{"id":4127,"date":"2015-06-26T18:06:57","date_gmt":"2015-06-26T18:06:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/?p=4127"},"modified":"2015-06-26T18:06:57","modified_gmt":"2015-06-26T18:06:57","slug":"the-final-cross-state-romp-days-13-through-16","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bucksurdu.com\/blog\/?p=4127","title":{"rendered":"The “Final” Cross-State Romp (Days 13 through 16)"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Plaque<\/a>
Plaque in front of Sanders<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The drive from Mammoth Cave National Park to Charleston was very, very long, so Candy planned for to interesting stops along the way to break up the drive. \u00a0The first was in Corbin, KY, where Colonel Sanders started his motor park. \u00a0Eventually it became both Kentucky Fried Chicken and Days Inn.<\/p>\n

\"Some<\/a>
Some of the displays in the Sanders Cafe<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

They had some very interesting displays to enjoy while we waited for our food. \u00a0One idea that was interesting was that Colonel Sanders felt that women made the decision on whether to stay at which motor lodge, so he placed the ladies restroom so that you had to pass through a model of his motel room to get to it. \u00a0In this way, he thought the women would see how neat and clean his rooms were and be amenable to staying at his motor lodge.<\/p>\n

\"Outside<\/a>
Outside the Sanders Cafe<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Our next stop was at the Museum of Appalachia. \u00a0I wasn’t sure what to expect, but it was actually quite nice.<\/p>\n

\"Museum<\/a>
Museum of Appalachia<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

There were a large number of buildings from all over Appalachia that had been moved board by board and stone by stone from their original locations to the museum to form a sort of farming community. \u00a0These included stores, barns, cabins, churches, and schools. \u00a0There were also two larger buildings containing professionally presented displays of rural life and some famous people from Appalachia, including Sergeant York and Cordell Hull.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/a>
A replica of a small-town Appalachian general store<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"A<\/a>
A family band entertains visitors to the gift shop<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"A<\/a>
A display about Sergeant York in the Appalachian Hall of Fame building<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"An<\/a>
An original cabin that was moved to the museum<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Sam<\/a>
Sam in an Appalachian homestead<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The people running the museum were very friendly. \u00a0We bought a couple of AMAZING cookies that were made there. \u00a0It was a worthwhile short stop to break up the long drive. \u00a0We arrived in Charleston late that night and just had time to unpack the car and hit the sack. \u00a0The next day we got up early for a two-hour walking tour of the historic part of the city.<\/p>\n

\"Our<\/a>
Our tour guide<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Our guide, 7th generation Charlstonian, provided a very interesting and informative walking tour of the historic part of the city.<\/p>\n

\"A<\/a>
A street of multi-million dollar houses overlooking the harbor<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The city is quite picturesque. \u00a0It had fallen into disrepair after the Civil War. \u00a0In fact, the city was in such bad shape that there wasn’t even enough money to tear down the old buildings. \u00a0In the end, this turned out to be good. \u00a0Where in other historic cities, like Boston and New York much of the historical areas had been the target of urban renewal, in Charleston, the historical buildings hadn’t been torn down when money was finally found to rebuild.<\/p>\n

\"Walking<\/a>
Walking through Charleston<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Candy<\/a>
Candy poses in front of a "defended" gate<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"The<\/a>
The St. Michael Anglican Church<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

This church was an Anglican (Church of England) before the American Revolution and was the official church in Charleston (and all the British colonies). \u00a0When the Revolution ended, the Anglican churches became Episcopal churches. \u00a0The Episcopal church reunited, North and South, after the Civil War, unlike many other churches. \u00a0In the 1960’s this church left the Episcopal church and became Anglican again during the flap over the revision of the Book of Common Prayer. \u00a0Lots of history there, but not worth describing in the posting. \u00a0Many other churches have left Episcopal church in recent years for a variety of reasons, including heretical statements about the Bible by Episcopal bishops.<\/p>\n

\"Tom<\/a>
Tom and Sam in the old theater<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The old theater in town is still active, hosting theatrical shows, musical shows, and a popular chamber music series each season. \u00a0It has been beautifully restored.<\/p>\n

\"Our<\/a>
Our hotel<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

After our walking tour we walked around some of the shopping areas and had lunch, followed by a couple of hours in the hotel pool. \u00a0Our hotel also has an interesting story. \u00a0It was demolished in 1968 and was rebuilt in the early 1970’s to look on the outside like the original. \u00a0It was a VERY nice hotel within walking distance of everything we wanted to see in the historical area.<\/p>\n

\"Sam<\/a>
Sam enjoys the largest piece of pizza we have ever seen<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

That evening we walked around a few more shops and had pizza in a local establishment, Di Giovani. \u00a0Trip Advisor said that the food was very good, but everything else “sucked.” \u00a0They were right. \u00a0The food was very good, but the service, ambiance, etc. were poor. \u00a0It was one of those places where you felt they were doing you a favor to take your money.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>
The early ride out to Morris Island saw some sleepy Surdus<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

We got up early the next morning for a boat ride out to Morris Island in the bay. \u00a0The tour guide and his two assistants were excellent. \u00a0Morris Island, site of Ft. Wagner (as seen in the movie Glory) during the Civil War, is largely barren today. \u00a0Sharks teeth, shells, and occasionally bricks from Ft. Sumpter wash ashore.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/a>
The Charleston waterfront<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n
\"Candy<\/a>
Candy and Sam looking for sea shells and shark's teeth<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Sam and Tom found part of the tooth of a Maglodon, a prehistoric shark-like creature. \u00a0The sharks in the area are small, so the teeth were tiny.<\/p>\n

\"Tom<\/a>
Tom and Sam on Morris Island<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

We elected to skip Ft. Sumpter. \u00a0Others who have visited said it is disappointing. \u00a0The top 2\/3 of the fort from the Civil War were rubbled and are gone. \u00a0Much of what is there is from the Spanish American War rather than the Civil War.<\/p>\n

\"Sam<\/a>
Sam plays the popular line dance, "Jump Left Y'all," on a conch shell<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

After returning from the boat ride we cleaned up and checked out of our hotel, had lunch, and headed up to North Carolina with a quick stop at South of the Border. \u00a0After checking into the Ft. Bragg guest house we had dinner and played miniature golf in Fayetteville.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The course was quite nice and had 36 holes. \u00a0On the final 18 holes Sam won, which she says is the first time she’s ever won at miniature golf.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

The next morning we slept in a little and then visited the 82nd Airborne Division Museum. \u00a0Located along Ardennes Street in the middle of the division area, while small, it is quite nice.<\/p>\n

\"Some<\/a>
Some of the outside displays<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Candy and the kids were pretty “museumed out” by this point, so we only stayed two hours.<\/p>\n

\"An<\/a>
An example of one of the displays, showing the 82nd in WWI<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Every time I come to Ft. Bragg I remember how much I liked being in airborne units.<\/p>\n

\"Hooah!\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Upon leaving Ft. Bragg we headed home to unpack the car, unpack our bags, return the rental car, and hit the sack early. \u00a0It was a long vacation, but a good one. \u00a0We completed all 50 states just three days before Tom heads to college. \u00a0This is our last family vacation while we’re all living together, which for me is a sad thing.<\/p>\n