Stuart's Birthday trip 2009

Well, it's that time of year again. Time to plan a trip to celebrate Stuart's birthday, only to have the surprise ruined by something I left on the computer by mistake.

However, I am proud to say that the trip remained a surprise!!

This years destination was Savannah with day trips to Tybee Island and Hilton Head.

We arrived in Savannah and went straight to Wild Wings Cafe, which Stuart claims was the highlight of the trip. They had an all-you-can-eat wing buffet. There is nothing my beloved hubby loves more than wings and a buffet. Combine the two and you have Stuart's idea of heaven.

The following day, the weather was still pretty warm but rainy. We decided to walk over to Paula Deen's restaurant, The Lady and Sons, thinking that we would put our names in for a later table. As luck would have it, the people right in front of us cancelled, so there was a table available immediately. (People begin lining up at 8:30 for reservations!). Well, to make the day even better, Paula's sons Jamie and Bobby were there signing autographs. ...swoon...

Lunch was fabulous. Of course it was- each entree was made with at least a pound of butter. Fried chicken, black eyed peas, creamed corn, greens....YUM! I didn't think I ate all that much, but let me tell you- it was at least 12 hours before I could even think of food again!

We spent the rest of the day doing a bus tour of the city. And that evening, we went on a Ghost Tour. Holy crappers, there were some FREAKY stories in Savannah. There were many times where I actually had chills.

The next day was a trip to Tybee Island. Honestly, it was like time forgot to pass there. It was a very cute beach town that seemed to be stuck in the 60's. We started off the morning visiting Fort Pulaski and 2 lighthouses. We walked around an art show and checked out the sights.

Fort Pulaski

Cockspur Island Lighthouse

Tybee Island Lighthouse

View from the Tybee Island Lighthouse

The beach

Tybee Island pier

Dinner was at the Crab Shack. Stuart and I ate more seafood than we possibly needed. It was excellent and a must-do while in the area.

There was an alligator feeding pond outside of the restaurant

The next day, we took a trip to Hilton Head. I was a little disappointed with it, though. About 10 years ago, we had a great vacation there with friends, and I remembered how much I loved the area. The problem is that Hilton Head is not the place where one just visits for the day. For starters, all of the plantations are restricted to residents and there are gates to keep vagrants like us out. And the building regulations only allow minimal signage, so I couldn't find anything I was looking for.


And Stuart was disappointed to find that The Big Bamboo cafe was closed. Thus, he couldn't get his War Dog- a cheese-filled hot dog, beer battered and deep fried, served on a bun with cheese, onions, and chili. Yummy, eh?


But we did have a good time walking around Harbour Town, where they had a benefit for a local animal shelter.

Isn't this guy adorable? He was doing the agility course.

That evening, as our goodbye to Savannah, we had dinner at Corleone's. Great italian food, but horrible service. As we were sitting at our table, we commented on an old-school, pimp-style Cadillac limo parked out front. After dinner, our server offered us a ride home...in that limo! Fearing that we would end up swimming with the fishes (after I complained about my cold ravioli), we declined the offer and walked back to the hotel.


Speaking of hotels, we stayed at Avia Savannah. This is a new hotel chain that seems to be designed to compete with Kimpton. They really did a great job. The hotel was in a perfect location right next to City Market, and it was beautifully designed. The staff were super friendly and accomodating. And of course, complain-ey me took issue with the air conditioning in the room, (it was warm and swampy in there), so they ended up upgrading us to a suite. It was MUCH better. So if you ever stay there, and you have issues with a/c, you may want to consider upgrading yourself. It seems that the system in the regular rooms isn't very efficient.


Anyway, so here we are. Back from another fun trip, and several pounds heavier.



Here is the link to the pictures