Return To Savannah

We were in Savannah last spring, exploring a bit, and very much liked what we saw, as posted here, and here. Having sold our North American camper last summer we are thinking ever more about settling down a bit, finding a home base, though still traveling. Savannah has risen to the top of our list--Old World feel, walkability, demographics, climate, etc.--and we wanted to look a bit deeper, despite its being many months before we envisage actually moving. Anyhow, we spent nearly a week in Savannah, researching, looking around, looking especially at a variety of apartments in the city's historic center. Despite being on assignment, we did take some time for fun, with the resulting pix to document our visit. Think of them as out-takes.

Among the historic, literary, artistic sites and signage

I have an inordinate interest--inordinate considering being prone
to seasickness and suffering from Mal de Debarquement Syndrome--in
seafaring, ships, and such, and the Savannah River and port, one of
the largest on the east coast, could provide many opportunities for ship-
spotting

Bridge tucked in between the hundreds (thousands?) of containers

Big ship

So there we were, walking down River Street,
and noticing this very odd scene in the middle of
the most touristy area

Also some 30s cars and trucks (down the street)

Huh?

Of course we had wondered into a movie set--a feature called
Origin, partially set in Germany...

Tell-tale sign...we were impressed

Art Deco and Deco Echo found all over the historic district

Also a good sense of humor

Art Deco church

Dinner one night at Leopold's

Many interesting Indie shoppes

Interesting first-floor interior of the Savannah College of Art and
Design bookstore

Decor in a restaurant we liked

Ever more Deco

Featuring air-conditioned waitresses

More humor

All this among a variety of apartment visits

Interim Update #1,272

So it's two months later and, as scheduled, we are in New Zealand, on the Pacific coast of the North Island (well, actually, the Firth of Thames), camped at Tapapakanga Regional Park, perhaps an hour's drive east of Auckland. We got to New Zealand Friday morning, the 30th of December (after a 15 hour flight from Dallas and probably 25 hours total in transit), picked up our Jucy Chaser camper, and spent the next few days getting organized and outfitted while camping at the Pine Harbour Marina, near Beachlands. 

There is much to recount from the past two months, but only a few blog posts, since not much of our time was spent really traveling. After our week with college friends Tawana and Wes in Arkansas, we flew to Knoxville for a week with Vicki's sister and her husband Norm. After that, we were three weeks in DC, visiting daughter Rachel, then house- and pet-sitting for her while she did a trip to London. After DC, we rented a car and drove to Cary, NC, where other daughter Rebecca and her family have re-located, and spent a week or so there, visiting, and working at our newer storage unit nearby.

Travel, of a sort, resumed when we drove to Savannah for a week's reconnaissance. We had spent some time there in the preceding spring, thinking about a place to finally settle, and wanted to give it another look. Former in-laws Joey and Jodi were wintering on nearby Tybee Island, so we spent a few days with them, eating and drinking well, and learning some mah jongg, before returning to Cary for the holidays. We departed for New Zealand on December 28. The story picks up in the next few posts...

Our next New Zealand camper, a Jucy Chaser, which I have
tentatively dubbed Le Truc Vert; self-contained, if not spacious, 
wet bath, galley, miniscule fridge...which Vicki booked nearly
a year ago for the hyper-screaming deal of $26/day, a price 
probably not to be seen until the next pandemic/recession

Intermission...

 

Interim Update #1,271

On October 28th Austrian Airlines and Lufthansa and United flew us to Frankfurt, then Chicago, then Fayetteville, Arkansas, for a week visiting life-long friends Tawana and Wes. We're back in the States! Relaxing and catching up with some of our best family and friends. From here, we'll return to Knoxville, then to DC, and eventually to Cary, NC, for Christmas. And then to Auckland for three months in New Zealand with its warmth and hospitality. 

Awaiting the train to Flughafen Wien

Breakfast of champions at the Vienna airport lounge

With Wes and Tawana in Fayetteville

Sam Walton's pick-up at the northwest Arkansas airport; next time,
Tawana, let's do the Walmart Museum for sure

Auf Wiedersehen, Wien

Absolutely as great a visit as we'd hoped. Paris, auf Deutsch.

Vienna Out-Takes, 3

Not many masks on the streets nor in the stores;
but virtually universal on public transit

One more view of the Uniqa building, Vienna's Waltzing House

In a relatively compact historic district like Vienna's inner city, we
walk most of the distances involved, mostly to see things, but also
to get our 10,000+ steps most every day; at our age, however, walking
so much requires resting sooner or later, mostly sooner, and thus our
expertise in finding comfortable benches; this day, walking completely
across town from the Belvedere to our apartment, we somehow managed 
to miss several parks and their abundant benches, but, finally, on a lonely
street in a somewhat downwardly mobile neighborhood, we spot a nice
bench at the attractively landscaped entrance to an apartment building;
relaxing there, I look up from my phone and notice a scantily-clad young
woman blowing me kisses from a 2nd story window; interesting; it
finally occurs to me to look up "laufhaus" on Google Translate; some
sort of Comedy Club thing, I wonder; but no, it translates
straightforwardly to "whore house"; some workers arrive, one a 48Z,
Vicki says, and before things get more complicated, we decide to look
for another bench  

Vienna State Opera, one of the largest and greatest; I did the tour
in 2010--best opera house tour ever--and didn't want to disturb my
good memories

Usually you see bicycles locked to gratings and fences; someone's
soap box?

Branch office

Antique clock repair

Puppet doctor

Presto!

Dirty, disgusting, filthy, lice-ridden birds...

Outside the Albertina, Durer's Hare adorns a hot dog stand

The Albertina's great prize, and a great one indeed

Sic transit, Gloria

What happens when you eat too many greens

Clark Kent in pink pants with matching pink phone

"Here I come to save the day!"

Ornaments in a pastry shop

Loos' loos

Public toilets designed by a young Adolf Loos

The urinals are free...less is not more

Last seen in Berlin

The giant sofa at the MAK

Of course we took pix

And clowned around