Tybee Island Trip...

Okay...so, the last couple of posts...and maybe the next few, are very much like, "Hey, come over & watch the slide show from our vacation!"
Sorry.....but look anyway.

mmmm'kay?

So... Here's how I spent my Mother's Day in Savannah...

We started with a drive out to Tybee Island.

From www.tybeeisland.com, here's a little Tybee history...

In 1733 General James Oglethorpe and a handful of settlers came to the area. They called it Savannah, because of the vast marshlands and tall grass. Here they established the new colony which would be named to honor King George. Tybee was considered to be extremely important to the development and future of Savannah and the colony because of its location at the mouth of the Savannah river. General Oglethorpe ordered a lighthouse constructed to mark the entrance to the river in 1736 and a small fort to be constructed to insure control over access to the river.

Tybee would play a significant role throughout Georgia and U.S. history, including the Revolutionary War when Tybee served as the staging area for French Admiral D'Estaing's ill fated 1779 "Seige of Savannah" when combined multinational forces attempted to defeat the British held Savannah.

During the War of 1812, the Tybee Island Lighthouse was used as a signal tower to warn Savannah of possible attack by the British.

By the outbreak of the American Civil War, Tybee would again play an important military role in U.S. history. First Confederates occupied the Island. In December of 1861, the Rebel forces would withdraw to Fort Pulaski under orders from Robert E. Lee to defend Savannah and the Savannah River. Union forces under the Command of Quincy Adams Gilmore took control of Tybee and began constructing cannon batteries on the west side of Tybee facing Fort Pulaski about one mile away. On April 11th, 1862, those cannon batteries would fire a new weapon called "Rifled Cannon" at Fort Pulaski and change forever the way the world protected its coastal areas. Within 30 hours, the rifled guns had such a devastating effect on the brick fort that it was surrendered and all forts like Pulaski were considered obsolete.

In 1961, Battery Garland, the former gun battery and magazine for a 12 inch long-range gun, became the Tybee Island museum. Rooms which once stored six hundred pound projectiles and two hundred pound bags of gun powder, now hold the collections and exhibits of over four hundred years of Tybee Island history.

So, there's your history lesson for the day. We went to the Battery Garland, Tybee Lighthouse, and Fort Pulaski. (Damon actually went to Fort Pulaski the day before with Susan's husband, David....but apparently it was quite impressive & I would have enjoyed it...which in the end, I really did, so I'm glad Damon went twice. We're kind of nerdy vacationers like that...)

So, inside the battery...there are a bunch of historical artifacts, like this Confederate money...


And cannon balls...


And, clearly---the world's FREAKIEST DOLL!
I'm talking about the little blonde one...the little "What Ever Happened to Baby Jane" doll!


The Tybee Lighthouse...
[I'm particularly fond of the pirate flag there.... ARGH!]


And, um, it would be exactly 178 steps up....
...and 178 steps back down.


Quaint little window...and resting spot...and it let a little breeze in.


Don't look down!


View of the Atlantic from the top of the lighthouse...


I CLIMBED THE TYBEE LIGHTHOUSE & ALL I GOT WAS A PAIR OF SORE LEGS!
...okay...and some pictures.
...and a Christmas ornament at the little souvenir shop.
...and the experience of climbing a lighthouse {note to self: you've done it, mark it off your list, and probably not worth it to do it again. you did this on Sunday. your legs are still a little sore.}

After that....
LUNCH!
Welcome to the North Beach Grill. Your only dining option around the Lighthouse. Or, all that we saw anyway.


If you ever happen to make it to this fine little dining establishment---might I suggest starting with the fried crawfish. So very yummy. Also, the shrimp was...hot as fire [but, I'm a wimp], but so worth it b/c it just rocked.
Our bartender/waitress was a dead-ringer for Queen Latifah {I'm serious---not trying to be funny here}, and the guy who sat next to us...well, he was clearly on a mission to abduct someone. Total freak. And, he wanted to strike up a conversation with me about his next camera purchase, and whether or not he should stick with 35 mm or go digital....and all was geekily-fine until he wanted me to go to his car to look at brochures. "Oh---OOOOOOOO-kay. And why don't I just have my husband wait here & save my seat."
Take a hike, FREAKAZOID.

After lunch & getting super stuffed.... I got to walk on the beach, picking up sea-shells, while the Atlantic Ocean rolled over my feet. Of course, I wasn't with my child on Mother's Day...but, I was having a good time. {Gage, I promise to make it up to you next year!}


So...we did the beach thing for a while...and then we were off to Fort Pulaski!
Upon departure, we found that we'd been given a parking ticket...
To pay???? or Not to pay???
That is the question!


So, we go to Fort Pulaski...
Where, wouldn't you know---we run into Freakazoid-Brochure-Boy, but that's a whole different story. It was almost like vacation-stalking...but whatever.

Me & the coolest tree...just outside of Fort Pulaski...



How cool is this? There's an alligator moat and everything!


Now THAT's a door...


Me...in one of the gun-powder storage rooms...


To me...this is just such a lovely & peaceful view...

I called it a window, but in the past, there were cannons sticking out of all of these openings! And I try to picture the trees smaller, or not there at all...the grass around there probably a little taller...

If you puuuuuuuuuuuuush hard enough, you can move the cannons to change the direction of your aim. They roll on these little metal tracks.

Okay...confession time. I wasn't REALLY strong enough to move the cannon. But I damn sure tried!

Don't move or I'll shoot!

(yeah, yeah...we're dorks. whatever.)

A view from the top of Fort Pulaski...


After that...we went back into Savannah...