Charleston

We took advantage of the long weekend to go Charleston, SC. Although me and wifey have been there before, it was more of a sort of double family outing with Leonard and family as well.

We set off in the dead of the morning at around 6 am as Charleston was about 2 hours away. Our first stop was Magnolia Plantation. This is one of the many plantations that dot the South Carolina's landscape, remininscent of those pre-emancipation days. See the Drayton family mansion who owns the plantation.

Of course baby was dressed for the occasion in her pink romper and explorer hat:
The plantation used to be a rice field till approximately 1910 when a hurricane struck Charleston and destroyed the levee that separated the sea from the padi field. (Yes, just like the way Hurricane Katrina destroyed New Orleans) The padi fields were never restored for agriculture and this is what's left - a big bad alligator infested swamp:

Of course parts of the swamp has been converted to a garden to make it more of a tourist trap. Here is one of the defining image of Magnolia Garden:
Here is a picture of the whole family in downtown Charleston:
An interesting pineapple fountain in downtown Charleston:
Maybe it has to do with Spanish Moss???: