photo:coolchaser

Hope you have a Happy 4th!

AMERICA…Home of the FREE…BECAUSE of the BRAVE!

Our last day…time does fly when you’re having fun. Shirl and Tina let me sleep a little late, and once again, they head out to Paula’s Place to secure us a seating for dinner tonight…it’s our last chance. Off they go, while I finish getting ready. The phone is ringing as I get out of the shower. “How bad do you want to eat here?” they say, “we will have to stand in this line for at least an hour, and then there is no guarantee we’ll get a reservation.” So, it comes down to this, huh, Paula? You are making us choose….shopping or eating? “Come on back,” I say, “she had her chance. We have got a house to furnish!” So, for the last time, SORRY PAULA !
In just a few minutes. the girls are back and I am ready, and off we go. We were told about a very nice gallery that was close enough to walk to. We decided to start there.

Well, my friends, we had us a fine experience here. What an exciting place! The owner, Vincent, met us at the door and bid us come in and we did. It was like entering another world. His shop is on the second floor of one of the original warehouses built along the River. He deals mostly in Chinese art and antiquities. We looked around and then he asked us what we were looking for. Oh, the pieces he showed us! Since Alex is decorating his apt. in an Asian style, I was looking for a chest for his den. I found it….just waiting for me to come along and pick it up. And, here it is:

The next piece I needed was a long piece for my front foyer. This was actually used as a kitchen piece, but its width and length are perfect for my foyer. These pics don’t do justice to the beauty of the wood. And of course, it needs a good dusting and waxing. But, here is what I found:
And, then I spied this table. It has just the right amount of red paint, fading and distressed just the perfect amount…a perfect sofa table. So, now this is mine, too.

I also bought a window covering that is carved out of teak to be used as a wall hanging. Vincent then asked what else I was looking for. I told him that I was sure he didn’t have a farm table that seated 12 like I was looking for, so I was finished.
“Come with me,”he said, “let’s go to my house.” He walked out the door of the gallery and we followed him…not knowing where we were going. Well, he led us down a few flights of stairs and a steep slope and then opened up some very, very old sliding warehouse doors. In we walked…his house. What a surprise! Even though it was on the bottom floor, it had the feel of a loft in some big city. Right outside was the River. He had some of the most glorious furniture and art work. What a feast for the eyes! We followed him to the dining area and there was the most wonderful table. It was exactly what I have been looking for. Then he said for us to look underneath, and we did. Some of the most beautiful hand work was done on the underside. This is not like any table I have ever seen before. “Now, follow me,” he said. And he led us to these:

His table was made from a set of doors like these…and he has another set. These doors, and all the other furniture is from a temple in Mongolia. In this area of China, they have had to flood some of the provinces. They have relocated the people, and, of course, all the houses and shops and temples were left behind. He went in and bought up several temples and all that was in them. These doors are over 300 years old and are an elm wood. The other set is longer, so my table will be about 10 feet long. It is in the process of being made, and all the furniture will be delivered when I call for it. Can you just imagine how excited I am?

While we were in his home, we noticed all the artwork on his walls, and commented on the pieces. They were all so vibrant and full of life. We asked who the artist was and he handed Shirley a book. She looked at it and realized that HE was the artist. Then he said that his painting was his work and the furniture was just a passion. He quickly realized that we simple Southern Ladies were not knowledgable about the art world. He pulled up his art web site and showed us some of his work. I almost fell over when I saw that some of his paintings go for up to $800,000.00. That is eight hundred thousand dollars! Oh, my, word! The cheapest went for $30,000.00.
What an interesting morning we spent there! It was such a treat! And, the furniture will be very different from anything anyone else may have.

***Thus ends the morning of our last day in Savannah. Afternoon details tomorrow.***

Day 3, we got up a little early, so as to get more packed into the day. Tina and Shirley left to go check in with Paula…no luck today. Oh well. Sorry Paula! They come back to retrieve their queen and we start the day with a trolley tour. Mary had got us all set up and had a shuttle to come and pick us up. The tour was 90 minutes, but the ticket allowed you to ride all day. Which meant you could use it as transportation around town, getting off and on at various stops. We took the complete tour first, and it was very informative. Savannah is built around many squares and much of the early architecture is still intact. There are some…no, many…magnificent homes. And beautiful churches. The term the guide used was an urban forest, because of all the live oak trees planted in each square. Another interesting fact..Savannah, itself, is the protected historic feature. Not the houses, or churches…but the city. The way it is laid out is protected. They can never do anything to altar the layout of the city.







Finish the tour, and start around again, but get off soon to do some exploring on our own. We find some neat shops we have read about and look through them with interest. There is a shop that intrigues me, but the Princesses…not so much. So they go to see if we can meet and eat with Paula for lunch…not today…all filled up. Sorry Paula! We decide to eat at a delightful place, the GRYPHON TEA ROOM…it comes highly recommended. It was fabulous! I had fried goat cheese salad, Tina had quiche…Shirley, chicken Salad and fruit. So yummy and great atmosphere! No room for dessert. We begin our walk back to the motel, pausing to sit and play fashion police for a while. LOOK! We spy a cupcake bakery and decide it was put there for a purpose…to provide us with a tasty treat. So, it would be wrong not to partake. So we did! Good thing we did so much walking! It is so pleasant to walk through all these lovely parks…so shady and cool…and great benches to rest weary legs. As we continue our trek to the motel, guess where we pass by? Paula’s Place! I ask the hostess if we can make a reservation for 3…she said, “Come on in, you can eat right now!” I so hated to say that I meant for tonight. We were just too full from our lunch and cupcake! Sorry Paula! She just smiled and shook her head. PAULA, OUR TIME IS GETTING SHORT. Because my feet are now the size of 2 of Paula’s country hams, we decide to catch the trolley back to the River, and finish the rest of the River Street shops. Bad choice…nothing but junk! Thankfully, a trolley comes along in just a few minutes, we catch a ride and end up very close to where we can rest our bodies for the night. We manage to fit in just one more antique store before closing time…it was within walking distance of the hotel. But, by the time we get there, we are all just too, too tired. Sit and talk with Mary a while…mostly cause we are too tired to move! Make it upstairs, and I fall into bed. We ordered pizza to the room, and soon began to let beautiful sleep heal our tired bodies.

Day 3 has gone, The night is here. Our thanks go up for times of cheer.

Morning came early, on this Day 2 of our trip. We all slept a little longer than usual, but oh, how nice! This place has wonderful beds! Fast breakfast, and a confab with Mary, we set off with our maps at the ready! This is one more beautiful city. Plan to stop by and make a reservation at Paula Deen’s place, but line is around the block…will try tomorrow. Sorry Paula! Follow the route…for a while. First stop…


Yummy! The perfect way to start any day! Since Tina had spent her high school years here (her dad was a Methodist pastor), we decided to see if we could track down any of the places she remembered. We found the church…but sadly, it had been closed the first of June. What a sad thing it is to see a House of God closed because of low interest. It had only about 25 members when it was closed. We saw the parsonage where Tina lived right next door. She took lots of pics, and as she was getting back in the car, noticed an elderly woman across the street walking her dog. She looked familiar, and sure enough she was the lady who used to take Tina and her brother to school. They were able to talk over times past and catch up on the present. What a neat thing for Tina! We thanked the Lord for bringing her outside at just the time to be noticed by Tina! We then drove by the high school. It was a massive 3 story building. Sweet remembrances for Tina.

Now, on to the antique shopping! Mary had told us several places to go…and so we did. First stop, I found this precious chair! It is called a Morris Chair and is considered to be the first recliner. This one is very small…but it will have a place in my studio.

From here, we went to a store that specialized in architectural salvage. I found several neat pieces here. They had an small antique chandelier from an old estate in Savannah. Perfect for over a table in my back foyer. Then I found the most wonderful doors and gates. The owners of this store had recovered many pieces from the isle of Montserrat in the Caribbean after a volcanic eruption. They had several wonderful pieces, along with wonderful gates and doors. I purchased a capital from the top of a salvaged temple column. It is over 400 years old. The many layers of paint are wonderful!

One more antique store…if my legs will hold out! JACKPOT!!! LOOK AT THESE!!!

Just what I had been looking for! These are going to be used to build a cabinet around my TV in the den. I don’t understand just how, but I know it has to be great! These doors are from colonial times in America and were the doors on a pie safe. Can you see the latch? Beautiful carving on the bottom, too.



Also, much to my delight, this antique store had a whole section dedicated to Japanese books and artifacts. Alex loves studying the Japanese…the art, the culture, the people. He took Japanese as his language requirement in High School. He plans to decorate his apartment in the Japanese style. So, I was able to find several books for him as well as a wonderful 7 foot scroll from a temple there. Had a fascinating lesson on rugs here and learned much. Wonderful teacher, too! We decided then that not only my wallet, but also, our tummies were empty. We shopped right through lunch! So, we say good-bye to all the treasures left to find…and set out toward home and sustenance for the body. We find a lovely place that looks out over the River, and decide that will do nicely. We eat our meal with soothing piano music played nearby.

Day 2 has gone, as has the sun…We found the treasure, we shared the fun!