Life is too short to read a bad book.
Sunday, May 25, 2008,6:54 PM
Savannah Day 7, April 29, 2008
The next morning we were up early so that we could get downstairs and enjoy some breakfast before the shuttle from Enterprise came to pick us up to take us to the rental location. We ate cereal, and waited. We ate a banana, and waited. We ate toast, and waited. Finally, I called Enterprise to see what the hang up was. I was told that they didn’t have any cars. I got a little heated and told them that they’d better find one because I had a reservation and because I was on vacation, I had limited time to use the vehicle. They then informed me that all they had was a truck. I told them I’d never driven a truck before and wasn’t comfortable with it. I wanted the car I’d reserved. They said that they would send the shuttle to pick us up, but if another car wasn’t returned while the shuttle was getting us, we’d have to be prepared to drive the truck. I said if I needed to prepare to drive the truck, they needed to prepare to pay for the comp/collision insurance, because I couldn’t guarantee I wasn’t going to be running into things. The shuttle driver picked us up in a Ford F150 extended cab ~ yeah, I don’t think so. I wouldn’t be able to drive that thing. Miraculously, there was a car ready and available at Enterprise when we got there. A brand new white 4-door Nissan Ultima ~ they keyless kind that turned on/off with the press of a button. I swear the whole two days we had that thing, Mom giggled every time I turned on the car.
Once we got the car situation handled, we took a left from the parking lot and headed to Victory Dr., where we preceded to turn right and head towards Island Expressway. Our plan that day was hit Fort Pulaski and Tybee Island. We were soon at the turn for Fort Pulaski. We paid the $6.00 entrance fee, parked in the lot, and headed to the visitor’s center, where we met up with the young couple from Minnesota that we’d eaten lunch with on the day before. After a quick conversation, Mom and I headed into the Visitor’s Center to tour the museum, and then we headed to the 
fort. At the entrance, we had to cross a drawbridge before we could actually get into the fort. From there, we headed into the center to watch a musket demonstration. Ranger Calhoun, the presenter, was a fascinating speaker and very knowledgeable about the history of Fort Pulaski. He told us about Robert E. Lee’s involvement in the actual planning and building of the fort. He told of how when SC seceded to the US during the Civil War, how 385 Confederate troops marched into the fort and took possession of it for use 
during the war. He told us of how those same troops were surrounded by thousands of Union soldiers shooting at the fort from Hilton Head and Tybee Island. He told us that a cannon almost hit the ammunition magazine of the fort, which was probably the very reason why the general in charge decided to surrender to the Union because he did not want to be responsible for the deaths of his soldiers. Finally, we also learned that once the Union had control of the fort that thousands of newly-freed slaves were brought to Fort Pulaski and thus it is considered part of the Underground Railroad.
After Fort Pulaski, we then got back onto Island Expressway and headed out to Tybee Island for lunch at The Crab Shack, not to be confused with the chain Joe’s Crab Shack. No affiliation. We followed the signs on the road until we eventually got to the parking lot of the restaurant. Immediately, I was taken with place. 
It was just so much fun! Mom and I sat out on the deck by the water and were soon greeted by our waiter. I wish I could remember his name ~ he was just such a fun kid! While we were looking at our menus, the family seated at the table next to us warned us that if we wanted to do sampler plate, to be sure and only order it for one, because they ordered the platter for two and it was still too much 
food for their whole family! So, when our waiter returned, we followed their advice and got the sampler platter for one with a side of coleslaw. But first, we wanted raw oysters. And let me just say, these oysters were so fresh they still had sand in them. They were so fresh, I smelt like fish for the rest of the day. But they were delicious! Our sampler platter consisted of corn on the cob, sausage, potatoes, crawfish, snow crab, and 
shrimp. It was yummy ~ all except the crawfish. I guess they were yummy. But I wouldn't know. I couldn't eat them. I have this thing about eating something that still has its head attached. I just can't do it. This restaurant is definitely another one I would recommend to anyone. After lunch, we dumped our paper plates into the garbage holes inserted into the middle of our table and then headed out to walk around the area a little bit. First, we went to the gift shop. Second, we went to see the live alligators.
We then headed back into the car, followed the signs back to the main road, and then headed out towards Tybee Lighthouse. I wanted to walk up the 300 stairs to the top. Mom wanted to go to the gift shop. We were both in for some disappointment that day. The one and only day the lighthouse is closed is on Tuesday. So, neither one of us got to see what we wanted to there. Regardless, I still parked the car and walked around to get some shots of the area. Then we drove on and went to the beach.
At Tybee Beach, I parked right by the pier and after paying for parking, we headed down the clapboard stairs to the sandy beach along the Atlantic Ocean. It was a good day to be outside that day. There was a slight breeze, but it wasn’t cold. Thankfully, it wasn’t hot either. Mom and I walked along the beach for awhile. I looked for shells and sand dollars. I found shells, but no sand dollars. Bummer, but I knew they were hard to find. We then walked down the pier and just enjoyed the view and visited with some local fisherman who were out that day.
After the beach, we crossed the street and headed to the Marine Science Center to look around. I thought it would be different than it was ~ I thought maybe it would have had the underwater tunnels where you could view some of the oceanic animals. Nope. Not so much. There were a few water tanks and some interesting enough displays, but I probably could have done without seeing it. I did get some great shots of an anomaly though! Oh, and I was able to buy baby girl a stuffed seahorse, and I got kiddo a dolphin pen and a shark tooth necklace (this was a gag ~ she’s terrified of sharks).
After the Marine Science Center, we were kind of in the mood for ice cream, so we headed up the road and around the corner to Tybrisa Street to go to Tradewinds Ice Cream. Unfortunately, this was another disappointment because Tradewinds was closed as well that day. So, we went back to the car and headed out towards Butler Avenue to Seaweeds Ice Cream where we each had the Pecan Praline ice cream. The ice cream here was delicious ~ cold, creamy, and definitely hit the spot.
After our break, we got back into the car and headed out on the Island Expressway back towards Savannah. After we crossed the bridge to Wilmington Island, we decided to give Uncle Bubba's another try as well. We were seated immediately in the main dining room. After a brief glimpse at the menu, we decided to split an order of the charbroiled oysters and crab cake dinner. I’m sure by now my sister was getting very tired of all the pictures of crab cakes I sent her! Dinner was very good, and of course, during the meal who should show up but Uncle Bubba himself! He went from table to table to table to talk to people, take pictures, visit, and just make people feel welcome. How cool is that? He, of course, didn’t remember us but I really didn’t expect him to. After dinner, my sweet tooth kicked in again and we ordered the Strawberry Shortcake with Captain 
Michael’s coffee. Again, we ate some delicious food and soon it was time to leave. Before we did so, though, we stopped by the small counter that doubled as a gift shop and bought t-shirts to take home as souvenirs. As we were leaving, Uncle Bubba was right behind us. He kept us in the parking lot visiting and was gracious enough to answer questions my Mom had about Paula. He also told us all about Bobby’s birthday party that they’d had at Paula’s house the night before. After having two great dining experiences, I’d say Uncle Bubba’s ranks right up there on the list of restaurants I would recommend when traveling to Savannah.
After dinner, we headed back into town and were lucky enough to snag the very last parking spot in our hotel lot! We then proceeded to go to our room, lounge, watch TV, and get some rest before we headed out the next day.
You can read about Day 1 here.
You can read about Day 2 here.
You can read about Day 3 here.
You can read about Day 4 here.
You can read about Day 5 here.
You can read about Day 6 here.
Once we got the car situation handled, we took a left from the parking lot and headed to Victory Dr., where we preceded to turn right and head towards Island Expressway. Our plan that day was hit Fort Pulaski and Tybee Island. We were soon at the turn for Fort Pulaski. We paid the $6.00 entrance fee, parked in the lot, and headed to the visitor’s center, where we met up with the young couple from Minnesota that we’d eaten lunch with on the day before. After a quick conversation, Mom and I headed into the Visitor’s Center to tour the museum, and then we headed to the 
fort. At the entrance, we had to cross a drawbridge before we could actually get into the fort. From there, we headed into the center to watch a musket demonstration. Ranger Calhoun, the presenter, was a fascinating speaker and very knowledgeable about the history of Fort Pulaski. He told us about Robert E. Lee’s involvement in the actual planning and building of the fort. He told of how when SC seceded to the US during the Civil War, how 385 Confederate troops marched into the fort and took possession of it for use 
during the war. He told us of how those same troops were surrounded by thousands of Union soldiers shooting at the fort from Hilton Head and Tybee Island. He told us that a cannon almost hit the ammunition magazine of the fort, which was probably the very reason why the general in charge decided to surrender to the Union because he did not want to be responsible for the deaths of his soldiers. Finally, we also learned that once the Union had control of the fort that thousands of newly-freed slaves were brought to Fort Pulaski and thus it is considered part of the Underground Railroad.
After Fort Pulaski, we then got back onto Island Expressway and headed out to Tybee Island for lunch at The Crab Shack, not to be confused with the chain Joe’s Crab Shack. No affiliation. We followed the signs on the road until we eventually got to the parking lot of the restaurant. Immediately, I was taken with place. 
It was just so much fun! Mom and I sat out on the deck by the water and were soon greeted by our waiter. I wish I could remember his name ~ he was just such a fun kid! While we were looking at our menus, the family seated at the table next to us warned us that if we wanted to do sampler plate, to be sure and only order it for one, because they ordered the platter for two and it was still too much 
food for their whole family! So, when our waiter returned, we followed their advice and got the sampler platter for one with a side of coleslaw. But first, we wanted raw oysters. And let me just say, these oysters were so fresh they still had sand in them. They were so fresh, I smelt like fish for the rest of the day. But they were delicious! Our sampler platter consisted of corn on the cob, sausage, potatoes, crawfish, snow crab, and 
shrimp. It was yummy ~ all except the crawfish. I guess they were yummy. But I wouldn't know. I couldn't eat them. I have this thing about eating something that still has its head attached. I just can't do it. This restaurant is definitely another one I would recommend to anyone. After lunch, we dumped our paper plates into the garbage holes inserted into the middle of our table and then headed out to walk around the area a little bit. First, we went to the gift shop. Second, we went to see the live alligators.
We then headed back into the car, followed the signs back to the main road, and then headed out towards Tybee Lighthouse. I wanted to walk up the 300 stairs to the top. Mom wanted to go to the gift shop. We were both in for some disappointment that day. The one and only day the lighthouse is closed is on Tuesday. So, neither one of us got to see what we wanted to there. Regardless, I still parked the car and walked around to get some shots of the area. Then we drove on and went to the beach. 
At Tybee Beach, I parked right by the pier and after paying for parking, we headed down the clapboard stairs to the sandy beach along the Atlantic Ocean. It was a good day to be outside that day. There was a slight breeze, but it wasn’t cold. Thankfully, it wasn’t hot either. Mom and I walked along the beach for awhile. I looked for shells and sand dollars. I found shells, but no sand dollars. Bummer, but I knew they were hard to find. We then walked down the pier and just enjoyed the view and visited with some local fisherman who were out that day.
After the beach, we crossed the street and headed to the Marine Science Center to look around. I thought it would be different than it was ~ I thought maybe it would have had the underwater tunnels where you could view some of the oceanic animals. Nope. Not so much. There were a few water tanks and some interesting enough displays, but I probably could have done without seeing it. I did get some great shots of an anomaly though! Oh, and I was able to buy baby girl a stuffed seahorse, and I got kiddo a dolphin pen and a shark tooth necklace (this was a gag ~ she’s terrified of sharks).
After the Marine Science Center, we were kind of in the mood for ice cream, so we headed up the road and around the corner to Tybrisa Street to go to Tradewinds Ice Cream. Unfortunately, this was another disappointment because Tradewinds was closed as well that day. So, we went back to the car and headed out towards Butler Avenue to Seaweeds Ice Cream where we each had the Pecan Praline ice cream. The ice cream here was delicious ~ cold, creamy, and definitely hit the spot.
After our break, we got back into the car and headed out on the Island Expressway back towards Savannah. After we crossed the bridge to Wilmington Island, we decided to give Uncle Bubba's another try as well. We were seated immediately in the main dining room. After a brief glimpse at the menu, we decided to split an order of the charbroiled oysters and crab cake dinner. I’m sure by now my sister was getting very tired of all the pictures of crab cakes I sent her! Dinner was very good, and of course, during the meal who should show up but Uncle Bubba himself! He went from table to table to table to talk to people, take pictures, visit, and just make people feel welcome. How cool is that? He, of course, didn’t remember us but I really didn’t expect him to. After dinner, my sweet tooth kicked in again and we ordered the Strawberry Shortcake with Captain 
Michael’s coffee. Again, we ate some delicious food and soon it was time to leave. Before we did so, though, we stopped by the small counter that doubled as a gift shop and bought t-shirts to take home as souvenirs. As we were leaving, Uncle Bubba was right behind us. He kept us in the parking lot visiting and was gracious enough to answer questions my Mom had about Paula. He also told us all about Bobby’s birthday party that they’d had at Paula’s house the night before. After having two great dining experiences, I’d say Uncle Bubba’s ranks right up there on the list of restaurants I would recommend when traveling to Savannah.After dinner, we headed back into town and were lucky enough to snag the very last parking spot in our hotel lot! We then proceeded to go to our room, lounge, watch TV, and get some rest before we headed out the next day.
You can read about Day 1 here.
You can read about Day 2 here.
You can read about Day 3 here.
You can read about Day 4 here.
You can read about Day 5 here.
You can read about Day 6 here.
posted by Dev 
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4 Comments:
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Dang, I have to sign off because my eyes are getting heavy so I haven't read this entire entry but OMG you are hilarious! Telling the rental company you couldn't guarantee the vehicle would get back in one piece? Priceless. I'm betting you were driving some employee's car because they weren't going to let you drive off in a truck!
Cindys
Dev, I just caught up reading about your trip. Dang...you sure had some good food. I love crab cakes, sweet potatoe casserole, pralines... yum!
Good thing I ate a good breakfast because after reading this it made me want to eat!