These Yankees have been charmed by sweet Savannah. There’s so much history buried and thriving in that city. Southern hospitality gives it that extra special something. Food is amazing. The preservationists worked hard at keeping their history intact and it shows. That’s what Victor and I loved. NYC has a lot of history but our real estate is so valuable that very little gets saved and becomes more commercial by the day. We’re finding that we have to go to other places to find what we’re missing.

There were a few surprises here. We don’t know much about the south. I was worried our manners won’t be up to par and I’m sure they weren’t. We don’t know their ways and we’re friendly for NYers but that looks like crap compared to them. I’m not used to taking my time talking to people, not used to eating family style with strangers and talking to them, saw more interracial couples than I expected, they have the 3rd oldest Jewish Congregation in the nation, had a really nice artsy vibe, very walkable and also not used to being around so many soldiers. There’s a lot of bases down there.

We grew up in NYC. We’re always in the city. Besides the annual or biannual vacations  we don’t see green much.  When we do, we usually visit other cities since we don’t drive. Savannah was a nice combo of city and lots of green spaces. We loved slowing down and absorbing it all in. Trees everywhere and not as many bugs as I expected. It was extremely hot. When we were there it was 90-92F (32.2-33.3C).

Cobblestone streets, historic homes, Spanish Moss – it couldn’t get any better.

River Street seemed more urban than the rest of town and I think that’s why we weren’t into it. The shops and buildings were cute but we really enjoyed the green spaces in the interior.

I really enjoyed all the boutiques. When Victor and I first dated I would drag him to new designer fairs back home and that’s what a lot of the little shops remind me of.

I try to keep leather products to a minimum. I use to wear vegan shoes but that was miserable. I have very wide feet and they were all too narrow and none were ever water proof. I’m sure there may be more options now but I’ll never enforce full vegan shoes again. I worked in retail and was in so much pain from ill fitting shoes. I’m glad after several years of suffering I decided a few pairs of good fitting shoes are fine. I rationalize leather goods by buying on sale or at outlets. At least they are leftovers. But I did a naughty thing this trip. I’ve been searching for a gold metallic bag. I found one in Savannah and it wasn’t on sale. I had one custom made by a new designer and I should have it by the end of June. At least I supported a mom and pop and not a chain brand. I love it. Gold exterior and blue interior, middle bag in the bottom window picture.

Elizabeth Seeger is the founder of Satchel and she’s a SCAD graduate (Savannah College of Art and Design).

Savannah has a lot of stores I’d like to check out when we return. The SCAD store was pretty interesting. Next time I’ll save more for a bit of a shopping budget.

We walked around a lot.

Everywhere you look it’s green and pretty.

There’s always a ghost tale waiting for you to discover it.

Southern food is the tastiest, may not be the healthiest but who cares, you only live once. We waited on line for over an hour in 90F heat. At least it was in the shade. Was it worth it? YES! Mrs. Wilkes Dining Room has the best fried chicken and her biscuits melt like butter. There’s always a wait.

It’s hard not to fall asleep after a meal like this. We met other southerners and got great southern travel tips.

And Bird Girl, the reason why we traveled to Georgia. She was on the cover of Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil. She had to be removed from the cemetery because people would chip away at her for mementos. That’s disgusting behavior. She would have been more beautiful in Bonaventure but at least she’s safe in Telfair Museum Telfair Academy.