June 10, 2019

THE ULTIMATE GUIDE TO PAT CONROY’S DAUFUSKIE ISLAND, South Carolina

If you know the books or movies entitled, “The Great Santini” and “The Prince of Tides,” you know of author Pat Conroy. After graduating from college at The Citadel, he took a job in 1969 teaching in a one-room schoolhouse on the isolated island of Daufuskie. Daufuskie is a small island about three miles off the South Carolina mainland and, to this day, there are no bridges to the island. It is the southernmost inhabited sea island in South Carolina.     A young white man, Conroy was enraged by the substandard education being given the native children on the island. He spent a year teaching the students about the wider world…

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written by Barb Bradley - Posted in 2019, Blog, South Carolina

June 3, 2019

QUIRKY, ARTSY AND HISTORIC OLD BLUFFTON, South Carolina

Do you love quirky little towns? Do you love the low country of South Carolina? Do you love communities with festivals and events all year round? If so, get yourself to Old Bluffton, South Carolina! Bluffton has been called the “last true coastal village of the south.”*     Bluffton was named the #5 “Happiest Seaside Towns” by Coastal Living Magazine. Bluffton, originally a resort area during the summer for inland planters, it was a ferry stop between Savannah and Beaufort, SC. It is only a 12-minute drive from Hilton Head!           The arts community and historic preservation communities are alive and well in Bluffton. Shops and galleries give…

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written by Barb Bradley - Posted in 2019, Blog, South Carolina

May 27, 2019

IDYLLIC ST. SIMONS ISLAND, GEORGIA

Ahhh. Close your eyes and picture a seacoast island with early American history, charmingly upscale shops, a fetching downtown filled with restaurants, luxurious golf courses, as well as enclaves of picture-perfect homes (both old and new). That’s the resort destination of St. Simons Island, Georgia!    I drove to St. Simons from Savannah on Highway 17 and the trip there took a little longer than 90 minutes. I spent a day exploring St. Simons Island and needed more time to relish my surroundings!          Ω     HISTORY     Remnants of shell rings left behind by Native Americans have been found that are 3,000-5,000 years old!…

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written by Barb Bradley - Posted in 2019, Blog, Georgia

May 20, 2019

THE HEART OF THE LOWCOUNTRY: BEAUFORT, South Carolina

As seniors, we have won the right to stroll. To stroll for hours. To stroll slowly. Strolling through the heart of the low country means walking Beaufort, South Carolina and there couldn’t be a nicer place for it.  I took my time walking the historic district “out” to The Point and had strolled my way around old Beaufort in one afternoon!     Using Beaufort as my headquarters, I explored a few of the 200 islands in Beaufort County, SC. By doing so, the diversity of the county struck me as unique in all of America.     HISTORY     Beaufort County was the site of the second landing…

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written by Barb Bradley - Posted in 2019, Blog, South Carolina

May 13, 2019

REDCLIFFE PLANTATION STATE HISTORIC SITE IN South Carolina: A SCANDALOUS HISTORY

Not all southern plantations look like Tara or Twelve Oaks but all have histories that span generations. That is the case with Redcliffe Plantation in Beech Island, South Carolina. We spent an entire afternoon learning about the history of the plantation as well as the families and slaves who lived there.  The interpretative history tours at Redcliffe are superb. We learned a great deal!      Our visit to Redcliffe Plantation took us well beyond the romance of the age and any idealized version of plantation life. The documented history of the plantation and what happened there is a stark and very real view into a plantation run by a…

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written by Barb Bradley - Posted in 2019, Blog, South Carolina

May 7, 2019

A Visit To Calagaz Photo & Digital Imaging

Recently we had the opportunity to visit Galagaz Photo & Digital Imaging. The store is located in Pensacola, Florida. Now for full disclosure I do purchase most of my camera gear at Galagaz.  I sat down with Rob Kepko who is the Sales Manager for the store and chatted about photography in general. During our chat we discussed current and future digital cameras both DSLR and Mirrorless. We also discussed pre owned camera gear. Toward the end of the video we do a little tour of the store. It was a fun discussion that I hope you will enjoy. Remember if you have any camera related questions please use the…

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written by Stuart - Posted in 2019, Blog, Florida, Interview

April 29, 2019

DISCOVER THE DONNELLEY WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT AREA ON US 17 IN South Carolina

“Your best chance to see alligators is on the causeway because the water is low”, she said. ” The birds and gators have been really active.” The three carloads of strangers who were bunched into the office of the Donnelley Wildlife Management Area  (DWMA) got excited at that news. “If you hike the trails, be sure to be on the lookout for rattlesnakes,” she added.   “As in Diamondback Rattlers?”, asked one young man. I decided right then to stick to the DWMA Driving Tour!       South Carolina’s ACE BASIN     The ACE Basin in South Carolina consists of approximately 1,000,000 acres of diverse wildlife habitats that include…

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written by Barb Bradley - Posted in 2019, Blog, South Carolina

April 22, 2019

BONAVENTURE CEMETERY in SAVANNAH, GEORGIA

Poems have been written about it. Oscar Wilde called it, “incomparable.” John Muir slept for 6 days and nights in it when he took his famous 1,000 Mile Walk in America. Bonaventure Cemetery is, in the spring, one of the most beautiful man-made places I have ever seen.       We were dazzled by the artistry in the stonework, the loving and inspirational messages inscribed on that stonework, the live oak tunnels covered with long moss, the bounty of azaleas and the serenity of Bonaventure Cemetery along the banks of the Wilmington River. We wanted to stay all day and come back for more once the day ended.  …

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written by Barb Bradley - Posted in 2019, Blog, Georgia

April 15, 2019

Dorchester Academy: THIS NATIONALLY SIGNIFICANT CIVIL RIGHTS SITE IN GEORGIA NEEDS SUPPORT

DORCHESTER ACADEMY   Just outside of Midway, Georgia is one of the least-visited of the 11 stops in Georgia on the U.S. Civil Rights Trail.  Dorchester Academy played a major role in the National Civil Rights Movement.   Dorchester Academy was founded in 1868. The school was established to educate freed African-Americans following the Civil War.   In the 1960s, Dorchester was a center for the Southern Christian Leadership Conference. Septima Clark, called the “Mother of the Civil Rights Movement” by MLK, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., and Rosa Parks made Dorchester Academy the headquarters of the Citizen Education Program, a vehicle for training African-Americans in the effective exercise of their rights….

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written by Barb Bradley - Posted in 2019, Blog, Georgia