Exploring Savannah's historic district

I decided the best way to introduce myself to Savannah was to get a ticket to ride the hop-on hop-off trolly. I searched for the Savannah Welcome Center on Google maps and headed there for more advice. Unbeknownst to me, the welcome center I drove to was not the official Savannah welcome center (the official center was a few blocks away)... instead, the welcome center I chose actually belonged to one of the trolly companies!

There are two competing hop-on hop-off trolly companies in Savannah. When I went into the welcome center and asked which of the two trolly companies was best, I hadn't realized the welcome center I was in belonged to one of the trolly companies! Only after asking did I notice the sign behind the counter and the uniform worn by the worker... but it was  a little late! The worker said he would give me his unbiased opinion, but of course his company came out better in the comparison than the other one. His sales pitch was good and I bought a ticket. 

The trolly route covers the historic downtown area of the city. I decided that rather than hopping off and on along the route, I would first ride the entire circuit, listening to the driver's commentary, and then decide where to get off on the next lap.

The driver talked fast and was a little hard to understand. At the end of the route we had to disembark and get onto another trolly to continue. The second driver was much easier to understand and told jokes, so I rode the entire circuit again with him and learned much more about the city.

Georgia is named after King George, who was king of England when it was colonized. At the time, the Carolinas were very lucrative with their crops. Spain controlled Florida, and King George wanted a buffer between the Carolinas and Florida, to keep Spain from invading. He commissioned James Ogelthorpe to colonize Georgia.

Ogelthorpe drew up a plan for the city of Savannah before he left England. The plan divided the city in to 24 wards, each with a central public square, a church, a residential area and a commercial area. The public squares are like little parks, and 22 of the 24 still exist -- two of them were lost to the civic center and other buildings. The squares have a grassy area, live oak trees with spanish moss, and typically have statues or fountains. They are surrounded by beautiful old houses.

Many of the side streets also have live oaks with spanish moss draping over the street.

After my second lap on the trolly, I went to the oficial visitor center and got a map and advice from one of the workers. He suggested some streets to walk along for a walking tour. I took a lot of the above photos while walking around the historical area of the city.

There was a replica of a earthen fortification from the Battle of Savannah. The battle occurred during the revolutionary war, and the British won decisively. The colonists attempted to defend themselves in fortifications like this one. 

The Savannah riverfront has cobblestone streets that were made using leftover shipping ballast. Cotton brokers, referred to as "factors", would stand on overhead pedestrian bridges and bid on bales of cotton as they came downto the river. Big storage rooms were built into the hillside. They not only provided storage but also helped with erosion.

A riverboat named the Georgia Queen offers cruises along the Savannah river. I did not partake.

That's about all I learned about Savannah today. I'm sure there's a lot more to learn, but it was very hot today and I only walked around the historic district. I'm sure there are other things to see and do in Savannah, but I'm ready to move on to the next city.

I want to visit the Savannah National Wildlife Refuge before I head to Charleston, though. The refuge has a self-directed drive where you can see alligators, birds and other wildlife. I plan on visiting there tomorrow and then heading to Charleston. I'll spend the night at the Walmart parking lot in Rincon again tonight.