Savannah, Georgia

We spent most of the day exploring Tybee, a stunning place that is both a beach bum town and a quintessential Southern community. Crab and shrimp dominate the cuisine, and picturesque beaches and marshes the landscape. With only two or three chain restaurants on the island, the general feel is that of a small town. Local businesses keep things moving here year around for the locals but there are more than a few million-dollar homes on the island occupied during vacations only. With Atlanta only a few hours away, it is not surprising.

We spent a few hours at the beach where we boarded, swam, and acted like the pale beach starved Northerns we were. The majority of the people in town avoided the beach on this 65-degree day, but with the water well above that temperature we were happy to get wet. I made the mistake of trying to skim-board, which is essentially tossing a wooden plank on an inch of water washing onto the beach, then jumping on the board and ideally skimming across the sand. I of course fell directly on my back, which was not very smooth and definitely very painful. That was the end of that and the beginning of my boogie boarding, which was more fun anyway.

That evening we headed back into the city of Savannah, a beautiful town capped with Spanish moss covered trees along every street and park. With town squares placed throughout the city, parks and gathering grounds are never far, even if they make for somewhat difficult city driving. Savannah is a beautiful town, but I would rather be in Tybee.