When we first visited Savannah to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary, back in 2012, we had no idea that life would bring us back to the city on a regular basis through Jeff’s work. Which has been awesome. I love visiting a city after the initial sight-seeing frenzy. On those subsequent visits I can indulge in wandering. In off-the-beaten path sights or spent time perusing places I only got a brief glimpse of earlier.
This trip, we’ve been privileged to be part of two tours. One day we heard a lecture about then visited five historic churches of differing denominations. The lecture focused on how each congregation and denomination used the architecture, inside and out, to reflect their theology—both their relationship with God and with the world around them. Unfortunately, due to storms, we had to do the lecture inside with slides of the churches’ interiors. But in a short window between the rain, we walked to each and heard more about the elements of each building and its placement in the community. It was fascinating. I know almost nothing about historic architecture, and I love learning new things.
The second tour we got to do was of the Telfair Museum. We’ve known of this museum since our first trip but never had a chance to visit. I especially love that the building used to be Mary Telfair’s home. It adds a layer of art and history that a more modern building doesn’t. And I so much enjoy a small art museum, one where you can linger without the fear that you’ll run out of time and miss something.
I was drawn to the usual styles I enjoy—impressionist paintings and portraits, but I also discovered the Ashcan style, with elements of Impressionism but with more daily life subject matter. One room was set up in the manner in which it would have been inhabited—the dining room. I always enjoy seeing rooms set up and styled as they would have been in the past.
What was just as wonderful as these two unique tours was the fact that I got to sit at coffee shops in the city and work while Jeff attended his sessions. Then we had dinners with the group, consisting of college students and professors. The conversations at those dinners can’t be beat.
Have you been to Savannah? What is your favorite thing about the city? Or is there a city you return to again and again and continue to find unique aspects of it? Tell us!
Love this!
I had read a variety of books and Eugenia Price’s books about Savannah, and so it was exciting to visit the city.
We also went to Christ Church on St. Simon’s Island and visited Jekyll Island to the south. While we were walking the beach on Jekyll Island, we came upon Civil War soldiers! They were filming the movie “Glory”. What a fun experience.
Savannah is such a beautiful city, steeped in fascinating history, for sure.
Thank you for sharing, D’Ann!
What a fun experience you had! We, too, did St. Simon’s Island on our 25th anniversary trip. It was so amazing to see the graves of the people Eugenia Price wrote about. I still love her books so much.
I live in South Carolina so I’m not all that far away from Savannah. I visited several times but not for any extended period of time.
The last time I visited my husband and I were staying at the beach on Tybee island. We drove into Savannah one morning and had lunch along the riverfront. My husband has a bum knee so wasn’t up to much walking. But I love to see the squares/plazas (can’t think of the right name) especially in the spring!