I DO THE WORK AND THEY TAKE THE CREDIT

May 28, 2012  Dateline:  Savannah, GA USA

They returned to me last Friday after two weeks of being away. Rich immediately tied an extra line on me.  After all, Tropical Storm Beryl was beginning to look like she was going to be coming on shore.  I am lucky; I am on the coast side of Hilton Head Island and nestled in a really nice marina. I am also in the furthest western point on the Atlantic Coast so few storms ever get to this area.   Well, while they were away Rich got my oil changed, filters replaced, my satellite antenna fixed and some other miscellaneous work done.  For those of you who don’t know me it takes a full day to change my oil and I need approximately 22 gallons between the engines, transmission and generator.

So Rich had the nerve to tell me that while they were away, he and Carol did a radio broadcast.  The America’s Great Loop Cruisers Association does a weekly web broadcast on Fridays.  So on the 21^st of May they recorded a program about Cape May and traveling from the Chesapeake & Delaware Canal to New York Harbor.  They also were invited to provide an interview for the Canyon Club Resort & Marina newsletter.  This article will be distributed in a few weeks.  So now they get the celebrity credit while I did all the work.  Oh well, I guess that’s the price I have to pay.  Since Rich and I crossed my wake at Sykes Creeks, FL, we decided to put this picture in the Canyon Club article.

Rich and Carol once again left me alone in Hilton Head as they decided to visit Savannah by car with Cindy (my sister) and Matt (my brother-in-law). The wind from Beryl was beginning to blow really hard.  The water streams in this picture of a fountain at Savannah’s river front show how the water jets were moving sideways.  The NOAA research ship NANCY FOSTER was in port at Savannah.  She came in to dock because, as one of her crew members put it, “she does not handle weather very well”. Figure that!!!!

The Port of Savannah is a large port that can handle very large ships; this container ship sailed past while Rich, Carol, Cindy and Matt were having lunch.  Yes it did have a bow and a stern; they just couldn’t fit into the picture.

Europeans thought that the streets of America were paved with gold which we know was not true.  The streets near Savannah’s harbor are paved with imported stone that came from England and Europe.  Because there were fewer finished goods going to Savannah than raw materials going back to Europe, ships heading west would load their holds with stones for ballast.  Those stones were unloaded before new cargo was loaded for the east bound trip.  The citizens of Savannah used these discarded stones to pave their streets.  The stones are very uneven and certainly tough on car tires.

Old Savannah was built on a bluff above the river so when the buildings were built along the riverfront there were small bridges added to connect the buildings to the bluffs.  Today they make for a great picture.

They had dinner at the OLD PINK HOUSE. The food and service were incredible. Everyone visiting Savannah should be sure and stop there. Just make sure you make reservations in advance.

The US Army’s 8^th Air Force was formed in Savannah to help fight the war in Europe.  The survivors and their families have established a museum in Savannah which also includes a memorial garden.  The museum is very impressive and the garden incredible.  Inside sits a B-17 undergoing restoration. Outside the museum there is a B-47 which is just one of more than 7,000 that were built. 

My sister and her husband Matt accompanied Rich and Carol on the tour of the 8^th Air Force Museum.  Matt’s great uncle was a gunner on a B-24 of the 8^th Air Force and was killed on a raid on Germany.  They were able to find his name on the wall of the fallen.

This picture is typical of the memorials that are contained in the garden.

Happy Memorial Day and remember those who made it possible.