Feliz Cumpledominos!

11.14.2009: Today was a very special day - Abuela's 84th birthday (Feliz Cumpleanos!)! It was also the birthday of Miryam - one of the Faith Community volunteers.

We met the Faith Community volunteers, a Faith Community alumni Bonnie and her husband Drew at FirstWatch in Fort Lauderdale, FL for brunch. Of course, Abuela had gotten up and made us our first breakfast of chorizo and onions, fried potatoes and fried eggs, along with fresh papaya (in Spanish - fruta bomba) and coffee. So, by the time we got to FirstWatch we weren't super hungry, but as we were really excited about the menu and the rave reviews from Bonnie, we still had to eat a bit (see our healthy turkey omelet below).



It was a wonderful morning spent with truly wonderful people, and it was fun to help celebrate the beginning of Miryam's birthday.

After FirstWatch, we headed to Starbucks with Bonnie and Drew to hang out longer and catch up further - it was great quality time.

We headed back to Miami, FL mid-afternoon and ran a few errands. We got a few pictures from our wedding printed and picked up a beautiful plant with white flowers for Abuela's birthday.

David's Dad recommended that we try a very nice restaurant - Casa Larios - while we were in Miami, FL. As we wanted to take Abuela out for her birthday, we thought it would be a perfect place to try! The food was very good, especially the shrimp ceviche appetizer, black bean soup, and Abuela's chicken. Or so we thought, at least. Abuela, however, did not seem very impressed with the restaurant. We had a very enjoyable evening with good conversation and much laughter - it was special to be with Abuela to celebrate her birthday.



11.15.2009: Late morning, we attended the bi-lingual Mass at St. Dominic's, which is the church that Abuela goes to. It was a very nice service, although we were challenged by how quickly the Spanish parts were spoken! After Mass, we grabbed some coffee, and headed back to Abuela's house.

We then went with Abuela to Domino Park, which is on SW 8th Street, or "Calle Ocho." Domino Park is known as a gathering place for Cuban men, and a couple of women, to play dominos. As we walked around and watched we could hear the click of dominos being quickly played. Abuela kept on laughing and saying, "old men." Hey, at 84 I guess you can say whatever you like!

After the park we stopped at a big store on 8th Street where Abuela gifted us with all of the things she thought we need as a newlywed couple - a Cuban coffee pot, Cuban espresso, little espresso coffee cups, and a slotted rice/frying spoon.

After returning to Abuela's, we learned to cook Arroz con Pollo (rice with chicken) from scratch, and it was possibly some of the best Arroz con Pollo we have ever had (you know what they say about love being the secret ingredient in a Grandma's cooking!). We also had green plantains, salad, and more fresh fruit. As we were enjoying our wonderful meal, Abuela smiled and told us that she cooks better than Casa Larios! Which, of course, is true and why she was not so impressed with the food at the restaurant (next time, we will take her somewhere other than Cuban food - Thai perhaps?)

Her niece Ada and Ada's son Daniel stopped by for a few minutes and it was nice to meet and chat with them. Ada brought us two lovely pieces of art as a gift - which we were not expecting and really liked!

All in all, it was a simple and relaxing day. We are very happy - or "muy contente" as Abuela would say.

Conch Fritters in Paradise!

11.13.2009: After another huge breakfast we headed even further south for a day trip to Key West, FL. The drive was incredible - aquamarine and teal ocean water and sunshine the entire way. There were many times when we were driving on a narrow two lane road completely surrounded by water. The trip down to Key West, FL took about three and a half hours from Abuela's. On the way down our "check engine" light came on. After stopping to check the car, we determined there were no major issues (everything sounded and smelled fine) and chalked it up to Friday the 13th. We arrived in Key West around noon.



Our first stop was a walk around the historic seaport and a visit to the historic Flagler Railroad Station Museum. A little history - Flagler spent over $30 million of his personal money to build an overseas railroad from mainland Florida to Key West, FL. Though the railroad was destroyed during a hurricane, many credit Flagler for providing access to Key West, FL. The museum included many artifacts from the original railroad company.

We decided to take a Conch Tour Train ride around the island, operated by Historic Tours of America. Our hour and a half tour thoroughly covered old town Key West, FL and included much history, architecture and island folk lore. One interesting story from our tour: Key West, FL was struggling financially during the Great Depression and after they did no receive the money requested in aid from the government, they decided to secede from the United States and become the Conch Republic. The attack included storming a nearby Navy base and throwing stale Cuban bread. The secession did not last long, but the island gained much attention and is still known fondly to this day as the Conch Republic.

At one of our tour breaks we purchased a Key Lime float at Mallory Square. It was very cold, refreshing and the perfect Key West, FL drink! At another stop on our tour we also enjoyed another Key Lime treat - a frozen key lime pie on a stick, covered in chocolate!

After our tour we walked around to explore many of the sites of the island - Harry S. Truman's Little White House, Ernest Hemingway's House, Bahama Village, and we happened upon the Mile 0 sign for US Highway 1. US Highway 1 is known as the Palms to Pines Highway - starting in Key West, FL and continuing all the way north to Maine.

Key West, FL is the southernmost point in the Continental United States, marked by a giant buoy. For a moment we were the southernmost couple in the United States as evidenced by the picture below. The buoy is 90 miles from Cuba.

After the buoy and some time on the beach, where we witnessed a gorgeous Key West, FL sunset, we headed to Mallory Square for the nightly sunset celebration. There were many odd performers at Mallory Square including a crazy Frenchman with a cat show and a younger guy who escaped from a straight jacket and chains. There were also lots of art and food vendors and it was fun to walk around for a while. Key West, FL is known for its eccentric culture.

The main road in Key West, FL is Duval Street and we walked along it to find dinner. Recognizing that everywhere would be touristy we stopped at Willie T's. We enjoyed Conch Chowder, Conch Fritters and fresh seafood for dinner, along with Key West Sunset Ale. You may be asking yourself what the heck is conch? Conch is a shell fish similar to clams which are found in waters surrounding the Florida Keys. There is a conch shell pictured on the southernmost buoy above - the shells are quite large, and what most people picture when thinking of a shell to hold up to your ear to hear the ocean.

During the day there were cigarette boat races taking place around the island, and after we finished dinner the boats had all been pulled on to Duval Street. We spent time walking around and looking at the boats. We stopped at The Whistle Bar, we walked by Sloppy Joe's and stopped in Captain Tony's. Captain Tony's is the original Sloppy Joe's and is where Ernest Hemingway spent time writing and drinking while living in Key West, FL. Captain Tony's had very interesting decor, mostly signed bras and business cards covering every possible surface.

After the sun had set on our time in paradise we headed back to Miami, FL.

We're Going, Going to Miami...

11.10.2009: In the morning, we packed and loaded the car for our drive to Miami, FL. After saying good-bye to Grandma and Pop-pop (along with Pop-pop's serious instructions to drive slowly and carefully because of the crazy Florida drivers), we were on our way. The drive to Miami, FL was filled with beautiful skies - it was awesome to watch the colors of the sky and clouds change as the afternoon changed into dusk then dark. We also saw a pretty good size herd of deer along the Turnpike as we were driving.

We reached Abuela's house (David's grandmother on his Dad's side) in SW Miami, FL and, of course, she had dinner ready and waiting for us. Abuela is Cuban - Spanish is her first language, and she speaks a bit of English. Katrina is not Cuban - English is her first language, and she speaks a bit of Spanish. David actually speaks more Spanish than he lets most people know, although he only really knows about ten verbs. So, with our mix of Spanish and English, and quite a few charade-like gestures, we were able to do a pretty good job of communicating (only if Abuela spoke slowly, of course!)

11.11.2009: Wednesday was a rainy South Florida day - which means that it was about 80 degrees and every now and then would completely downpour with rain, but most of the day was overcast and fine. We went to Sabor (a division of Publix, which is a grocery store) to do a bit of grocery shopping with Abuela. From the moment we arrived, she was very concerned that we would have enough to eat, although the opposite was quite in fact true - she pretty much fed us non-stop the entire time we were visiting! A true Grandma, indeed. We also made a few quick stops at the bakery and another grocery store, Tropical, to pick up some baked goods and fruit, respectively. Upon returning to Abuela's, we learned how to make ropa vieja, a traditional Cuban dish. The literal translation of ropa vieja is "old clothes" and the dish is shredded beef cooked in sofrito (a tomato, onion and garlic base). Along with the ropa vieja, we also had white rice, fried ripe plantains, and salad. Katrina learned all the names of the vegetables we cooked with and ate, and the names of all the utensils for the place settings. David has made very tasty ropa vieja many times, but nothing beats Abuela's cooking! Que rico! It was delicious.

11.12.2009: We awoke to a huge breakfast - a Spanish torta (and entire frying pan filled with eggs, potatoes, and onions) along with fresh fruit and coffee. We then headed to the Everglades National Park for a morning hike at Shark Valley. When Katrina lived in Fort Lauderdale, FL in 2004-2005 this was one of many favorite places for her to visit.



We opted to walk the trail, although biking was also an option, and got a good 4 miles of exercise.

Along the trail, we saw 4 pretty good sized snakes. Once we returned to the National Park office, a ranger helped us identify the snakes as Everglades Racers (see picture below) and a Red Bellied Water Snake (we don't have a picture of the Red Bellied Water Snake, because he was so big that Katrina wouldn't let David get close enough to take a picture, although he did want to).

When one thinks of the Everglades, the first thing that comes to mind is what else - alligators. And, we were not disappointed! We saw many alligators up close along the trail (two of the biggest ones are pictured below) and even saw a nest of 5 baby alligators slightly off the trail.

It was both really cool and a bit disconcerting to be walking along just a few feet away from huge alligators, especially those that were resting with their mouths slightly open. Contrary to what most people think, it is rare for alligators to attack humans, unless they are provoked or protecting their nests of babies (or unless people feed them and they become aggressive as they associate food with humans). We also saw many different birds, as well as giant grasshoppers (we're talking a couple inches long here, folks).

After spending the morning hiking, we headed back to Abuela's to shower, and then headed north to Fort Lauderdale, FL. We spent some time in the afternoon visiting Covenant House Fort Lauderdale, and seeing (or meeting, in David's case) many of the people that Katrina used to work with when she was a Faith Community volunteer. It was so wonderful to see them all!

We headed over to the Faith Community volunteer house and spent a few minutes hanging out with the volunteers before going to Archbishop McCarthy High School for Covenant House Florida's Annual Candlelight Vigil. The Vigil is an event held by all Covenant House locations to raise awareness about the issue of homeless youth. It included a candlelight procession, times of prayer and reflection , readings, and personal stories shared by several Covenant House youth. Below is a picture of the Executive Director of Covenant House Florida, Jim Gress, who did an excellent job of hosting the Candlelight Vigil. It was a beautiful evening, possibly one of the best Vigils that we have attended in our many years at Covenant House (for more information, you can go to: http://www.covenanthousefl.org/). It was also nice to see (and meet!) even more of Katrina's former co-workers.

We spent a bit more time at the Faith Community volunteer house (thanks for the super tasty lasagna!) before heading back to Abuela's after a very full, and wonderful, day.

Have Golf Cart Will Travel!

11.06.2009 - 11.09.2009:

Greetings from the land of grandparents and golf carts! We arrived in The Villages, FL on the evening of 11.06.2009 to spend a few days with Pop-pop and Grandma (David's grandparents on his Mom's side). For those of you who don't know about The Villages, it is an immense community for those who are over the age of 55 in north central Florida. Grandma and Pop-pop have lived in The Villages for about 5 years - to be specific, they live in the village of Bonnybrook.

Upon arriving, Pop-pop and Grandma took us out for late night appetizers and drinks at The Lighthouse. We had some tasty steamed clams and calamari rings, and were especially intrigued by the drink menu on the table... The menu offered a list of shots ranging from "Broken Down Golf Cart" or a BDGC, "Grandpa is Alive", "Liquid Valium" and the most bizarre, "Sex with an Alligator." Thankfully David's grandparents did not order any of these shots, but as a keepsake, Katrina took a copy of the shot list. We now plan to celebrate our 50th wedding anniversary with a shot of "Broken Down Golf Cart!"



Speaking of golf carts, they are everywhere here - ranging from your standard model to high end miniature classic Rolls Royce and Mustang versions. The Villages is laced with golf cart paths, and you can go just about everywhere on your cart - to the bank, the movies, the grocery store, and of course all the pools and recreation centers. We got our guest passes (tight security here, folks) and spent quite a bit of time riding around in the golf cart - both for fun and doing errands - and relaxing by the pool. Here at The Villages we are not quite yet considered adults - for guests, one must be over the age of 30 to use the adult pools. Until then, we are relegated to using the family pools.

Below is David in Grandma and Pop-pop's golf cart in the parking lot of the Pimlico pool and Katrina going through the drive through ATM at Bank of America.

During our time in The Villages, we also visited many restaurants - Beef O' Brady's, McCall's in Spanish Springs, China Buffet (not memorable!), and quite memorably, Lopez Legacy Country Club, owned by Nancy Lopez the golf champion. One memorable (or forgettable) time at Lopez Legacy was when David cut the celery from Pop-pop's bloody mary into bite size pieces, as Grandma had forgotten to put in her bottom teeth.

One day we took a quick day trip to Mount Dora, a nearby town with lots of cute shops and arts.

We also went to a Polo match at the Polo Club on Sunday afternoon, which we really enjoyed. Neither of us had ever been to a Polo match before, so it was all very interesting and we really learned a lot about the game. Of course, the $2 beers (which were $1 during the intermission between chuckers) sure did help! And, we also learned a new cheer which is associated with Polo games - or at least the people who were in attendance at this game! We'll sing it for you sometime. :) After the Polo game, we greatly enjoyed a spectacular performance by The Village Twirlers - a group of ladies from The Villages who dance and twirl batons. Katrina would like to be able to do that when she is 70! And, yes, we have video.

Of course, the best part of our visit was spending time with Grandma and Pop-pop. It was great to chat and catch up, look at lots of pictures together, and just simply hang out. We are headed to Miami next to spend some time with Abuela (David's grandmother from his Dad's side). We do love the Florida sunshine and are very happy to have the opportunity to spend so much time with family!

Home Cookin' and Southern Charm

11.05.2009: We woke up in South Carolina with Georgia on our mind - Savannah to be exact. Catching up on some sleep we missed the breakfast at our hotel. This would later be very advantageous for us. As we were only a few minutes outside of Savannah, GA we decided to drive to the place we wished to have lunch, park the car, and walk around for a while.



Our lunch destination was 107 Jones Street - Mrs. Wilkes Boarding House. Both our books highlighted this as a can't miss experience while in Savannah, GA and recommended that patrons line up early, as the doors open at 11:30 AM and seating is limited to a first come first serve basis. We arrived at about 10 AM, and the line was already forming and about 12 people long. So we jumped in line - and the line only got longer and longer.



When the lunch bell rang we directed to two seats at the second table on the right. Everything is served family style with 10-12 people per table. Our table had 22 different side dishes ranging from okra to cabbage to sausage and rice to bbq pork to greens to scalloped potatoes...you get the idea. Along with all the sides, of course there was the main event, the fried chicken and homemade biscuits. The food was blessed by the owners and the sides were then passed to the left and we took small samples of each side as we wanted to try everything. Like we mentioned before it was a good thing we did not eat breakfast earlier as we consumed a large amount of food. Mrs. Wilkes Boarding House is a great representation of Savannah, GA culture. The meal was best enjoyed slowly, taking in everything and enjoying conversations with those seated at your table. The city was much the same. Instead of one attraction you need to see in Savannah, GA the city is best when you take your time and wander through its lovely squares and marvel at its beautiful homes. Each of the squares has ornate fountains and statues and the city is filled with many historical sites.



You may remember a pretty popular book written about Savannah, GA - Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, or "the book" to locals. Both Katrina and David read and greatly enjoyed the book, so a tour of the Mercer Williams house was a must.



The house was an entire city block in size, including the gardens and carriage house. While tours take place everyday the Williams family still lives in the house. Therefore, we were only able to tour the first floor. With 15 foot ceilings, incredibly eclectic works of art and unique architecture the house was stunning. It was hard not to feel as if you were a character in "the book" once you entered this house. Our tour guide was the epitome of the perfect southern gentleman and we greatly enjoyed his narrative about the history of the house and family. For all you Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil fans, the tour does include Jim Williams' study, the room in which he shot and killed his assistant.

Savannah, GA is home to the resting place of Johnny Mercer. He is buried in Bonaventure Cemetery but below is an exact replica of his grave stone featured in one of Savannah, GA squares.

While we were in Charleston, SC our tour guide at Magnolia Plantation, who lived in Savannah, GA for four years, recommended that we have coffee at Gallery Espresso. It was a neat coffee shop that offered everything from original art to spinach and feta scones to a regular cup of joe. Katrina had the house blend while David opted for a very interesting Turkish coffee.

We decided to visit Bonaventure Cemetery next. Bonaventure Cemetery also owes its fame to "the book" as the cover depicts an image of the bird girl statue, once located in the cemetery.

We both drove and walked around for quite some time, as both the ornate grave stones and the Spanish moss covered trees were very interesting. The cemetery had an equal balance of beauty and creepiness.

After the cemetery we decided to head to Grandma and Pop-pop's house in the Villages, FL before it go too late. Along the way we stopped for dinner at the GA Pig in Brunswick, GA for BBQ. The Road Food book did not give an address for the little log cabin restaurant. Katrina called and the man that answered told her, "We don't have an address. Take exit 29 off I-95, turn left, go just a little ways, we're across from the Huddle House - just look for the dancing pigs." When we pulled into the parking lot it was completely empty which made us a little hesitant. Walking into the empty restaurant we had the same feeling. But we ordered - a pork plate for David and a pork sandwich for Katrina, along with beans, macaroni salad, potato salad and Brunswick stew (a southern version of stewed mixed veggies). David washed his bbq down with a delicious glass of sulfur water from the tap - as the man who owns the restaurant assured him that, "Sulfur is good for you." As we ate, the place began to fill up, which is a testament to the excellent bbq that we ate.

We arrived in Florida at Grandma and Pop-pop's around 9 PM and headed out for drinks and appetizers at the Lighthouse. We are excited to spend time with them, enjoy the sunny weather of Florida and drive their golf cart!

Grits Gone Wild!

11.04.2009: Our dear friend and South Carolina native, Athana, gave us many recommendations of places to eat and things to do while in Charleston, SC. One restaurant that she recommended, Hominy Grill, was also in both our Road Food book and our 1,000 places to see before you die book. So of course this was a perfect way to start our day. Hominy Grill claims that "grits are good for you!" If all grits were as delicious as the ones we ate at Hominy Grill we would probably eat more. The homemade biscuits were no joke either. A small clay pot of berry jam along with our biscuit and we were close to heaven!



David is a bit of a history nerd and needed his Civil War fix for the day. When it comes to the Civil War it all starts with Fort Sumter, the small Army fortress on an island near Charleston, SC. With Fort Sumter plugged into our GPS you can imagine our surprise when we arrived at Fort Moultrie, SC.



After cursing Karen (our since fired GPS personality) we wandered in to find out what Fort Moultrie was all about. The National Park Service attendant offered us a personal tour of Fort Moultrie, SC with Larry, a volunteer who served in Vietnam for ten years. Larry took us on tour of the whole fort, including weaponry and canons from the Civil War up until World War II. It turns out soldiers at Fort Moultrie, SC were among the first to fire upon Fort Sumter, SC thus beginning the Civil War. Below are some of the canons on display at the fort. It was a quite fascinating tour and we really enjoyed all the stories (including the one where a canon ball burned the pants off of a British General - some where Larry is giggling), as well as all of the knowledge Larry shared with us.

After Fort Moultrie, SC we headed into historic downtown Charleston, SC. We grabbed a bite and a beer sampler (which, to note, half of their beers are made with hops from the Northwest) at the Southend Brewery.

We also enjoyed some Charleston She-Crab soup and some fried green tomatoes with goat cheese and fresh local veggies. Out of all the beers, the darker beers were better than the lighter, although we both did enjoy the Pale Ale. Katrina also really liked the Brown Ale and David really liked the Wheat Ale.

After walking around the historical district for a few minutes, and seeing the Custom House and some really neat alleys, we headed to Kudu for some tasty coffee. David had a meru mocha and Katrina had an iced house blend. Both Kudu and the Southend Brewery were also recommendations from our friend Athana, and to her we say - "two thumbs up!"

With the energy from our coffee, we headed down Ashley River Road to the Magnolia Planation and Gardens. Owned by the Drayton family for more than 14 generations, Magnolia Plantation is now a historic house and gardens offering tours and insight into plantation life during and after the time of slavery. After arriving, we walked through the enormous garden area, and came upon the house, which is pictured below.



Magnolia Plantation was a rice plantation, with the skill of rice cultivation being brought to America by the slaves that came from the west coast of Africa. In the beginning, the plantation tried to grow many crops unsuccessfully, and eventually found that rice was the most lucrative. It was only through the skill and knowledge that the slaves had for growing and harvesting rice that the plantation was able to profit and thrive.

The plantation offered a tour called "From Slavery to Freedom" for which we purchased tickets. Since it was later in the afternoon, we were the only two people on the tour. Our tour guide was young and passionate about public history and educating people about the lives of the slaves on the plantation. He told us that much of Southern culture was brought to the US by the enslaved Africans. Originally, there were 47 slaves on the Magnolia Plantation, and our tour guide took us through the 4 existing slave cabins. Each of the 4 cabins was restored to a different time period from the 1860's until the 1950's (after the 13th Amendment, people still continued to live in the cabins through the 1960's as employees of the plantation). Below is a picture of one of the slave cabins which our tour guide believes that up to 16 slaves once lived in. It was a very enjoyable and informative tour.

We had hoped to eat at Bowen's Family Restaurant, out on Bowen's Island. Sadly, after driving down a dark and curvy road, which was unfinished as it was beyond the county maintenance lines, we found the restaurant to be closed. There were many people around, and upon asking learned that a movie was being filmed on the island and at the restaurant. The restaurant answering machine confirmed this, as a gentleman with a heavy Southern accent informed us that the restaurant was closed through November 20th, as "uh, well, we're a shooting a movie here, and uh, well there's just not enough room for us to shoot a movie and serve y'all at the same time."

We consulted our Road Food book for a back-up plan and found the Old Post Office - most noted for it's fresh local seafood. We enjoyed and OPO salad and then fried oysters and shrimp, both served along with cheese grits (yes, more grits!) and black eyed peas. The bathroom signs were cleverly labeled "Mail" and "Femail" which we enjoyed.

With full bellies, we headed toward the South Carolina border where we stayed in Hardeeville, SC for the evening.

The Story of the "Ugly Mug Jug"

11.03.2009: We woke up in Hickory, NC and headed east toward Asheville, NC and the Pisgah National Forest area. Our friends Colleen and Erika had made some recommendations for hiking and restaurants in this area. As we were leaving our hotel, David picked up a flier for Chimney Rock (pictured below). It looked like a challenge (and a good way to burn off some BBQ).



Standing at more than 200 feet tall with a view of over 75 miles, Chimney Rock was well worth the huffs and puffs. Most of the hike was a steep incline of stone or wooden stairs, winding through and up the rocks. Thankfully, there were several "rest" points along the way, each with their own breath taking view. None, however, compared to the view from the top. About thirty minutes later, we stood 2880 feet in elevation - fried food and all, we had conquered Chimney Rock!



What an incredible view from the top! North Carolina was yet another state where we hit peak or close to peak fall foliage. The picture below does not do the view much justice, as most of the trees were deep fall colors under a Carolina blue sky.



Having burned off way too many calories, we needed to eat again. Our Road Food book pointed us towards Statesville, NC to Jay Bee's, home of the Prairie Dog. Yes, another hot dog. (David and Katrina rank the hot dogs coming soon...) After many a winding country road we arrived at Jay Bee's. While Jay Bee's is known as a drive through, we decided to order inside and sit down. Jay Bee's was the first establishment we visited that had their Road Food write up proudly displayed on the wall. Yet, to our dismay, the Prairie Dog had been retired and was no longer on the menu. We ordered our dogs "all the way" (or John's way) which included mustard, onions, coleslaw and chili. See our dogs below. We ordered three dogs - a Polish sausage with onions and mustard, a foot long and a ballpark dog both all the way. These hot dogs were very good, but we definitely thought the chili and coleslaw combination was unique.

One of the challenges of being unemployed is that time does not really matter when you have no schedule to keep. The rest of the world, however, does still operate on normal business hours. So if we wanted to see some pottery in the pottery capital of the world, Seagrove, NC we needed to get a steppin! Arriving fifteen minutes before closing time for most of the pottery shops we were able to pick up a few very fun pieces. Our two favorite purchases were from a pottery shop named Turn and Burn., a small shop off the main road behind one of the other shops. One piece was a large white vase made by using a traditional Native American technique of applying horse hair when the pottery sat at 1600 degrees. The other piece was a salt glazed jug with an ugly angry face on the side. There are many stories to these famous North Carolina jugs - one being that potters used to get bored while making jugs all day long and would occasionally put faces on the jugs (these also became the most valuable and rare). Another fun story is that faces were put on the jugs to scare kids away and keep them away from Grandpa's Moonshine. Our "ugly mug jug" has made a wonderful addition to our family!

After Seagrove, NC we headed to South Carolina. .

On our way toward Charleston, SC we made a quick stop at Fort Jackson Army Base in Columbia, SC. This is where David's grandfather (Pop-pop) was stationed while in the Army for two years. Columbia, SC is also where David's mother was born.

We made it to the outskirts of Charleston, SC and stayed in Summerville, SC.