.  Visibility excellent.  Perfect conditions for diving the reefs and enjoying the marine life!!

For me, diving is like riding a bike - you never forget.  What I do forget is how perfect and peaceful it is down there and how time disappears.

SoBe Cruising

South Beach Miami, or SoBe, conjures many cliches for this Aussie girl.  And once there, some of those ring true.  For example, it really is a place where the eye candy can be pretty interesting!

However, its history is equally if not more interesting.  SoBe is a beachfront neighbourhood of Miami Beach.  It was originally farmland - wouldn't you love that!  Then it was slowly developed as a seaside resort starting in the early 1900s.  In the 30s, an architectural revolution began bringing Art Deco, Streamline Moderne and Nautical Moderne architecture to the shores.  SoBe is today known for having the world's largest remaining collection of Art Deco and Streamline Moderne architecture. (Napier, NZ, is the other).  In this regard, it really is beautiful.

Some of the buildings are divine and give the area a wonderful old world charm.  Strangely, it kind of felt like the Gold Coast, Queensland, about 30 years ago.  Albeit there are new constructions, and some high-rise, the vast bulk are mid rise and most have wonderful old facades.



Then, with the attack on Pearl Harbour in 1941, the US Army Air Corps took command of the area and  interestingly, that brought tourism!  Today, tourism is one of Miami's largest industries and in June, with the US school holidays on, its is flooded with folk.

The 1960s saw Hollywood come to town with various movies and TV shows being filmed there right through until today, all of which have continued to fuel the imagination and the 'mythical' Miami picture.

It is a great spot for a beach holiday.  There is plenty of shopping and restaurants galore.  But best of all, its within easy distance of the Florida Keys and all they have to offer in terms of water sports and adventure.