Malta, NY

I hadn’t really looked at my chosen route for today too carefully other than to be sure I knew which Interstates to take to make the best time. Turns out that I started in Virginia, ended in Upstate New York and in between I went through West Virginia, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey! Who knew. It was an uneventful trip aside from watching all the “Welcome to ….” signs go by.

I have pulled out some pictures from the whole trip to add to this post since it’s really a recap of the trip itself.

As you can tell, the circle on the map is almost complete. This is it. This is the last night on the road. Tomorrow at this time after 298 days on the road (with 3 weeks break in September for a trip to the Balkans), and 58,344 km I’ll be tucked in at Gill and Phil’s house. It’s been a dream come true and I can’t believe it’s over. Up until the last few days I’ve been absorbed by my last few days in Charleston, getting the trailer ready to be dropped off at the manufacturer for some minor work and preparing for my re-entry into the real world. But the past couple of days with my route planned I’ve been a bit on auto-pilot with lots of windshield time for thinking.

I am a firm believer in life-long learning and so I have thought about all the things that I have learned on this amazing voyage. Of course there have been many practical things, such as to make sure the hitch is on properly before going over the Confederation Bridge, and don’t pull the black water tank out without flushing the toilet first. I’ve learned so much about history, culture, geography and the people of the places I’ve travelled. I’ve learned (or had it reinforced) that travel is so broadening. Not only for me, which is obvious, but in talking to people along the way, I found those who have travelled are generally more outward looking and open to new ideas. But most of all, I’ve learned a lot about myself.

I learned to live in the moment. That’s always been an issue for me. Spending time thinking about the past or the future instead of focusing on the present. At the beginning it was a self-preservation tactic, since hooking up and driving the trailer in traffic took my total focus. And as time went on, I was busy planning, seeing, learning, doing, or writing about my travels and that’s what consumed my waking hours. So now it’s become a habit and I hope one I can keep.

When I thought about doing this trip, one of the things that worried me was the possibility of loneliness, being on the road for such a long time without a travel buddy. So I knew that I’d have to put myself out there and go beyond my comfort zone. And I learned I can do that, and to a degree I enjoyed it. I only experienced one real bad time of loneliness, and that was over the US Thanksgiving weekend. I guess because the campground in San Diego was full of families who had gotten together for the weekend. But it quickly passed and Gill joining me for a week over New Years really helped. BTW, I discovered that I am more willing to do silly stuff when no one I know is watching. i.e. picture in the Texas welcoming centre, with the astronaut at the Space Centre, etc.

I learned that it’s important to me that I continue to make a difference in this world. From learning about so many amazing people in a historic or cultural context, or just in talking to people along the way, I realize there are so many people with such important projects or passions in their lives. I know that’s been missing from my life for a few years and I need to find something about which I can be passionate. BUT, I also know that I have to have balance in my life and family and friends have to come first.

People have asked me what my favourite spot was on my trip. I started to write a list of some of my favourites and I ended up just listing the places I’d been because I liked them all for one reason or another. Many of the places I went I had visited at least for a short time or in part before. The south, however, was totally new to me and I absolutely loved it. The people are so warm, generous, open and the hospitality truly is amazing. It was where I was most moved by the history of the past. Walking over the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma I was moved to tears. How do you respect what happened in the past without forgetting it, and move forward without assigning or feeling the guilt of the past? I thought about that a lot. And no, I don’t have the answer. Everywhere I went I stayed mainly on the beaten paths for safety sake, but from what I saw, the poor in the south are more poor than anywhere else. But joy was expressed so easily and so loudly. It was an interesting dichotomy.

Some of the experiences I had will truly be remembered forever. I’ve written about most of them: in NOLA when the bead thrower called me out and said my smile made what he’d paid to be there worthwhile; the first airboat trip on Lake Panasoffkee; walking over the Pettus Bridge; being on the Mardi Gras float at Universal throwing beads with MJ and Tina; and being invited by one of my neighbours in Georgia to join them for a fish feast dinner after the men came back from fishing with a huge catch. For the most part, the thing that stands out are the great conversations that I’ve had with all sorts of people everywhere I went.

It was so much fun to hear from those of you who sent me suggestions for things to do, and places to go and to hear you recount the times you visited the places I went. I would especially like to thank my friend Dane, who was born in the south and who travelled vicariously through me for much of the trip. His insights and knowledge of the places and people were invaluable. I enjoyed, so much, having him along for the ride.

Many of you have said how brave I am to have done this trip. Some of you have said you’d love to do it but wouldn’t have the guts. Well, it would not have been possible for me to do it without the support and love of my family and friends. As I said to them:

“Knowing that they all worried about me allowed me not to worry myself.

Knowing that they were all supportive of me doing this made me more sure I could. Even during those times when doubt crept into the recesses of my consciousness. (or expressed itself as melt downs, both private and public)

Knowing that they were waiting to hear from me kept me focused and on track and kept me going on those days when I’d much rather just crawl under a rock.”

Thank you to all of you for being along for the trip through reading my blog. I really did feel like you were all with me. I hope you enjoyed it.

I’m sorry it’s over, but excited to find that thing to be passionate about again.

Harrisonburg, VA
It’s been an emotional day. Sadly, I packed up camp for the last time on this epic journey this morning. While I’ve got a few more days on the road to get back to Ottawa, I have had the trailer winterized and so I’ll stay in motels from here on.

I got on the road early and put in a day twice as long as usual. It was a beautiful sunny and warm day, and a lovely drive. I traversed several Interstates, from 826 to 26, to 77, to 81 and through South Carolina, through North Carolina and through a good chunk of Virginia.

Virginia is really lovely from what I’ve seen from the Interstate. Rolling hills, pretty bucolic vignettes everywhere you look and a point of historic interest at every exit. I crossed over the Blue Ridge Parkway several times as it follows along Interstate 81. It’s definitely on my bucket list to explore. I expect to spend more time in this area before long.

It was especially nice along the way to watch spring happening practically before my eyes. In South Carolina, spring is in full swing with the azaleas already finished and the trees in full leaf. In North Carolina the trees are starting to get foliage and in Virginia the trees aren’t greening up yet, but the grass is and the pink blossoms on wild trees along the countryside were beautiful.

For the first time since I returned from Europe at the end of September (and for only the second time since I started the NANFA Tour) I’m tucked into a motel tonight. I have to say that I am enjoying the “luxury”, and we’re talking the Holiday Inn Express. It’s all relative. I just grabbed my backpack, registered and walked into my room and there it was, all set up. No un-hitching the trailer, putting down the stabilization legs, plugging in the electric cord, hooking up the water and sewer. The shower is only 10 steps away, I don’t have to wear flip flops in to the shower and 10 other people haven’t already used it today. And I don’t have to put my jacket and shoes on to go to the toilet. And WIFI – it’s lightening fast.

So yes, those are some of the downsides of trailering for 10 and a half months. But my view from my motel is of a parking lot, not a cute little lake or under the live oak trees. I couldn’t smell cooking bacon while I ate my toast and peanut butter at my picnic table this morning because I ate it in the car on route. I don’t know if I can sleep indoors tonight after sleeping in the fresh air for so many months. I haven’t seen any of my neighbours never mind had great conversations with them. I certainly haven’t been invited to enjoy fresh fish with three couples from western Georgia. I saw the signs for some interesting things today, but didn’t go see any of them. And I don’t have far to go to the restroom, but I won’t be able to look up at the stars in the dark sky on the way there.

So, yes, the NANFA Tour is winding down. Two or three more days on the road, but just getting from point A to point B rather than experiencing it. I’ll have some final comments when I have the time and patience to sit down and write it.

P.S. Oh and I have a TV in my room! And watching CNN talking about Trump’s lack of a ground game despite his strong air game and chuckling. His team not knowing the system, etc.

Charleston, SC
Today I visited Magnolia Plantation and Gardens, the oldest plantation on the Ashley River, one of oldest tourist sites in the Carolinas, and one of the top 25 most visited historic houses in America according to their brochures.

It was a late start for me, so I didn’t get to the plantation until just after noon. I was not the only one that thought this would be a good thing to do today. The ticket sales were painfully slow. There are several efficiencies at the entrance to the property that could be made to make it more pleasurable for everyone. Once inside I had a great day.

There are several activity choices at Magnolia. There are nearly 500 acres of gardens, woods areas, ponds and lakes to self explore and that comes free with your admission. In addition to that you can chose to pay extra to do any of the following: tour the house with a guide, take the nature train, take the nature boat, take a “Slavery to Freedom” walk, and visit the Audubon Swamp Garden. I chose the house tour and the nature train.

One of the unique things about this plantation is that it has stayed in the Drayton family and has not been turned over to a foundation like all the others I’ve visited. It is still owned by the 15th generation of the family. The house I toured was the third house built on the property. The first, built by Thomas and his wife Ann, newly landed from Barbados, was completed in 1680. It stood for 130 years but was struck by lightning in 1811 and the wooden interior burned and the brick skeleton fell inward. The second was burned to the ground in 1865, likely by Union troops.


This third house was started in 1874 with an addition made in 1891. It was planned to be much more grand, but because of the civil war the fortunes of this branch of the Draytons were diminished. Like other plantation owners in this area they had made their fortunes growing rice in fields worked by slaves, which was no longer profitable after they were freed.

The time came when some of the amassed acreage had to be sold off to save the gardens. They had been developed in the early 1800’s, primarily by John Grimke-Drayton and were well known before the Civil War for their azaleas and live oaks. In order to provide income for the estate, they opened the gardens up to the public for the first time in 1870 for an admission charge of $37.50 in today’s money. They had many well known visitors during the 1900’s including George Gershwin, Henry Ford, Eleanor Roosevelt, Orson Welles and John James Audubon. The last owners to live in the house were John and Fernanda and after John’s death, Fernanda made the decision to open up the house to tours and became it’s first tour guide in 1975.

The house tour was my first activity and it is interesting to see how humble it is compared to so many of the other plantations I’ve visited because of their diminished wealth. It was after all the “country cottage” because they lived most of the year in their Charleston home. Most of the furniture is from the house or from other properties the Drayton’s owned. Sorry, no pics allowed inside.

Immediately following the house tour I was scheduled on the nature tram tour. It took us through much of the nearly 500 acres, many wooded areas, and past ponds and lakes. We spotted several alligators, one about 8 feet, and the others smaller and numerous turtles and various birds and geese. Then I walked through the garden itself. Unfortunately most of the azaleas have passed their prime but it was lovely to walk along the pathways zigzagging through the garden. There are statues, and bridges and ponds and the river to discover around various bends in the pathways. And I even encountered a racoon coming my way as I rounded one corner. He immediately turned and hightailed it in the opposite direction before I could get my camera up and focused so the only picture I got is pretty dark and blurry.

Near the end of my garden walk, I came across a wedding dress hanging from a tree limb in the pathway. Not far away was a photographer taking its picture. Seems there was a wedding on the property this afternoon. Sure enough on my way out I came across chairs set up on a lawn for the ceremony and by the time I passed by the house the caterers were in full flight getting set up on the outdoor veranda.

It was a lovely afternoon.

Charleston, SC

Yesterday I had an absolutely thrilling day. Not. It had rained over night and the forecast was for rain so I designated it to be a clean and organize day. I need to get things organized because when I leave here I’ll be heading straight to drop off my trailer in St Jerome and then on to Ottawa. It turned out to be a really nice day which was great for getting things organized and cleaned but there are so many other interesting things I could have been doing!

With as much done as I could before I actually pack up, I was back to touring today. I started with a bus tour focused on the Gullah language and culture with a Gullah guide, not surprisingly called Gullah Tours. It was incredibly interesting and the guide was hilarious. Not only that, but he was a great entrepreneur. The tour costs $18 which is very reasonable and he said you don’t pay until the end and if you’re not happy with the tour, you don’t have to pay. I watched and almost everyone gave him $25 netting him a $7 tip. And he sells his book on the bus and points out all the locations throughout the city that sell his book.

I can’t for the life of me remember any of the Gullah that he spoke or told us. It originated in West Africa and is similar to Creole. It’s spoken very quickly and they use a lot of euphemisms. For instance, to describe someone that is a thief they would say “she has busy hands” and instead of telling someone to be quiet they say, “Quit cracking your teeth”. They have no “th” sounds in their language so when they are saying English words “dey” end up dropping “dem”. They seem to be very superstitious. They believe blue wards off evil spirits so often they will paint the roof of their porch or door frames blue, or they wear something blue. (origin of the saying, “Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue).

One of the characteristic architectural elements of Charleston homes is the ironwork, both forged and cast and one man’s name keeps coming up associated with the best of the 20th century work. More than 500 of the forged iron gates, fences, balconies and window grills in Charleston were done by a blacksmith by the name of Philip Simmons. One of his gates is on permanent display in one of the Smithsonian Museums in Washington and he has received many tributes both local and nationally for his work.

He died in 2009 and his home and workshop were turned over to a foundation to be turned into a museum. We visited it with our Gullah guide and were able to watch one of the blacksmiths that he mentored, his nephew, work on some plant hangers he was making.

After the tour, I finally got in to see the movie about Charleston a the visitor’s centre that Marsha had suggested I see, and I’m glad she did because it’s kind of tucked away in a corner and I would have missed it if I hadn’t been looking. It did a good job of putting things in context as these films always do, and the pride Charlestonians (?) feel about their city shone through.

Then I walked and I walked and I walked, until I could walk no more. I wandered down King Street, the main shopping area, where you’ll find locally owned shops along with the usual higher end national retailers all housed in magnificent historic buildings. Then over to East Bay Street and along the east side of the peninsula, through Waterfront Park, and then zig zagged back north. I stopped for an iced tea because I needed to rest my poor feet and legs and then headed back to the Visitors Centre to head for home. I took some pictures, but everywhere you look is another beautiful garden or cute little alleyway, or neat architectural detail. One of the guides said that even after walking down these streets all their life they still notice new little things all the time, there’s just so much to take in. I get that.

Charleston is another of the places that I can’t remove from my bucket list because I’ll want to come back and I haven’t even left yet.

Charleston, SC

Today I lept out of bed at 8:30, having slept for 10 and a half hours! I guess I needed it. Marsha had kindly inquired about the best walking tour guides from one of her friends on my behalf and I called one she recommended and was able to get the last spot on the 10:30 am tour this morning. So I had a quick start to the day as I still had to shower and find my way downtown for the first time. It only took me 15 minutes to get from here to the Visitors Centre parking lot and then another 20 minutes to walk down Meeting Street to meet up with the guide.

The guide was excellent. I thought he must have had some acting experience and from one of his anecdotes it turns out he did. If you’re ever in Charleston I’d highly recommend him. Charleston Footprints, Michael Trouche…tel. 843-478-4718. I wound up with my head feeling like it was going to explode with so much information, but he provided it in such an interesting way with humour and anecdotes.

It was a small group which was great so that we could all hear and ask questions easily. The tour was 2 hours, but I was surprised when it was over. He covered all sorts of topics: history; botany; architecture; and current trends. Walking without tripping on uneven surfaces or getting run over, listening, and taking pictures means I missed a lot of the factual information he provided unfortunately. I’ll try sharing some of the bits I do remember.

Charleston is on the coast about half way down South Carolina on an inlet of the Atlantic. Both guides I had today used the same local expression, “it’s where the Cooper and Ashley Rivers come together to form the Atlantic Ocean”. It was and is a busy port. Over 40% of the slaves from West Africa came to north America through Charleston and before the Civil War they exported rice around the world. Today, the Port is the second largest industry in Charleston behind tourism and it’s one of the busiest in the country.

Charleston was originally founded in 1670 as Charles Town on the other side of the river from where it now sits. Charles II granted the charter to the “Province of Carolina” to eight of his best buddies as the “Lords Proprietors”. Settlers came from England, Barbados and Bermuda and in1680 they moved to the current location because it was more defensible and had a better harbour. The settlers discovered that the slaves from West Africa knew how to grow rice and this area was conducive to it’s growth so it became a huge cash crop for them. (of course that crop died off with the freeing of the slaves because it no longer was profitable).

During the American Revolution the British were first repelled but eventually Charleston fell to the British. After the British left in 1782 the city’s name was officially changed to Charleston.

Of course, Charleston was the site of some key events during the Civil War. After Lincoln was elected, South Carolina was the first state to secede from the Union and the first battle of the Civil War was when shots were fired at Fort Sumter, on one of the barrier islands in the Charleston harbour. Much of the city was destroyed by the bombing and fires as a result of the war, and the economy was destroyed since it existed based on the use of slaves. It took a while for the economy to come back, but it did and today it’s booming. Building is evident all around the city, Volvo is putting a manufacturing plant in Mount Pleasant and the Tourism industry is strong.

The historic district is a large area and it’s one beautiful home after another (now ranging price from $1 – 20 million) connected by beautifully landscaped streets and alleyways. The unique “Single House” you can see in some of the pics is really prominent in the historic district. The houses were built in this style to try and capture as much of the breeze as possible for cooling in the hot summers. They were built only a single room wide on the street side and with the main entrance on the side opening into a hall, dividing the two rooms on the main floor. The door on the street told potential visitors whether the household was interested in guests. If it was open, they could feel free to knock on the main door on the side.

Charleston has earned the nickname “The Holy City” because of the tolerance of the city for all religions. In a relatively small city there are 137 churches, 2 mosques and 1 synagogue.

After my walking tour I was famished, having dashed off without breakfast, so lunch was next on my itinerary. I stumbled across a great restaurant on Queen just off Meeting Street, called Poogan’s Porch. There wasn’t room on the porch but they did have communal tables in the bar and I sat next to a couple that were visiting from the mountains in North Carolina. They were very gracious and we had a lovely conversation pretty much all through their lunch and mine. I had three small starters instead of a meal. I gave Fried Green Tomatoes another try as it’s one of the house specialties and they were awesome! They were served with peach or apricot preserve and the tanginess with the sweet was fabulous. Next was Mac and Cheese – some of the best I’ve had with lots of bacon flavour. Then I finished with a blue cheese wedge salad. All were excellent, as was the service.

I wandered in the afternoon, just soaking up the beautiful homes, and checking out the City Market. By the time I got back to my car at the visitor’s centre I was getting weary but not yet ready to give up exploring so I decided to take a bus tour from Charms of Charleston Tours. Tour guide Tiffany was great and it helped to hear about things from her perspective and to see a bit more of the city than I did on foot.

A full, and delightful day. Loving Charleston and still some things to see. Hoping the rain will hold off tomorrow but the forecast isn’t good. So we’ll see.

Mt. Pleasant, SC

I played casual tennis as a teenager, but never seriously and I’ve never seen any high calibre tennis live, so today was another first on this NFANA Tour. I was treated to attending the Volvo Car Tour being held in Charleston until April 10th.

Back in September you will recall that I headed off to the Balkans for a break in my NFANA Tour. My travel buddy for that trip and many of my travels was my friend Nanci. Nanci has several siblings and one of them, Marsha, lives in Charleston (well Mount Pleasant just over the bridge from Charleston) Nanci connected Marsha and I by email and we emailed back and forth to set a plan in place and today it came together and I met both Marsha and her husband Al.

Marsha regularly plays tennis and this week she is volunteering for the Volvo Car Open. It features many of the top seeded women players and is one of the top money events on the women’s tour. She was able to get me a pass for today’s activities. And of course, of special interest to Marsha and I was Canadian player Genie Bouchard.

I joined Marsha at the venue on Daniel Island and while she finished up her volunteer shift I wandered looking at the sponsor exhibits and the rest of the venue. It was all very interesting, having never been to a tournament before. We watched a match between two powerful young women from the front row. Being that close you can feel the speed and power of the game, see them sweat and hear all the grunts and squeaking of their shoes on the clay court. One of the players had an unusual double handed forehand as well as backhand.

After Marsha’s shift was over we went to watch a doubles match between a Canadian/Croatian team and a US team. It was very different watching the speed and strategy involved in a doubles match and to see the differences between the two teams. The US players are not usually doubles players and while individually they are really strong, as a team they struggled. The Cdn/Cro team were disciplined and you could tell they had played together a lot. They ended up winning the match.

We grabbed some lunch and then headed for the main stadium court to watch the match between Canadian Genie Bouchard and a Romanian. Bouc******** the first set and in the second she struggled but eventually won the match. Hopefully she does well in the rest of the tournament.

Then we picked up Marsha’s husband Al and headed over to Sullivan’s Island and Isle of Palms. Al took us on a tour of the islands where the homes range from old small cottages to huge beautiful homes with attached docks, complete with yachts. Sullivan’s island has a lot of history, both as a major point of entry for the slaves coming from West Africa, and as a battleground in the American Revolution. And in 1989 Hurricane Hugo passed directly over the island, knocking the bridge completely off its footings.

Al and Marsha treated me to drinks and dinner at a great restaurant right on water looking out at the boats, and the neighbouring islands. Very nice! It was a great day that ended back at their lovely home with me loaded down with tourist materials and recommendations about exploring Charleston and routes home.

The southern hospitality is overwhelming. A huge thanks to Marsha and Al for everything.

Mount Pleasant, SC

Today, both the trailer and I entered South Carolina from Georgia along Interstate 95. The traffic was surprisingly light (maybe because it was Monday morning) and I was checked into a really nice KOA in Mount Pleasant, a suburb of Charleston by noon or so. The KOA is on a little lake so I feel like I’m out in the country, however Highway 17 with every shop and restaurant known to man is just a km away at the end of the drive.

Starting to feel a little nostalgic with the start of the “last times” I’ll be doing things on my No Fixed Address North American Tour. Setting up camp today was the last time I’ll set up since from here north I’ll be staying in motels rather than camping, because of longer driving days and cooler temps and because the campgrounds don’t open for a while in many cases.

But right after setting up, I was off to Boone Hall Plantation. It was on my list of “must dos” and it’s only minutes away so I figured there was no time like the present. It’s a great place to visit to get a sense of what plantation life would be like, more from the slaves perspective than the land owner. The house is not the nicest or the oldest I’ve seen on this tour because it wasn’t built and completed until 1936, by a Canadian, no less. It’s real distinguishing characteristics are that it is still a working plantation and the almost one mile “Avenue of the Oaks” planted in 1843 . But I’ll back up a bit.

Owners over the years are as follows (from the South Carolina Plantations Website):

• Chronological list – Theophilus Patey; John Boone; Elizabeth Patey Boone; Thomas Boone; John Boone (Thomas Boone’s son); John Boone (nephew of previous John Boone); Sarah Gibbes, Thomas, Susan, and Maria Boone; Thomas A. Vardell; John Johnson, Jr., Hugh Patterson, and George K. White; Henry and John Horlbeck; John Horlbeck; Henry, Daniel, Edward, and John Horlbeck; Frederick Henry and John S. Horlbeck; Thomas Archibald and Alexandra Stone; Dimitri and Audrey Djordjadze; P.O. Mead, Jr.; Harris and Nancy McRae; William Harris McRae

I won’t go through all of them (thankfully you say), but Major James Boone was the visionary who started the plantation in 1681 after receiving a good chunk of the land from his new wife’s dowery. The plantation grew primarily rice, but also added indigo to the crops as it was a popular commodity to the British and then cotton was added after the Revolutionary War when Britain wasn’t so interested in buying anything from South Carolina. Today they grow U-pick strawberries, peaches, grapes, melons and some other things I’m forgetting.

There are various activities happening on the plantation and I first signed up for the house tour and managed to sneak in on one starting right away as I was a single. There have been 3 other houses on this spot but the current one was built in the Colonial Revival style of house that would have been typical of the antebellum period by Thomas Stone. Stone was a Canadian Ambassador to the US who in addition to a home in Washington wanted to retire to a plantation home. It is made from bricks taken from the Horlbeck brickyard, one of the businesses started by another previous owner. The bricks were all made by hand, and many of the historical sites throughout the Charleston area were made of bricks made at this brickyard. The only part of the original land that has been sold has been developed into a residential area call the Brickyard Plantation neighbourhood.

After touring the house I headed to the row of 9 slave’s living quarters out in front of the house. They now house displays about the life of the slaves and the land owners. They are not sure how many cabins there would have been but some say there were 3 rows of 9 and these were for the skilled slaves only, and the crops workers would live in wooden structures in the fields. The brick buildings were made of imperfect bricks that couldn’t be sold, and the buildings were put out front as a sign of prestige to show how many slaves they had and show off the bricks from the brickyard.

I wandered through the displays wondering once again how we, as humans, could have been so inhuman to others. It was a rather sad place, but as I’ve said before, it’s part of our past and I want to learn about it.

Then I went to a live presentation by someone who calls herself the “Gullah Gal” and who is a descendent of the slaves at Boone Hall. The presentation was fabulous, certainly the highlight of any of my visits to plantations. Gullah Gal has a stirring voice which she used to tell stories, to illustrate praying in their traditional language, and to sing, glorious singing. Very moving, informative and in some ways uplifting. It focused on the information about Boone Hall but also talked about the development of the Gullah culture in this part of the world, they refer to as the “Low Country”. It includes areas all the way from Jacksonville Florida to Wilmington North Carolina, and is referred to as the Gullah Geechee Corridor. The Gullah Geechee are the descendants of the West African people that were brought to this area so many generations ago and they are working hard to keep the history of their culture alive. They have a website at: http://gullahgeecheecorridor.org Michelle Obama is apparently a descendent of the Gullah Geechee.

She told us about the broom jumping ceremony. Slaves couldn’t get married, of course, but they did sometimes decide to cohabitate and when they did they sometimes made a commitment to each other by jumping over a broom together. Legend has it that whoever landed on the other side first was the boss in the relationship. Of course spouses could be sold 5 days or 5 months later by their masters and any offspring would often be sold off as infants. She also explained that one thing the slaves were not restricted from doing, was singing because their masters believed they worked more productively when they sang. Many of the songs they sang ring familiar. Kumbya, the familiar campfire song, is said to originate from the Kullah, and means “come by here” in their language. Sometimes the slaves secretly put messages in their songs such as in Swing Low Sweet Chariot. This apparently was sung to let anyone wanting to try to escape know when the “underground railway” was going to be organizing a group leaving that night.

After watching this great performance I headed over for a Coach Tour of the plantation to see the fields and what was growing in them. The driver/guide was funny and interesting and seemed obsessed about the influence the Free Masons had on the area. He also showed us the stables, where the Russian Prince, Dimitri and Audrey Djordiaze, raised racing horses and 3 previous triple crown winners are descendants of those horses, including Secretariat. Now they breed and raise horses for polo.

Some more modern folklore about Boone Hall Plantation is that it was the site of shooting of three popular movies/series – North and South with Patrick Swayze, the movie Queen, and the movie The Notebook (the rowing scene where Ryan Gosling took off his shirt) was filmed in the Wampacheone River .