Day 15 & 16 - Charleston

We arrived in Charleston on the sunday afternoon crossing the impressive Arthur Ravenel Jr bridge, which is the longest cable stayed bridge in the world. Finally we felt like being in the heart of the old south. You might notice there's quite a gap between Washington D.C and Charleston however I'm gonna have to stick to the highlights of this trip to have a chance to bring the block back up to date. The town where the civil war was started with the attack on Ft. Sumter by the Confederate army has kept so many of it's older buildings that you sometimes feel like your taking a step right on to the pages of history. It's hot, it's slow and it is beautiful. 

We were staying at the Notso hostel which as it's name states is not so much a hostel. I cant really describe it but it's kind of part hostel, part hotel, part social experiment. It's hippie-ish in the good way, fresh and clean with lovely helpful staff. They offer bikes for loan, an offer we didn't pick up on since everything was walkable. A lot of times we've realized through out out trips, what an American decribe as an hour long walk will take us about twenty minutes. It's just one of those cultural differences i guess.

First night out we headed to a couple of dive bars. The recovery room and AC's if i remember it right. Because of the upcoming independence days the bars were packed with an unusual amount of tourists, still I got a great vibe from The Charleston nightlife. Relaxed and friendly would be the keywords and something made us constantly comparing it to Portland, Oregon. Just not as trendy.

The following day was independence day. Our third time celebrating it in the states. And what better place to celebrate then in these historic settings. We spent the day strolling around in historic charleston just taking in all the wonderful architecture and colonial style buildings. 

Later that night we headed down to the fireworks at waterfront park. It was a great atmosphere and none of that over the top patriotism you sometimes see. Families and friends gathered all around to watch the amazing display. Maybe not the most spectacular fireworks I've witnessed but it was perfect just the way it was.

The night ended at D'allesandros Pizza. A pizza slash dive bar where once again the bartender tried to give us free drinks. After taking a tequila with him we legged it before he got the chance to give us more.  So far we are loving the south!