Savannah, Georgia, we like your style…

Our next stop along the East Coast was the city of Savannah, Georgia. Not a huge city by comparison to others, this charming city still has the distinction of the largest historic district in the country. With gorgeous architecture, waterfront parks, delicious sweets, and a laid back “open container” drinking policy, this city is also so laid back that we were able to stay at an RV park located on farm grounds just 15 minutes from downtown! Especially in a city large enough to have Uber, what a winning combination!

Red Gate Farms and RV Park

We still look back fondly on our site at Red Gate Farms RV Park. With partial hookups starting at $45, we took advantage of their $30/night dry sites which were casually set up under a grove of beautiful oak trees covered in Spanish moss and overlooking a pond. The receptionist tried to warn us that these weren’t the best sites, but we thought we made out good compared to the rigid, open grassy utility spots! We were positioned right next to some farm animals and the pond had bench swings and kiddie swings on its banks from which to enjoy the view. I took advantage of both as we were greeted with the balmiest weather we had seen since we left Texas before the holidays. We also took time to enjoy the short trails around their grounds and wander past the gorgeous historic event venue on site.

By the way, you know how roosters are supposed to crow at dawn? We were positioned right next to a chicken/rooster coop and I said to John the first night there that we’d probably be woken up at 3am since they always seem to crow in the middle of the night (we know this oddly enough from camping at MULTIPLE Walmarts with rooster-owning residential neighbors). Sure enough, that night I woke up to the crowing of a rooster and what time was it? 3am, of course! So I’m sticking to my theory that they just crow whenever they want, but especially at 3am. Next time you hear one, let me know what time it is!

Squares, Sweets, and Sips – Downtown Savannah

To explore downtown, we had an Uber pick us up right at the park’s gate. Both of our drivers that day were pleasantly surprised that this place even existed so close to downtown! I suppose you mostly notice these kinds of things when you own an RV…

Our driver there gave us some friendly recommendations and tips on getting around the city – Southern hospitality, even in an Uber! We started at Forsyth Park, the open city space on which Central Park in New York City is based. It was a very pretty tree lined spot complete with fountains and brick walkways that would be a perfect reprieve on a hot summer day.

We then walked down through some shopping districts that were lined with boutiques and high-end antique shops. One store we ducked into made me terrified to knock something over as I swear everything was priced in the hundreds, if not thousands of dollars! It was beautiful merchandise though and seemed to fit in with the “old money” beyond gorgeous historic architecture in the area. I mean, the prettiest porches you’ve ever seen! There are also twenty-four quaint “squares”, or block-wide or so parks throughout the city that were quite lovely and reminded us if Philadelphia had more little Rittenhouse Squares.

Once we reached City Market and River Street, the main shopping/dining strips, things seemed a little more laid back, but no less beautiful. Cobblestone streets, views of the river, and the docked steamboat completed the landscape.

We made the obligatory stop at River Street Sweets to sample their ginormous pralines and I’m glad we did. My introduction to pralines was the cream of the crop – so sweet and melt in your mouth! After a few souvenir type shops, we decided to stop at a place we had seen advertising the “coldest, cheapest beer in town”. That sounded appealing to us so we ducked into Warehouse Bar and Grille on River Street for a few $8 pitchers of Yuengling – ah a taste of home! – a few rounds of pool, and some amazing chili nachos. We don’t if it was the cheapest beer in town, but it seemed pretty darn reasonable to us and it certainly was cold! Even though we didn’t take advantage of the open container policy, we did choose a table out on the sidewalk to take in the perfectly comfortable, seventy degree night and liked that we could have wandered with our beverage should we have wanted to do so. We even made a friend here that loved our story and reassured us that he and his wife still reminisce and bond over their three-week cross country trip from the beginning of their relationship. As long as we don’t get sick of each other before the summer’s over, I’d say that’s a good omen!

Our Savannah area experience was brief, but a good one, and we’d definitely like to stop back sometime when we have the chance. Not sure we’d take a separate vacation just to Savannah, but to make it part of another Southern roadtrip is a future must.