Charleston, South Carolina

A night in Walmart car park, served us well yet again.  They had good wifi, and plenty of space for Harvey.  As we had arrived there late in the evening, there was no point searching for a campsite, because we expected to be off early in the morning, anyway.
We took a trip to the visitors centre in the Mount Pleasant area of Charleston.  As we walked to get our information on Charleston, Tim got bitten alive by mosquitos. A walk along the picturesque waterfront was NOT something that appealed to Tim, so he abandoned Ruth to visit the visitors centre.  After all, that's what visitors centres are for, - visiting!
As he walked up to the doorway, a snake slithered across the outdoor entrance!  It was about a metre long.  Couple that with the notices that we have seen on campsites with lakes, warning that there are often alligators in the lake.  On top of that, Tim opened up the electrical connection box to connect up Harvey and found a hornet's nest on the underside of the lid!!  Tim was not enjoying the wildlife!

Hornet's nest under the lid.  It was alive with cross hornets!

The drive into Charleston was easy, and we parked Harvey in a garage parking facility in the town.

Bridge into Charleston with cargo boat going under

A free trolley bus (not quite the same as a trolley bus in UK) took us on a circular route further into Charleston.

Trolley bus

Inside the trolley

Our aim was to visit the oldest reformed synagogue in USA, in Hasell Street.  The trolley took us there.

Hasell Street synagogue

We paid our 10 bucks each and were given a guided tour by a lovely lady called Bobbi.  We will call her Dilys from now on, as she reminded us of our good friend Dilys.

Inside the synagogue

We were introduced to the inside of the synagogue and learned about the history.  But we think we and others may have asked too many questions of poor Dilys, as the hour long tour morphed into nearly and hour and half!  It was fascinating to see the parallels between our Christian faith and the Jewish faith. It was fascinating to understand a bit more about the linkages between imagery and symbolism in the Christian faith and their roots in Judaism.  For example, learning about the Passover, and God's mercy in passing over those who believed.

The Torah scrolls were kept encased in a wooden cupboard type of structure.  In the cupboard were 4 x Torah scrolls (our Old Testament).  One was very ancient.  Another was recovered from the Holocaust and delivered to this synagogue.  They also had "working copy" which was generally the one in use.

Four Torahs for use in worship

The rest of the afternoon was spent walking round Charleston.  We were accompanied for the first part by two of the Jews we met in the synagogue, Alan and Michelle.  They were surprised that people of other faith had taken the time to visit a synagogue.  We enjoyed their explanation on the questions we had, as we walked along.
A short time in the market area, and we parted with Alan and Michelle.  Lovely people with a similar outlook on life to us.

Rainbow Row

The town was picturesque and we could easily see the influences of Europeans.  Dutch style architecture.  A French quarter.  Old English colonialist buildings.  All made a very pleasant afternoon in Charleston.

In the French quarter

Church running an Alpha course

old building

It is well worth a look at the old town.  It is probably the most similar town to anything we are used to in England.  Shops and boutiques.  Restaurants and cafes.  Churches and grand buildings.
Most towns are sprawling and large with no discernable town centre.

aircraft carrier complete with planes and 'copters!

waterfront area