Well, the vacation has come and gone. Got back into town last night, so it was back to work this morning. Ugh, the breaks are never long enough. The vacation was good, though. Here’s a recap:

My brother, David, his fiancé Elizabeth and I took a trip down to Charleston, SC for a wedding, with a little vacation time wrapped around it. We arrived at Charleston Thursday night. Too early to crash for the evening, we decided to walk around the Meeting Street area, which is a really nice section of the city, with lots of restaurants and shops. Getting hungry, we stopped by Hyman’s Seafood for a bite to eat. Hyman’s was voted the #1 seafood restaurant in South Carolina by Southern Living Magazine, so it supposedly had some pretty good food. Now, I’m not a big fan of seafood at all, but because of the reputation, I just had to try some. I had some Grouper and Shrimp, both of which weren’t that bad at all. Maybe I’ll have to give this seafood thing a second change.

Friday, we woke up and headed out to the beach, the Isle of the Palms. It was a really nice beach, with soft white sand and good waves, though very crowded. The ocean was almost bath water warm. Relaxing afternoon in the sun for sure, and my toasted shoulders are still remember it…

After the beach, we met the wedding party and other friends and family for a buffet and meet and greet. Had a chance to catch up with everyone, and even met someone who used to go to my middle school and now lives in Charleston. Small world! Afterwards, we went to Battery Park and walked along the historic section of the city. Wow, there were some grand houses, some looking like hotels.

Saturday morning, we decided to head down to Patriot’s Point Maritime Museum, home of the USS Yorktown, “a heavily decorated warship that was at the ‘tip of the spear’ in America’s victory in the Pacific during World War II.” Also on display was the USS Laffey, “The Ship That Wouldn’t Die.” This destroyer was hit by five Japanese Kamikazes and three enemy bombs in an hours time. Not only did the crew her afloat but also managed to shoot down eleven planes. That’s some bravery and determination! Coast Guard Cutter Ingham and submarine Clamagore, which we also toured, were also docked at Patriot’s Point. Very interesting stuff, especially considering that our father was in the Navy, stationed on a destroyer tender. Nice to get a brief glimpse of what it was like.

Saturday afternoon again found us at the beach, this time Sullivan’s Island. The beach and waves weren’t as good as the Isle of Palms, but it was definitely less crowded. Didn’t have much time, though, as the wedding was fast approaching…

…as were the storms. The wedding was scheduled to be at 4:30pm, but at 4:15, the skies open up and it poured down rain. High winds, thunder, and lightning didn’t help matters. After speaker stands started blowing over, we were all hurried inside to the area where the reception was to take place. We tried to wait out the weather, but the weather had more patience. After about an hour of waiting for the rain to stop, with no luck, tables were moved around and the wedding held inside. It was a nice, short ceremony and wouldn’t you know, as the reception was starting the rain stopped. Go figure!

After the delayed reception, we didn’t have much time left to do much, so we hit the putt-putt course, then back to the hotel for a heated game of Lord of the Rings Monopoly. Elizabeth won, while David lost bad. Get used to it bro!

Well, that’s the wrap up of the trip. Didn’t take many pictures, but what I have are posted in the vacation section of the Gallery.