A local's eye view
Charleston is a city of flower boxes. With so many houses fronting directly onto the sidewalks, flower boxes — in many instances — take the place of a front yard. Be they hanging from a gorgeous iron gate or from a windowsill, with Charleston’s temperate winter climate, flowers are able to bloom and be enjoyed year-round.
The sunsets in Charleston are consistently beautiful and eye-catching. Here a Palmetto tree (the state tree) on Murray Boulevard (also know as the Low Battery) captures the sun as it is heading down along the Ashley River.
Have you strolled along the Low Battery during sunset?
The intersection of Broad and Meeting Streets is known as the Four Corners of Law. The buildings on the four corners represent Federal (US Post Office and Federal Courthouse), State (Charleston County Courthouse — in which state law is enforced), City (Charleston City Hall) and ecclesiastical law (St. Michael’s Church).
Here you get a peek of St. Michael’s steeple looming above the US Post Office.
Have you crossed the street here?
The Old Exchange Building, located at the very end of Broad Street, is one of the most significant pre-colonial buildings in the United States. In fact, the Declaration of Independence was first read in South Carolina from its balcony. It’s been a customhouse, mercantile exchange and military prison and barracks, not to mention its modern day role in lots of weddings and parties.
One of the coolest aspects of the building (well, it is now, but maybe not back in the day) is what’s downstairs — the Provost Dungeon, where the British locked up some very nasty people. The building is open for tours during the day and at night Bulldog Tours leads a spookyvisit to the dungeon.
The pier at Waterfront Park is one of the most popular walking destinations for both locals and visitors in Charleston. With spectacular views of the entire Charleston Harbor (including water traffic ranging from the largest container ships in the world to frolicking dolphins), Fort Sumter, the fountains in the park and even the steeple of St. Philip’s Church, it’s a wonderful spot to take in the sights, sounds and smells of Charleston. It’s also one of the stops of the Charleston Water Taxi, on which you can get out of the water for just a few dollars and really experience the Charleston Harbor.
St. Philip’s Church steeple is perhaps the most photographed of all the steeples in the Holy City. During the day, its stuccoed exterior is constantly being passed by tour carriages, people going to and from work, and visitors and locals out for a stroll. At night, bathed in a soft light, it takes on a fuzzy and ethereal quality. Viewed here from the cobble-stoned Chalmers Street, framed by a Live Oak tree and a gas street light, it fairly screams “Charleston!”
The Pineapple Fountain in Waterfront Park is one of the favorite stops for Charleston locals and visitors alike. For centuries the pineapple has symbolized hospitality — which is perfect for Charleston, voted perennially the friendliest city in America.
With spectacular views of the harbor, the Pineapple Fountain area is a great one to sit, soak up some sun or just people watch. While the water can be a little chilly in the winter months, in the heat of the summer you can find children, dogs and many feet finding it a great spot to cool off.
The Ravenel (Cooper River) Bridge is a beautiful structure. Dominating the Lowcountry, it can be seen for miles in every direction. Harkening back to Charleston’s earliest days as an important trading port for the great sailing ships, the spans and cables of the bridge were designed to resemble the sails of those majestic ships.
With a special lane added for walkers, runners and bikers, it’s become a destination by itself, and not just an attractive way for moving cars between Charleston and Mt. Pleasant. It’s certainly the largest “hill” in the area and offers spectacular views of Charleston Harbor, the Charleston peninsula, the various surrounding islands and the Atlantic Ocean.
Many years ago I was walking down a street in Charleston with a very long time resident. When I mentioned I had never noticed a certain detail on a house before she said that there wasn’t a day that went by when she didn’t see something she had never noticed before. Depending on the time of day or direction you are walking, going by the same spot in Charleston can feel significantly different.
Having walked, biked or driven by this gate on Tradd Street many times before, I had never noticed the wonderful shadow cast by the beautiful ironwork. This time with the sun at the right angle, I was in the right spot and a little bit of magic occurred.
One of the delights in living in or visiting Charleston is the temperate climate. And going hand-in-hand with that is the ability to have flowers blooming all year-round. But, even with the flowers in all the flower boxes, there is something special when you see if the first trees start to blossom after a couple of months of the cooler weather. That time has now arrived!