Author: mchazen

This turned into a run-errand day.  After a quick breakfast we went into the small town of Louisa to fix the flat tire on the Jeep, do some laundry and pick up some groceries.  Not much going on in this town, it is really small and mainly focused on farming.  Louisa is also the county seat, but unless you looked hard, you wouldn’t know it.

There is a noticeable change in the foliage.   Gone are the palm trees of Florida and the dense pine woods of Georgia.  This part of Virginia has a lot more leafy trees mixed in with the pines, mostly oaks.  Also, the soils are much better here and there are many small farms, mostly growing corn.  This region really is beautiful and if it weren’t for the heat and humidity, it would be on our A list for places to live.  The countryside here is pretty and enjoyable, but not for us.

After our Louisa chores, we made the short drive to Charlottesville to find a Kinko’s for internet service.  We were surprised to find a really nice community and a huge University of Virginia campus.  The University is the dominant feature and gives the community a university-like feel.  We took a short walk through the restored old part of town before the predictable evening thunderstorm chased us off.

We returned to the campground and planned the next few days.

We got up early, did our workout and got ready to leave when disaster struck!  A flat tire on the Jeep!

After waiting a hour for the AAA to show up, we had one of those “I’ll just do it myself” moments, got out the tire jack and changed the tire.  Shortly afterwards, we were on the road.

Our destination was the small town of Louisa, Virginia, which was close to Civil War battlefields.  We finally arrived and spent about 15 minutes getting the coach into a tight, but really nice, campsite.  I have no idea how we’ll get the coach out.  After our late arrival, we had dinner and watched a DVD.

Contemporary note:  The coach had a backward-looking camera to monitor a two vehicle.  The nightmare scenario is looking at the screen and seeing your tow vehicle sparking down the highway.  This never happened, of course, but it was possible. 

Every time we stopped I did a “walk around” to check the coach, tow vehicle, tires, tow bars and connections.  On this particular morning I was tempted to fire up the rig and leave, but my ‘little voice’ told me to do a walk around.  Sure enough, the one time I was going to skip it we had a flat tire on the Jeep.  Close call.

The original plan was to do our workout, prepare the coach and hit the road before 9:00.  However, in anticipation of a long discussion with our friends at the local Bank of America branch regarding our ATM card, we had to skip the workout.  We got the coach ready to leave before heading into Rincon for the bank.

To our surprise, the bank offered little resistance regarding the return of our card and from their reaction, we suspected this was a common occurrence at this particular branch.  The Branch Manager gave me a all-knowing look, said there MUST be something wrong with the card and advised me to contact the issuing institution for a replacement.  As an experiment, we went to the ATM at Walmart, swiped the card and withdrew cash.  No problem.  As usual, the great Bank of America Corporation can’t get it right.

After a 200+ mile drive, we stopped for the night in Fayetteville for the night.

The weather report called for afternoon thunderstorms so we decided to get an early start on our tour of historic Savannah.  After arriving at the old part of town, we soon agreed the best and fastest way to see the sights was via one of the sightseeing tour trolleys.  So, for $20 each we got an excellent 90 minute tour of the old part of town.  Due to the poor weather, we didn’t take many pictures but we did enjoy the tour and the charm of the old part of town.

After a late lunch, we returned to the coach to prepare for the long drive ahead of us.

Contemporary note:  One of the interesting things about Old Savannah was building brickwork.  Early on the settlers discovered the river sediment was suitable for making bricks.  Once fired in a kiln, the bricks had a unique color common to many of the buildings.

The weather was expected to be hot, so we got up very early in the morning to do our workout.  While running, I often wonder what it was like for the Civil War soldiers to march and fight in the summer heat.  Working out in light clothes designed for activity is hard enough; I can’t imagine what it would be like to wear wool clothes and carry a heavy pack in this climate — especially when people are shooting at you.

About mid-morning we headed to Fort Pulaski, which was one of a series of forts built along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts during the early 1800s.  This particular fort was named after a Polish general, Casimir Pulaski, who died fighting against the British during the American Revolutionary War.  The fort was completed before the Civil War and was briefly occupied by Confederate troops before it was re-taken by Federals early in the war.  Its strategic location at the mouth of the Savannah River allowed the Federals to blockade the port of Savannah.

Entrance and moat at Fort Pulaski.

Wall and moat surrounding Fort Pulaski.

Jeanne in front of battle damage sustained during the 30 hours of battle.

Jeanne at entrance to powder storage area built by Federals outside of the fort walls.

Interior view of fort.

View of fort along top of battlement.

View of fort with old powder magazine in far corner.

Jeanne manning one of the cannons.

The story of the battle is interesting since the Confederates were surprised when the Federals used rifled cannons — one of the first times the new weapon had been used during the war.  Of course, the Federals knew the layout of the fort and pounded the area of the powder magazine.  After only 30 hours of bombardment, the Confederate commander realized his situation was hopeless and surrendered.  You can still see where the Federal shots hit the walls of the fort.  The lesson of the battle was that new technology ended the era of fixed fortifications.

After visiting the fort we stopped for lunch on nearby Tybee island before the heat and humidity drove us back to the air conditioned comfort of the coach.

That evening after an underwhelming meal at a local steakhouse, we stopped at a Bank of America ATM to get some cash.  Without explanation or cash, the machine kept our card.  The helpful folks at the Bank of America ATM call center advised us to call the issuing financial institution to cancel the card and close our account.  Furthermore, they said the bank policy was to destroy the card for my “protection”.  Say What!?  After 45 minutes of conversation conducted in a controlled and professional manner, I left no doubt what MY policies and expectations were.  Plan B is to visit the branch Monday morning at opening to discuss the issue with the Branch Manager. 

The reader should note that Bank of America is the same company that charged $20 for a date-of-death valuation report (required for a federal tax filing) for my mother’s account after she had banked there for 49 years.

Contemporary note:  Having the bank charge for a report that all other financial institutions provided for free was the last straw.  I sent a letter to the Senior VP for Consumer Banking a letter thanking her for supporting the rate of return to shareholders on the backs of dead depositors.  At the time we were shareholders of Bank of America stock.  We sold the stock and to this day we refuse to do business with Bank of America.  

A short and easy trip ended at the small town of Rincon, which is just outside of Savannah.

After setting up the coach, we drove into Savannah to find the AAA for a detailed map and internet connection.  Finding each was a LOT harder than imagined, but we finally got it figured out.  After sifting through hundreds of junk e-mails (we hadn’t downloaded for several days) we tried to stay cool at the coach while watching the Regan funeral.

Contemporary note:  It seems the Georgia residents had problems with the correct pronunciation of Rincon, the Spanish word for corner.  Being from Southern California we correctly pronounced it as Rin-con.  The locals pronounced it as Rye-n-con.  We were amused.

After a late start, we got together with Jim and Patty again and headed for Fernadina Beach, which is near the Walmart with Patty works.  We quickly toured the town and went for a quick walk along the beach before stopping to check out some of the new residential construction projects in the area.

On our way back, we stopped in St. Mary’s to visit with Jeanne’s Aunt Audrey, who ended up hosting a dinner at the local Sonny’s BBQ.  Her grandsons Jackson and Josh went with us and Heather, Craig, Tristan and Dylan joined us at the restaurant.  We visited over a delicious meal and a good time was had by all.

Afterwards we visited with Jim and Patty at their home before heading for the coach to prepare for the short drive to Savannah.

In the morning we headed out with Jim and Patty who took us on a driving tour of the Woodbine, Kingsland and St. Mary’s area.  We were impressed with how many people were living in the region and how nice the homes were.  Equally impressive was the amount of building going on, booth residential and commercial.  We stopped in the old section of St Mary’s to walk around and take some pictures along the recently restored waterfront.

After a quick lunch at Pizza Hut (the buffet special), we left for the small town of Patterson to visit Jeanne’s family.  The drive was a lot longer than expected and was pretty much a straight shot through woodlands, wetlands and farms.

Jim and Patty at waterfront in old St. Mary's.

Jeanne and Marty at old St. Mary's.

From left, Dwayne, Jeanne, Melvin and Aldean.

Tablet for Jeanne's grandparents.

Jeanne, Jim and Patty at Griffin family cemetery.

Old church near family cemetery.

Upon arrival, we visited with Uncle Melvin, Aunt Aldean and cousins Dwayne, Dorthy, Bridgett and Natalie.  After a long visit, Aunt Aldean cooked a great meal.  Uncle Melvin drove the four of us to a small cemetery where Jeanne’s father is buried along with generations of relatives.  The grave stones were dated back to the late 1600s.  It was interesting listening to Uncle Melvin talk about the family members and their lives, most of which was new information to Jeanne and Jim.  The cemetery was located away from the main highway and next to a very old church.  It was a peaceful way to spend the afternoon.

We said our goodbyes and began the long drive home, stopping long enough at a Dairy Queen to give the car a rest.

This turned into a fix-the-coach day.

About two months ago we had ordered a sunscreen for the front window of the coach.  Since we were on the move when the order was placed, the sunscreen was shipped to Jeanne’s brother Jim and his wife Patty in Georgia.  Well, we finally had the sunscreen and set aside a day for its installation but discovered the ladder we had was too short.  After buying a folding ladder at Home Depot we installed the sunscreen without any problems.  It looks great, cuts down on the sun hitting the windows and keeps the coach noticeably cooler.

Working in South Georgia on a broiling summer day was a new experience.  The job was not that physical but just standing on the ladder in full sun was a challenge.  No amount of sweat can cool you down.  About halfway through the job I noticed sweat dripping off the bill of my cap.  

The shelf under the sink had collapsed and Jim offered to help with the repair.  Using the old shelf as a pattern, Jim cut a replacement which fit perfectly and we are grateful for his time and effort.  That evening Jim stopped by for dinner and firmed up our plans for tomorrow.

Contemporary note:  We still have the ladder.  The very sturdy aluminum is a little on the heavy side but the telescoping legs and center hinge lets it fold into a compact package — perfect for storage under the motorhome.  Looking back I’m surprised we made it that far into the trip without one.

Our last day in St. Augustine was spent quietly running errands and relaxing at the coach.  After getting up later than usual, we went to Starbucks to download e-mails, had lunch at a local cafe, stocked up on groceries at Publix before returning to the coach to kick back for the afternoon.

The next day we drove a short distance to Woodbine, Georgia for a few days with Jeanne’s family.  That evening, Jim and Patty stopped by the coach for dinner.  We planned out the next few days, which would include visits with the family and a guided tour of the area.