I'll be your Guide to Charleston

Next up from the Vacationing GardenRanters, a tour of Historic Charleston, South Carolina. ( And all y'all gardenbloggers, I just LOVE seeing your nature- and garden-filled travel photos, so keep 'em coming.)

The morning after the overhyped rainstorm Ernesto, Charleston looked pretty damn good to this gardener's eyes.  You'd never know their market area was flooded just hours ago.  They're used to it.

Don't they just scream Old South?  They could have filmed Gone with the Wind here.  Did they?  I'll go look it up. 

More photos below the fold (all click-to-enlargeable).

Check out the bizarre architectural style on the left. The house is aligned to
maximize breeze and I know the tour guide told us why they have the front door opening onto the side porch... well, I'm clearly failing as a tour guide but you get what you pay for, folks.

This just in - Wikipedia on Gone with the Wind (film):  "Most of the filming was done on "the back forty" of Selznick International with the few location scenes photographed in Los Angeles County or neighboring Ventura County.^[7]"   DRAT.  I'll try to forget I ever read that before watching it again.

And for some historical perspective, "The estimated production costs were $3.9 million; only Ben-Hur (1925) and Hell's Angels (1930) had cost more."

Comments

[Christopher C in Hawaii]

I'm convinced. My house is going to have to have a covered veranda. Even if it is going to be in the middle of the woods and the only neighbors out for a promenade are the wild turkeys and racoons I will need a nice spot to set, sip some of the special recipe and watch the world go by.

[Pam/Digging]

I love Charleston, even honeymooned there, once upon a time. If you've never read "Mrs. Whaley and Her Charleston Garden," you must, immediately. You'll laugh your way through it and begin planning your next pilgrimage to the Holy City.

[Annie in Austin]

Susan, Susan - 'Gone With The Wind' is all about Atlanta!! Charleston is where many people come from, a place where everyone is polite and well-behaved, and well-bred, but the action all takes place near that newcomer city to the west. [I reread it this summer.]

A second vote for Mrs Whaley, too - she manages to remain a perfect lady while expressing herself quite clearly!

Christopher - one of these days I'll be brave enough to put a photo of my 'sort-of' veranda on my blog. It's covered and about 30-feet long, but it's not as deep as a veranda should be. So there are no tables, but you can find chairs and benches on which to sit with a Margarita [the official drink of Austin].

Annie in Austin

[Pam]

Hey - nice to see that you were in the neighborhood. Yes, we're used to a little flooding, and for us Ernesto was nothing more than a snow day, for which we were grateful. Plus, we needed the rain. Come back in the late winter - when the camellias are in bloom.

[Kim]

I now have two books on my "to read" list--GWTW for the maybe 6th time, and Mrs. Whaley for the first! Gorgeous pictures... makes me want to go out and sip some sweet sun tea. :)

Annie, I'm turning green with envy over here that you have a veranda. I'm excited that I actually have a front porch at this house, though--my last house had a mere front stoop, which pained me to no end.

(It was a built-in-the-70s subdivision, when of course everyone just wanted to have a front door and lawn but do their hanging out in the backyards so they didn't have to be social. Grr. Don't even get me started on THAT terrible idea!)

[M Sinclair Stevens (Texas)]

Pam P. and Annie--I should have known you two were fans of Mrs. Whaley. Me, too. That's one of my favorite books to give as a present.

As for Gone with the Wind, it was filmed in California. Strange, but true.