a course for adventure

More rain! But we're not letting it stop us from having a good time. This morning we headed to the north end of the island to Captain Mike's Dolphin Adventure and set off on a boat to cruise around the ocean and hang out by the dolphins. It was wet, but exciting. We saw a couple of different pods of dolphins in different areas of the ocean, we learned some interesting facts (What do dolphins drink? Nothing!), and the boys got an up-close-and-personal view of some, um, private dolphin anatomy. The cruise lasted a little more than an hour, and on the way in to the dock, Henry fell asleep and nearly fell right off the bench. Poor little bugger is coughing and losing his voice today too. He seems mostly still his energetic self, so hopefully he recovers quickly.

After the dolphin tour, it was still raining off and on so we headed into the gorgeous but confusing city of Savannah. The GPS directed us with no problem to Wormsloe State Park, where we got to drive down a live oak alley and see the ruins of a plantation. We first stopped in the museum, but it quickly became apparent that Henry was going to try to touch every single thing and push in front of every single person in the place, so we hightailed it out of there and set out on the walking tour. It was quiet and desolate, and the rain dripping through the moss-covered trees made it feel like a cross between time travel and the Hunger Games, if that makes sense. We walked through the woods and out to a marsh and over some bridges, saw the plantation ruins and a cemetery and some living history buildings, then looped back to the car.

Which is where the GPS failed us. It got us back to downtown Savannah pretty well, but then I used the function that lets you find the nearby restaurants, and it directed us to some pretty sketchy places that definitely were not local eateries. Eventually, we found our way back (after accidentally visiting pretty much every square in the city!) to Forsyth Park, and ate at a little cafe in the park. Then we checked out the Fragrant Garden, saw a big fountain (which excited Henry so much that he climbed the fence to get closer!), and walked down wide promenades under yet more mossy trees. Such a lush and beautiful place! I think I could spend a whole week just in Savannah, so it's too bad we only had the afternoon.

  
Tonight the weather seems to have cleared. We ordered pizza for dinner, and I ended up talking to the pizza guy about the best place to go look for shells. He recommended either the north or the south end, both places where the river empties into the ocean, so at low tide tonight we headed for the south end, which is really close to our cottage. We didn't find any giant shells, but we added plenty to our collection. The wind was pretty strong, and it waved across the wet sand where the tide had gone out.

So we're settling down for another night with three homesick boys, and tomorrow promises to be brighter, breezier, and warmer, so we're thinking our last full day here will be full of beach visits and bike rides...