Philip Simmons

Many years ago I had the honor and great privilege of meeting and spending a little time speaking with a living legend.  Yes.  A walking talking piece of history.  His name was Philip Simmons.
  

Philip Simmons in his workshop behind his house in downtown Charleston, SC.

One Christmas season years ago a group of friends and I all went on a Gullah Tour in lovely Charleston, South Carolina, led by the incomparable Alphonso Brown.

Alphonso and Philip Simmons were good friends at the time, so Mr. Simmons allowed Alphonso to bring groups to his house and workshop to see him as part of the tour!  I know...unbelievable, but I promise you I am telling you the truth.

If you ever find yourself in Charleston, SC, I would recommend you take a Gullah Tour even though Philip Simmons is no longer with us.  His gorgeous ironwork survives all over the city, and you will see it on this tour.

Philip Simmons was a blacksmith.  Born on Daniel Island, SC, June 9, 1912.  He moved to Charleston at eight years old and attended the Buist School.  During those tender years he became fascinated with the blacksmiths and ironwork in the area, and he ended up doing an apprenticeship in one of the blacksmith shops thus beginning his long and prosperous career.

Mr. Simmons' work is presently displayed in the Smithsonian as well as many other museums and places of honor around the country.

If you'd like to read more about him, click HERE or simply watch the video below.

Enjoy!

Alice and the Orient Express

It is almost my birthday again, which always reminds me of previous birthdays.  Today I'm thinking about my 50th birthday back in 2005, a dozen years ago now. For that particular birthday I received a "once in a lifetime" type of gift that included an overnight ride on the Orient Express.

Yes.  The REAL ORIGINAL Orient Express train in Europe.  No.  I didn't have to murder anyone during the trip.  -grin-

The Orient Express ride part of the trip went from Paris, France to Venice, Italy, overnight, through the Alps and the wine country.  It was as wonderful as you imagine it would be or maybe even better.

These photos were taken in the train station in Paris as we were about to leave.

Dinner on the Orient Express was formal and delicious.  Men in tuxedos and women in formal wear.  It was held in the dining car with cocktails in the piano bar car afterwards.  Just wonderful.  The service on that train was the best I have ever experienced.  It was like they only hired psychic servers because they anticipated your needs and took care of you almost always without you having to ask.

I'm with the man I dated from 1998 until 2008.  This trip was my birthday gift from him.

I met a lot of interesting people. The gentleman beside me with dark hair was traveling with his wife.  She was taking the photo.  They were from Australia. 

It was fascinating to experience how the 1% get to live everyday. I'm thinking I could get used to living this way.

I am truly blessed and I know it and I am truly thankful.

Here are some more photos for you.  Enjoy!

Our Cabin on the train.

The Alps

Our personal servant.

Employees on the train who served us.

Our "Water Closet"

Pullman, Illinois: A True Story

Some of you know that I love Chicago and have visited there many times over the years.  When I go, I'm usually working, but if time permits, on the last day before my plane leaves for home, I like to take a Greeter Tour.

Greeter Tours are FREE and awesome!  For more information about Chicago's Greeter Tours, click HERE.

On one such Greeter Tour I visited historic Pullman, IL, and found the history absolutely fascinating!  I took a lot of photos while I was there.  If you would like to see all the photos from my Pullman, IL tour, please click HERE. 

Pullman, IL today is an historic site.  Go HERE for more information or to plan your own visit.

I had no idea this town even existed!  Fascinating.

Now, let's talk a minute about the history of Pullman, Illinois.  Pullman was built to be similar to a southern "mill town" in that the town was owned and operated by the industry that was located there, which was a factory that built the luxurious Pullman railroad cars. 

The factory, the houses, well, basically everything in Pullman was built and owned and operated by the CEO and man in charge,  George M. Pullman.  

Everyone thought it was GREAT!  Until it wasn't.

Trying to exert too much control over your workers never ends well, and it didn't end well for Pullman either.

Oh...the town "looked" prosperous and healthy, but the unrest grew and grew as Mr. Pullman tightened his grip and tried to squeeze more and more work for less and less pay from his employees.  Never never never a good combination

Today though, Pullman looks lovely and quaint.

This is a mural on a wall near the town museum in Pullman, IL.

Photo in the Pullman Museum.
The Pullman Free School basically educated the worker's children in skills they would need to work in the Pullman factory.

Photos in the Pullman Museum. 
Pictured left: The Pullman Free School.  Pictured right: George Pullman

Left: Me!  Right: My Chicago Greeter Tour Guide

The Hotel Florence, Pullman, IL

Lake Vista and Illinois Central Railroad Depot as it was near the turn of the 20th Century

Hotel Florence, Pullman, IL

Yes.  There is a LOT to look at in Pullman.

Hotel Florence, pictured above, was named for George Pullman's favorite daughter. It first opened in November 1881 and still sits today an easy walk from the tree lined streets of neat brick homes.

Pullman was originally comprised of 1000 beautiful brick homes built by Pullman's employees in just less than four years time from 1881 to 1884.  The town was touted as an urban utopia, and, on the surface, it sure looked like that was true.  The homes were large and beautiful with both front and back yards, water and gas, and  access to sanitary facilities. The community spaces in town had parks and other green spaces to enjoy.  The town even picked the garbage  up once a day.  The rent for your home was taken out of your salary before you received your pay, so everything worked well at first.

At first.

But it only took ten years for that urban utopia cream to sour, and today Pullman, Illinois is best remembered for the Pullman Strike of 1894.  You want to watch this video:


Still curious?  Me too.  That's why I'm including this video for you as well.  Enjoy and feel free to share!

Newgrange and Ancestors

When I had the good fortune to visit Ireland in the summer of 2005, one of the most remarkable places I saw was Newgrange.

Here is a snapshot I took when I was there:

Newgrange is located in County Meath, Ireland in the Boyne Valley.  They believe it was built by Stone Age farmers c. 3200 BC, and is a Stone Age "passage tomb."

On the Winter Solstice, the light of the rising sun enters the roofbox at Newgrange and shines down the passageway and onto the floor of the inner chamber for about 17 minutes.

The Newgrange tour takes you down into the innermost chamber of the tomb.  You want to do this tour.

Newgrange is simply a remarkable structure. It is older than Stonehenge and the Great Pyramids of Giza, and made of huge boulders that are not native to the area. No one knows exactly how the ancient farmers moved the stones to this location.  It is just a marvel to see.  Amazing. 

But that is not really what I want to talk about today.  

Today I want to tell you about my emotional reaction when I found myself in this lovely countryside.  At one point I remember looking around and breathing the fresh air and thinking to myself, "This is just like home (meaning the hill country of South Carolina on the North Carolina line)."

That is when I literally broke down and cried.  I couldn't help myself.  The weight of what I was witnessing hit me square in the heart.

My ancestors moved to America and settled the country around Whitaker's Mountain, Crowder's Mountain, King's Mountain, McKown's Mountain, etc. back home because they were homesick.  My Irish ancestors had been forced out of Ireland for whatever reason (famine, religion, etc.), but they missed the rolling hills, the smell of good earth, the cool breeze of their Irish home.  When they found the rolling Carolina hill country, they felt at home...or as close to home as their new country would allow. 

My heart went out to them.  All those souls standing behind me with all their stories unwritten, untold and unremembered.  I felt them that day.  Their spirit still lives in those hills of County Meath, and I cried for them.  

I hope they know that at least one of their offspring returned to their home and understood what they had lost.  May God bless each of those whose lives led to mine.  May God bless and keep them forevermore.

Weird, Wild, and Wonderful South Carolina Places You'll Want to Visit

---

Todabut I did find the clip interesting. my birthday!!!  Happy Birthday to ME!

---

Sometimes my friends and I like to do day trips to celebrate my birthday.  We don't go to the normal South Carolina tourist places like Myrtle Beach or Charleston or Beaufort or Table Rock, we go see odd and wondrous things!

Last year some friends and I went to the Button King Museum in lovely Bishopville, South Carolina.  We had THE BEST time.

The "Button King" is a man named Dalton Stevens. When he can't sleep he sews or pastes or somehow attaches buttons to things.  He's had insomnia a LOT, so he has all kinds of things covered in buttons. A car. A hearse. A toilet. A suit. A coffin. Etc. etc. etc. Seriously.  You want to see this place.

While we were in Bishopville, we couldn't pass up seeing Pearl Fryor's famous Topiary Gardens. Awesome!!

Pearl's story is immortalized in the DVD, A Man Named Pearl.  I first saw this on PBS a number of years ago, and I'm so very glad I was able to actually visit his gardens and see his work in person.  It is worth the trip!

Here are some of the snapshots I took during my visit to Pearl Fryor's gardens, but honestly, photos do not do this place justice. 

Go see if for yourself if you can!

---

For my birthday today (Yay!) some friends and I are going to The Park Cafe for breakfast this morning, and then we are going to Cottageville, SC to see Bee City!  I'm soooo excited!  Bee City is a Honey Bee farm, petting zoo, and nature center.  Should be a lot of fun!

We might even stop by JW's Tire Station while we're in Cottageville to see the Tow Mater Tribute. 

Then, if the time works out, we hope to go to Ridgeville, SC to Duke's BBQ for some of the BEST barbecue around.  I sure hope time works out.  😊

---

Here are some other great off-the-beaten-path things for you to see and do when you visit South Carolina.  I love places like these. Makes me want to travel more.

If you ever find yourself in Blackville, SC, you need to go visit God's Acre Healing Springs.

While you are in Blackville, be sure to stop at Miller's Bread Basket for some of the BEST Amish/Mennonite home cooking you'll find anywhere.

Can you tell it's nearly time for breakfast?  I guess I'm hungry.

Anyway....

Don't forget to go to Bowman, SC to see the UFO Welcome Center.  Watch this short video for more information on this one.  Wild, weird, and wonderful adventure for sure!!



NOTE: If you are easily offended, stop watching this after the first couple of minutes. I don't like the sex talk later in the clip, but I did find the clip interesting.

A Former Tour Guide's List of Things to Do in Charleston, SC

This morning I'm still thinking about Charleston, SC and tourists, so I decided to give you some "things to do" recommendations.
 
Free or inexpensive things to do in or near Charleston:

1. Go see Angel Oak
   (Oldest living thing east of the Rockies)
2. Go to the Charleston Tea Plantation
   (Only tea plantation in North America)
3. Visit one of our County Parks.  James Island County Park is my favorite. My dogs love the dog park there!
4. Go to the beach!!!  Folly Beach or Isle of Palms Beach or Sullivan's Island Beach
5. Explore the Historic Charleston City Market
6. Explore one or more of the 181 Historic Churches on the Charleston peninsular.  The French Huguenot Church is my church. Come to a service!
7. Visit The Citadel campus.  Every Friday afternoon (weather permitting) during the Fall and Spring semesters the Citadel cadets have a parade.  FREE to the public!
8. Visit the Battery. 
9. Visit the Art Galleries.
10. Window shop and people watch!

FUN things to do that cost money (and well worth it!):

1. The Charleston Museum (America's FIRST Museum)
2. Charleston's Museum Mile (LOTS of different kinds of museums.  Something for everyone!)
3. Take a carriage tour!  I used to drive for Old South Carriage Company, but there are other carriage companies too.
4. Take a bus, boat, or plantation tour! There are many companies.  Choose your favorite from the Visitor's Center. 
5. Do a Gullah Tour or a Walking Tour!
6. Do a Ghost Tour!
7. Visit the SC Aquarium or Patriot's Point!
8. Do a Food Tour!
9. Enjoy live music!
10. Eat wonderful food and go see a live play!
    The Historic Dock Street Theater was America's first theater. 

There are even things for your dogs to do here.  My dogs, Dolly and Stark, love visiting the parks, and I admit, I love taking them!

Dolly and Stark at Brittlebank Park Off-Leash Area on the Ashley River, Charleston, SC

Stark and Dolly at the James Island County Park Dog Park, James Island, SC

There are many dog parks and dog friendly hotels and restaurants in the area, but humans get the bulk of "to do" things.  Don't worry.  If you bring Fido and need a little alone human time, there are also many Doggie Day Care centers and boarding facilities here ready to serve you.

I will miss Charleston when I retire and move back closer to family. Hopefully I will be able to come visit all my friends in Charleston once in awhile.  I'd enjoy doing some of these things again myself!

My Tour Guide Years in Lovely Charleston, SC

Charleston, SC is lovely.  It is one of the best tourist destinations in the country.  As I live my last year before retirement in this beautiful place, I can't help but reflect on my first years here.

I moved to Charleston, SC in 1995 when I was 40 years old. I didn't want to teach public school anymore, so I searched my soul to figure out what I would enjoy doing more than teaching.  I found it.

I became a Charleston, SC tour guide.  I drove a horse-drawn carriage and did historical tours in lovely downtown Charleston.  I drove for Old South Carriage Company because they paid more money than all the other carriage companies, and I needed $$$.
 

This is me when I was a tour guide in the mid-1990s.
The draft horse is a French Percheron named Flash.
Those were the days, my friends!

Doing historical tours all day long was like teaching students who actually want to hear you...paid money to hear you...and there was NO PAPERWORK!  Perfect!

At this point I should probably tell you that I was raised around horses.  From the time I was seven until I was grown, my mother rented out our backyard as a horse pasture, so horses were a big part of my childhood.  My gravitating to them later in life seemed very natural.

Now.  Charleston carriages are not pulled by regular horses.  They use gelding 2000 pound (on average) draft horses to pull those carriages, mostly Belgian Draft Horses and French Percherons, but there is usually a Clydesdale or two in the mix as well, and they use very "English" style driving as opposed to the "Western" riding and driving I grew up doing.  Learning to drive a carriage in the English style was a real eye-opener for me.  I loved every minute of it.

NOTE: One Charleston carriage company uses mule teams to pull their carriages, but I didn't drive for that company.  My experiences with mules in my childhood taught me that they kick and bite and sit down in the middle of plowing a row in the garden, so that company was not my first choice.  😉

Before I go further, I feel the need to mention that many people are concerned for the welfare of carriage horses in Charleston, as am I.  Let me assure you that those are expensive horses.  The carriage companies would lose major money if they had to replace even one of them, so they take the best care of their horses that they can.  

Each horse:

• has his temperature taken after every tour.
• is hosed down until he is cool and comfortable after every tour.  
• is bathed by the tour guides at the end of every work day.  (You haven't lived until a 2000 pound animal shakes on you like a big wet dog.)
• is given the best food.  
• has his stall cleaned daily.  
• is petted and coddled and spoiled by all who see him, and 
• works on a rotation schedule that gives him plenty of pasture time to run and play in the country out on Johns Island. 

The tour guides?  Well, let's just say they are not treated as well.

Charleston, SC tour guides are licensed and registered by the Tourism Commission. You must pass both a written and oral exam to be a Charleston, SC tour guide.  It is NOT easy to pass these tests. Here is an explanation of the process of becoming a Charleston tour guide.

They issue both Temporary and Permanent Licenses. The license I was issued is pictured below. 

As tour guides we worked very hard and we played very hard.  We were required to know where to go out to eat and what play to see and what plantation to visit, etc. etc. etc., so on our off days we oftentimes went out exploring together.  We laughed an awful lot. 😄

Friends for life...maybe longer!

Skin problems drove me indoors after a couple of years driving carriages in Charleston's semi-tropical climate, but I wouldn't take a gold guinea for those tour guide years. I'm the person I am today because of them.

For all you would-be travelers out there, let me tell you, Charleston is a wonderful place to visit.  Come take a carriage ride!  October, November, December, January, February, March, and April here will delight you.  July?  Eh...not my favorite.  😉