Charleston

Yesterday was a nice day off.  I traveled to Charleston, South Carolina, which is about an hour and 45 minutes from Fort Jackson.  Charleston is on the coast, and has a ton of history.  It has been there for around 350 years or so, and as a history buff, I had a great time.

I began the day at Patriot's Point, a naval museum, with the USS Yorktown (a World War 2 era Aircraft Carrier), as well as various other ships and a submarine.  It was incredible to explore the depths of not only the aircraft carrier, but also to see just how small a submarine really.  From Patriot's Point I took a ferry out to Fort Sumter, which is in the Charleston Harbor, and was the place where the Civil War began.  In 1861, the state of South Carolina has seceded from the United States, and federal troops moved in and occupied Fort Sumter.  The Confederate soldiers began a bombardment of Fort Sumter, and eventually took it.  It was awe inspiring to stand on that Fort, and to think about the history.  They have parts of the original Fort intact, as well as many of the original cannons.

After this I headed to downtown Charleston and explored the old part of the town for the rest of the day.  It's interesting to walk among 250 and 300 year old buildings, graveyards and streets, and to think about the people and events that have been there.  I took a tour in the evening of purported ghostly and haunted sites in Charleston.  I don't believe in the things they were saying, but it was an inexpensive way to learn about some of the history, and see some of the lesser known sites.  After this tour I jumped in my car and headed back to Fort Jackson.  I took some photos on my camera, and as soon as they are developed, I will post some of them!