Low Country, High Winds: Savannah in Hurricane Charley

In 1733, James Oglethorpe and his colonists landed in Georgia, making good on the charter granted them by King George II. Oglethorpe, apparently a planner to the core, had already drawn up a design for the city. Similar in character to the "Greene Country Towne" of William Penn's Philadelphia, Oglethorpe's city was a rectangular grid laid around open squares--24 to be exact.

Today, the city still includes 20 of those squares as open spaces. And you can drop any idea of Savannah sharing much more than grid work with Quaker Philadelphia. The ease, the charm, and the nearly decadent atmosphere all make this a crucial place to visit to understand the South.

The main attraction of Savannah is the area laid out by Oglethorpe, the nation's largest historic district. Old Savannah is clustered south of the river of the same name and chockablock with beautiful homes distributed around Savannah's famous city squares. A walk in any direction will reward you with something: a beautiful garden, a lovely home, a corner cafe.

There's a charm and calm about this area that's special. Everyone we met, from our hosts to our servers to the owner of the wine shop to the mother-and-daughter store owners, was pleasant, friendly, and gracious. Coming here without a plan almost seems the best way to experience this city--well, have a plan for your accommodations, but then get out see where serendipity takes you. We stumbled across stores, restaurants, squares, churches, and people that made our visit memorable.

Quick Tips:

Be sure to stay in the central district. Savannah's a big city and spreads well beyond the area most visitors are interested in. If your lodging is south of Forsyth Park, you've gone too far. Consider staying at a B&B--the city is full of them, and so much of Savannah's charm is tied up in its beautiful homes. Staying in one is a nice way to enhance your visit (even if, like me, you're not generally a big B&B fan).

It's pleasant just to visit the city squares and see what that brings you. That will take you all over the area and bring you to things you might have missed otherwise.

This is also a nice place to be "toured"--to let someone take you around and tell you all the little secrets (of which there are thousands) associated with this corner, that building, etc. Walking tours would be nice; we ended up on a trolley due to the weather and really enjoyed it. Chances are that your guide will be sharing the city he or she loves out of pure joy (it seems to be a common calling among locals).

Best Way To Get Around:

Walking is easy here. It's about a mile from one end of the historic district to the other. Several of the restaurants are in the river district (near the river, of course), and as our B&B was on the far southern end of the historic district, we drove (that, plus the oncoming hurricane). Parking seemed possible here, unlike Charleston.

I am not a big fan of bed-and-breakfasts. I've found the quality of the room, the food, and the hosts to be too variable. However, when planning a trip to Savannah, it seemed such an integral part of the Savannah experience--and the comments about this place were so positive--that I put aside my concerns and reserved a room here for two nights at $175 each.

I'm glad I did. This house is a wonderful place. Our hosts are now evidently the former owners, but given their care and attention to detail to everything involved, I can't imagine they would entrust this place to anyone who didn't share their high standards. The renovations were completed in 2002, and the five-room inn opened the next year, all wonderfully appointed in french style.

Ours, one of the garden rooms (on the lower level, with its own private entrance--another B&B issue for me) was in French country motif. The bed was incredibly comfortable, and the room included a small kitchenette with coffee maker, microwave, and refrigerator; a bathroom with whirlpool tub; and a small garden patio where we could enjoy our breakfast each morning (a continental breakfast of your choice was placed in your fridge each day). A small stereo and collection of romantic CDs were on the dresser, along with a wide variety of reading material. The location is perhaps a little farther from central Savannah than others, but not far (a block from Forsythe Park). Savannah is made for walking, so seeing a few extra blocks of the beautiful central part of this city was a pleasure.

We thought this might be the only night we'd have on the town in Savannah, so we paid close attention to our host's recommendations for restaurants. Underneath the Gap at the corner of Broughton and Barnard, this place is unique. They describe the decor as "industrial chic," which seems fair. Sleek and stylish, everything fits. As the name implies, there's live music 5 nights a week, but the restaurant is open every night for dinner starting at 4pm.

Either the music or the food--or both--are a great reason to come. The bar is worth seeing on its own, and the whole setting combines the feel of getting a great table at a club with great food. There was a terrific combo with a really talented singer the evening we were here. And it's clear that this is one of Savannah's hot spots.

But the food doesn't take a back seat. Both of us love tapas, and the selection here includes all kinds of cuisines: Asian, Spanish, Mexican, Low Country, and more. We ordered four or five dishes and enjoyed every one, including crab cakes, Cuban beef satays, citrus shrimp and scallop skewers, and more.

It's an interesting change, if you're looking for one, from the Southern cuisine that's done so well in this part of the country. It isn't "typical" Savannah or Low Country, but it sure is worth a visit.

Described as "Savannah's Beach," Tybee Island is about 30 minutes east of the city. As you head out US 80, you can imagine that it probably gets pretty congested in summertime. That wasn't a problem for us, as the Saturday morning following Hurricane Charley's passage appeared to have gotten rid of most of the traffic. But with the skies bright blue and sunny, we thought the weather and the possibility of some high surf made the trip seem like fun.

A little island community, it reminded me somewhat of Cape Cod, combining the permanence of a little seaside town with the transitory feel of vacation life. We spend most of our time at the city beach near the northeast corner, outside old Fort Screven, which stood guard over the outlet of the Savannah River downstream from the city. You reach this area just as before the road turns south to the town.

You're right on the Atlantic here, not a sound or bay. The surf that day was nothing special, not the huge swells we thought we might see--Charley had passed too far out to sea to leave many traces--but walking up and down the shore through the surf was pleasant. The pace of Savannah is hardly so frantic that you'll feel the need to escape, but if you're itching for the beach, come here.

In a city like Savannah, walking is clearly the best way to get around. But in the rain? Arriving early afternoon, with the skies dark, the weather apparently about to really deteriorate, and thinking that the next day might be a wash out, for $22 each we decided to leave the driving to someone else.

That was actually a nice choice. We boarded at the visitor center on the edge (in more ways than one) of the historic district. The 2-hour tour of the city took us by all the squares, many of the historic churches and homes, and places we wouldn't have thought to see. You have on-and-off privileges if you want, but given the unusual nature of the day, the driver/guide just waited a little while when any of us wanted a few more minutes some place.

I probably wouldn't do this again unless the circumstances were similar, but it worked out great. The guide's enthusiasm for the city was contagious, and although we could have visited many of the sites ourselves (but more damply), it was a nice addition to have her knowledge of the stories and history. Savannah is a good place to take a guided tour of some sort, but next time, I'll try to walk.

It's hard to believe now, but in 1954, historic Savannah seemed about to disappear. In particular, the Davenport House was slated for destruction--to put up a parking lot--when seven of the city's leading women raised the necessary $22,500 to save it. Their work led to the founding of the Historic Savannah Foundation the next year and eventually to Savannah's emergence as one of the nation's top tourist destinations. (Of course, that was helped along more recently by "Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil.")

The Owens-Thomas House is one of the best houses to visit. Having OD'ed a little on homes in Charleston the week before, we decided to pick and choose a little--and settled on this beautiful home and the Telfair Museum of Art (which began life as a mansion), both designed by William Jay.

An example of Regency architecture, the Owens-Thomas was built in 1816, Jay's first work in this style, yet often cited as the nation's best example. The house is filled with interesting details: curved walls, built-in water closets fed by a sophisticated rainwater collection system, a bridge across the center stairwell, and original Duncan Phyfe furniture throughout. Lafayette stayed here in 1825 (and spoke to Savannah's citizens twice from the balcony on the side of the house), which figures in the decoration in several rooms. The carriage house in the rear of the property contains the extensive and worthwhile gift shop, as well as exhibits on the home and an example of slave quarters. Tours actually begin here as well, with an orientation ("don't touch anything"), and then proceed through the pleasant gardens to the house itself.

The Owens-Thomas House is owned by the Telfair Museum of Art, appropriately enough, and a combination ticket is available for $12, saving you $4 off the second admission. Both places are well worth seeing.

When you're the last in a long line of a distinguished southern family, what do you do with the family home? If you're Mary Telfair, you use it to found the south's oldest art museum. Built in 1819 for Alexander Telfair (Mary's brother), William Jay designed this house at nearly the same time as the Owens-Thomas House. They're both now owned by the Telfair Museum of Art, which opened in this building in 1886.

The permanent collection in the museum concentrates, logically enough, on American art from the 18th century onwards. The best pieces are American Impressionist paintings. However, there are also works by Kahlil Gibran, author of The Prophet. Of course, The Bird Girl, the statue featured on the cover of Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil, is here in the sculpture garden, too.

The real highlight is the building. It was expanded, initially, for the 1886 opening of the museum, but you can still see and feel the house it must have been. The rooms at the front are used for the worthwhile furniture collection, and preserve a sense of what kind of home Jay designed for the Telfair family.

If you're going here and the Owens-Thomas house, there's a combination ticket available that will save you 50% off the second ticket in the end.

We arrived in Charleston knowing Hurricane Charley was down in Florida. Since it was a 20th-anniversary trip, we didn't want to cancel--and we thought the odds were that it wouldn't make it our way... but it almost did.

By the time we reached Savannah 4 days later, it appeared certain that Charley would make it there about the same time we did. We arrived in town about 8 hours ahead of the hurricane. The hosts at our B&B greeted us with, "We tried to call and tell you not to come! But now that you're here..." and then graciously hosted us in their lovely home anyways. Figuring we might not get a chance to see the city the next day, we uncharacteristically took a Gray Line tour of this beautiful, charming, romantic city (which, despite the gray skies, was terrific--and a great way to spend a rainy afternoon).

After dinner, we thought we'd be riding out the storm in our street-level guest room, fully supplied with flashlights, coffee, etc., our car parked on the high side of the street. But overnight, Charley turned out to sea, leaving a beautiful blue cool day the next morning, and the city nearly empty. Thinking the surf at Tybee Island might be impressive, we drove out to the shore. The weather and the ocean were gorgeous, but hardly as storm-tossed as we expected.