This was supposed to be a travel day but checking the weather this morning indicated a miserable day was in store so we decided after yesterday’s experience to just stay put. The problem would be that tomorrow was predicted to be worse so we are stuck in Southport until Friday. But the good news is that it is not a bad place to be stuck.
As it turned out there was rain all morning but the day turned off nice and we could have gone. No sense crying over spilt milk so we set out to make it a productive and fun day.
Let me begin by catching you up on yesterday’s sightseeing around historic Southport.
We found near the marina the Old Morse Cemetery which was on the site of the Morse Plantation. Because one of our dear friends is a Yankee Morse we thought this could be the southern branch of his family. So we tramped through the cemetery where we found absolutely no Morses. We did find a couple of very interesting tombstones however. Capt. John Conyers was in the Revolutionary War. He served with the NC Continental Line and survived the war and lived until 1812 when our next great war with the British began. Charles E. Lea served proudly in the Confederate Navy as Master of the CSS Issabel and died in service to the South in 1864. I will have to find time to do a bit of research to see if the Issabel was sunk in an engagement. Or I can just be patient and the Commander will tell me. In addition to being our weatherman he is a widely know Civil War historian.
We rode through the very welcoming city of Southport whose main street runs right down to the waterfront.
The water was getting pretty choppy out on the ICW but a few bigger boats were still moving.
We stumbled upon the North Carolina Maritime Museum and it was free so we took the tour. Most interesting, and we learned that the era of big time pirates was only 34 years in duration because technology put them out of business. They had to steal ships and when they got them they had no real way to repair them. There was also another joggling board demonstrating that these things gained widespread popularity.
There are so many interesting spots in this town that I can only give you the quick tour. The trees here are spectacular. One massive oak after another.
We decided to stop at a cottage pub for a beer and I had a cup of black bean soup. This would serve as an appetizer for dinner.
Dinner was really special. Everyone we asked said that the Pharmacy Restaurant was the place to eat so we went there to see. It was everything they said and more. The atmosphere was quiet elegance with white tablecloths and the food was special. I had crab cakes encased in philo dough and Jan had baked salmon. Nice presentation and some of the best Key Lime Pie I have ever eaten. They had a photographer taking publicity shots and we were asked to participate which we did but did not even get a free dessert. And by the way, for those of you familiar with my story of the Cambodian Duckmen that I sentenced for Cruelty to Animals involving a Muscovy duck, they had a special of breast of Muscovy duck for $28.95! No wonder those Cambodians were stealing them out of an apartment pond.
Speaking of fowl, the gulls here at the wharf are dangerous. I think I saw the ghost of Alfred Hitchcock walking around down there.
On the ride back I discovered Pearl. She could substitute for UGA at Georgia football games and almost got away from her owner and attacked me. Time to move on.
Finally, I received word from Young William denying that Gabriela’s perfume set off the alarm. I consulted with my chief engineer aboard 20BUCK$ and he says it was the battery. I still liked the perfume story.
