Savannah Bonaventure Travel Podcast
Welcome to our SAVANNAH PODCAST!
This is the second installment of our captivating Savannah For 91 Days podcast series. In case you missed our inaugural episode, you can embark on this exciting journey by clicking here and starting from the beginning.
https://www.dailymotion.com/partner/x2t4xwh/media/playlist/videos/x80rqx
Our exploration of Savannah begins with a fascinating visit to a mansion that has been transformed into a maritime museum, boasting an impressive collection of model ships. Delve into the depths of Savannah's rich maritime history, where you'll uncover a treasure trove of information about the city's enduring connection with the sea.
Following this maritime adventure, we invite you to join us for a memorable dining experience at the renowned Olde Pink House. Savor the flavors of the South and immerse yourself in the historic charm that graces this venerable establishment.
As our journey continues, we'll introduce you to the enigmatic spirit of little Gracie Watson, a haunting presence that lingers within the atmospheric Bonaventure Cemetery. The cemetery, with its moss-draped oaks and hauntingly beautiful statuary, is a captivating testament to Savannah's historic and spiritual heritage.
Want to see more photos of each segment?
https://savannah.for91days.com/the-heroic-genius-of-to-go-cups/
https://savannah.for91days.com/oglethorpe-tomochichi-savannahs-bestest-buddies/
https://savannah.for91days.com/washington-square/
https://savannah.for91days.com/fine-dining-at-the-olde-pink-house/
https://savannah.for91days.com/bonaventure-cemetery-good-fortune-comes-to-those-who-die/
https://savannah.for91days.com/the-scarborough-house-ships-of-the-sea/
This is the second installment of our captivating Savannah For 91 Days podcast series. In case you missed our inaugural episode, you can embark on this exciting journey by clicking here and starting from the beginning.
https://www.dailymotion.com/partner/x2t4xwh/media/playlist/videos/x80rqx
Our exploration of Savannah begins with a fascinating visit to a mansion that has been transformed into a maritime museum, boasting an impressive collection of model ships. Delve into the depths of Savannah's rich maritime history, where you'll uncover a treasure trove of information about the city's enduring connection with the sea.
Following this maritime adventure, we invite you to join us for a memorable dining experience at the renowned Olde Pink House. Savor the flavors of the South and immerse yourself in the historic charm that graces this venerable establishment.
As our journey continues, we'll introduce you to the enigmatic spirit of little Gracie Watson, a haunting presence that lingers within the atmospheric Bonaventure Cemetery. The cemetery, with its moss-draped oaks and hauntingly beautiful statuary, is a captivating testament to Savannah's historic and spiritual heritage.
Want to see more photos of each segment?
https://savannah.for91days.com/the-heroic-genius-of-to-go-cups/
https://savannah.for91days.com/oglethorpe-tomochichi-savannahs-bestest-buddies/
https://savannah.for91days.com/washington-square/
https://savannah.for91days.com/fine-dining-at-the-olde-pink-house/
https://savannah.for91days.com/bonaventure-cemetery-good-fortune-comes-to-those-who-die/
https://savannah.for91days.com/the-scarborough-house-ships-of-the-sea/
Category
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TravelTranscript
00:00 Welcome to the second episode of our Savannah podcast series.
00:10 We're Mike and Jurgen from the Travel Blog for 91 Days, and we hope you're excited to
00:15 travel with us again back to Savannah to learn more about this eccentric city in Georgia.
00:20 If so, just put on your headphones, sit back, and join us as we continue to explore this
00:24 jewel of the U.S. South.
00:33 The Heroic Genius of To-Go Cups
00:36 Now just to make absolutely sure, you're saying that you'll put my beer in a cup and then
00:40 I can walk around outside?
00:42 In front of cops?
00:43 And there will be no problems?
00:46 The bartender was growing exasperated with me.
00:48 "Yes, dude, for the hundredth time, yes, you're golden!"
00:52 I just couldn't believe it.
00:53 It was our first weekend in Savannah, and people were walking around on the streets
00:57 and sidewalks, sipping beers.
00:59 Outside.
01:00 I mean, I'd seen Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil and To-Go Cups had been mentioned
01:04 in city guides.
01:06 But somehow, the glorious reality of it hadn't really clicked in my brain.
01:11 The idea of legally walking around downtown in broad daylight with an open container was
01:15 simply too good to be true.
01:18 Savannah is one of just a handful of cities in the USA with this law, or rather, lack
01:23 of a law.
01:24 There are just two simple rules.
01:26 One, the cup must be plastic, and two, you must be in the historic district, anywhere
01:32 north of Jones Street.
01:34 The To-Go Cup is a Savannah institution, and one we would make persistent use of.
01:46 Oglethorpe and Tomochichi, Savannah's Bestest Buddies
01:50 James Oglethorpe is the founder of Georgia, born in Godalming, Surrey, England.
01:55 He made his name as a soldier and eventually became a member of Parliament, where he successfully
02:00 lobbied for the creation of a 13th colony, foreseen as a buffer to protect the lucrative
02:04 Carolina colonies from Spanish Florida.
02:08 Oglethorpe arrived in 1732 and got right to work establishing his new colony.
02:13 First item of business?
02:15 Land.
02:16 The smallish Yamacraw tribe occupied the territory of present-day Savannah, but rather than the
02:20 good ol' slaughter and seize, Oglethorpe chose to negotiate for the territory's purchase.
02:26 He was an inherently fair person, and had soon built a close personal friendship with
02:30 the native's leader, Chief Tomochichi.
02:33 Luckily for the Pale Skins, Tomochichi was unusually open to newcomers, eager to help
02:39 out the fledgling colony and have his people educated in the British style.
02:44 He aided negotiations with the mistrustful Creek tribe and accompanied Oglethorpe on
02:48 a trip to England, where he was a big hit as an ambassador for his people.
02:53 A legend even states that Tomochichi is the originator of Savannah's "two-go cup" tradition,
02:59 as he always traveled with Indian firewater in a hand-carved wooden container.
03:04 Okay, fine.
03:06 There's no legend like that.
03:08 But it would be cool if there were.
03:11 History regards both Oglethorpe, a philanthropist who tried to keep slavery out of Georgia,
03:16 and Tomochichi in a positive light.
03:19 Without this early odd couple, the fledgling town would have had a much harder go of it.
03:31 Washington Square
03:33 The most northeastern of Savannah's squares, Washington is a lovely garden in a quiet residential
03:38 neighborhood.
03:39 It was named in honor of our first president, who visited the city shortly after his election.
03:45 Originally the site of the trustees' garden, Washington Square is well cared for, and regarded
03:50 as one of the most beautiful squares in Savannah.
03:53 Betrothed couples often choose this as the location for their wedding portraits.
03:57 In fact, the first time we visited Washington Square, a pair was posing together on the
04:02 benches, running hand-in-hand down the sidewalk and throwing bunches of leaves up into the
04:07 air.
04:08 I don't know why wedding photographers always instruct couples to act like idiots,
04:12 but it was fun watching them.
04:14 Now jump in the air, I love it.
04:16 Rub your noses together, yas just like that.
04:19 Hop on one leg and bray like donkeys.
04:22 Fantastic.
04:24 A number of interesting buildings surround Washington Square, such as the International
04:28 Siemens House and the Mulberry Inn.
04:30 An elegant hotel, which started life as a cotton warehouse before becoming a Coca-Cola
04:35 bottling factory.
04:37 We pretended to be guests so that we could use the bathrooms.
04:40 Gentlemen such as Juergen and myself will only sneak into the finest bathrooms, and
04:44 this one was pretty good, so, despite our having never stayed there, the Mulberry earns
04:49 our seal of approval.
04:57 Fine Dining at the Old Pink House
05:00 The Old Pink House, on the western side of Reynolds Square, was built in 1771, and is
05:05 the oldest surviving mansion in all of Savannah.
05:08 Today, it's one of the city's most beloved restaurants, and is also home to a popular
05:12 bar on its bottom floor.
05:14 The mansion was originally built for James Habersham, who was one of the colonial city's
05:19 most important merchants.
05:21 Habersham committed suicide in the basement of this house after discovering that his wife
05:25 was having an affair with the architect.
05:28 Because this is Savannah, Habersham's ghost is rumored to still wander the halls.
05:33 Much of the restaurant's staff claims to have encountered him at least once.
05:37 We didn't see any apparitions during our dinner at the Pink House, but it's certainly
05:41 a suitable place for them.
05:43 Each of the low-lit rooms in this multi-floor restaurant is decked out with original artwork
05:48 and furniture, and the effect is haunting, especially at night.
05:52 I felt transported back to the 18th century as we were led to our table.
05:57 After ordering, I embarked on a little tour of the restaurant, to admire the individual
06:02 rooms.
06:03 As fascinating as the history is, and as impressive the decor, the best thing about the Pink House
06:09 is the food.
06:10 Good lord.
06:12 On a recommendation from a friend, I tried the flounder, which was perfectly cooked and
06:16 covered in a rich apricot sauce.
06:19 It's one of their specialties, and for good reason.
06:22 Juergen had pecan, crusted chicken breast, and we both were given southern specialty
06:26 sides like collard greens.
06:28 Everything was delicious.
06:30 The Planters Tavern is a bar on the bottom floor of the Pink House, where you'll often
06:33 find a jazz singer and pianist.
06:36 It's a cool spot to spend a late, relaxed evening.
06:39 If you see Habersham's spirit in the seat next to you, do him a favor and act scared.
06:45 It's not easy being the ghost of an old Pink House.
06:55 Bonaventure Cemetery.
06:57 Good fortune comes to those who die.
07:00 Known as one of the most beautiful cemeteries in the entire country, Bonaventure Cemetery
07:04 is found on the outskirts of Savannah, bordering the Wilmington River across from White Marsh
07:09 Island.
07:10 Its name means "good fortune," and those buried on its grounds might certainly consider
07:15 themselves fortunate.
07:17 There are worse places to rest in eternal slumber.
07:20 Bonaventure is a place of haunting beauty, where Spanish moss hangs sorrowfully from
07:25 every tree, casting broken light onto solemn fields of gravestones.
07:30 The cemetery is large, and one which you could spend hours exploring, discovering tombstones
07:36 of exquisite craftsmanship and other most notable for their peculiarity.
07:41 There's one in the form of a broken tree trunk, a grinning marathon runner, obelisks and gates,
07:46 downcast girls holding flowers, underground crypts, and of course, there's little Gracie
07:51 Watson.
07:52 Of all Bonaventure's ghosts, the most famous is that of Gracie Watson.
07:56 In life, the vivacious daughter of the manager of the Pulaski House had been beloved by neighbors
08:01 and well-known to the hotel's guests, but Pneumonia wasn't impressed by little Gracie's
08:06 charms.
08:07 Pneumonia snuffed her out at the age of six.
08:10 Her grief-stricken father commissioned a statue to mark her grave, and ever since there have
08:14 been rumors of the soft sobbing of a little girl in Bonaventure.
08:18 The statue supposedly sheds tears and screams out at night if a flower has been removed.
08:23 Besides Gracie, a number of famous people rest their bones in Bonaventure, including
08:27 Johnny Mercer, Conrad Aiken, and Henry R. Jackson.
08:31 One statue you won't find there, though, is the bird girl statue, which graced the
08:35 cover of Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil.
08:38 It's been moved to the Telfair Museum of Art for safekeeping.
08:46 The Scarborough House, Ships of the Sea
08:51 On MLK Boulevard near River Street, one of Savannah's most historic houses has been
08:56 converted into a museum called "The Ships of the Sea."
09:00 The 1819 Scarborough House was designed in the Greek Revival style by architectural wunderkind
09:05 William Jay, who was responsible for many of the city's best houses of that time period.
09:12 William Scarborough was an early American from North Carolina who made his fortune in
09:17 shipping.
09:18 He was perhaps best known as the mastermind behind the famous SS Savannah, the first steamship
09:22 to successfully cross the Atlantic.
09:25 Although it was one of the city's proudest moments, luring even President Monroe to commemorate
09:29 the occasion, the venture was a commercial failure, and Scarborough fell into bankruptcy.
09:35 His handsome house was sold off at auction and would serve as both an orphanage and Savannah's
09:40 first public school for black children, before finally being abandoned and falling into ruin.
09:46 In 1972, the Historic Savannah Foundation stepped in and begun restoration on the house.
09:53 Keeping in mind Scarborough's line of work, the house was converted into a maritime museum.
09:57 The Ships of the Sea boasts large-scale model ships and a wealth of information about the
10:02 lines which operated out of Savannah and famous ships from around the world.
10:06 I've never been the least bit interested in boats, so I didn't expect the museum
10:10 to impress me.
10:12 But it did.
10:13 We really enjoyed our visit to the Scarborough house, which is just as interesting for its
10:17 architecture as for the exhibition pieces.
10:20 The model ships were incredible, their stories interesting, and we loved the collection of
10:25 nautical equipment and scrimshaw.
10:34 We hope you're enjoying our stories from Savannah.
10:37 If so, please subscribe to our podcast so you don't miss any episodes.
10:41 And of course, you can read all about this amazing city and admire photos on our blog,
10:45 savannah.for91days.com.
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