Girls’ Trip to Savannah

In early spring, I planned a trip for M, J, and me to go to Savannah in large part because we expected M to spend her summer working as a camp counselor, and I wanted to grab the chance for her to visit my mom between her various gigs. It turns out that she’s now staying local and will see her at other times, but I was still happy to have a trip planned: my first flights since COVID. I was excited to find out that Allegiant Air is flying from Stewart-Newburgh Airport to Savannah. Of course Albany would have been better, but at $108 per round trip, I’m happy to schlep south for a direct flight instead of the many, many hours on the road that we usually do. In fact, my last pre-COVID trip was flying Allegiant from Allentown Airport to Savannah for the Savannah Book Festival in February 2020, and I remember thinking, “Whoa, this is so convenient! I’m going to go to Savannah All. The. Time!” . . . Oh well. Anyway, it turned out that ours was the airline’s first flight on that route, so when we got to the airport, they were literally having a party, complete with a fabulous cake, to celebrate.

It was rather surreal being in Savannah. Mom’s neighborhood is jam-packed with smart retirees who got vaccinated as soon as possible, and between that and all the outdoor bars and dining, it felt very mask-free and post-COVID. In a lovely way. It was also fortunate for us that we went when we did, over Memorial Day weekend. At home the weather was cold and rainy, but down south, we were hanging out at the pool.

We spent a day at the beach at Tybee Island, which was wonderful. But even just walking around the neighborhood is quite lovely.

We were afraid that it would be way too hot, but it was mostly pretty comfortable outside. It even got a little breezy if you were biking or tooling around on the golf cart. J went to a yoga class with her aunt, M and I got lost riding bikes, we all ate tons of yummy food, and I sampled multiple cocktails.

A highlight was High Tea at The Mansion at Forsyth Park. When mom learned that we were leaving Cute W behind for a girls’ trip, she booked a visit for us as well as my sister B, who is local. It was lovely and delicious. The surprise hit of the many taste sensations was a chicken curry with chutney on banana bread. I understand that that sounds like a terrible idea, but it turned out to be awesome. The only sad part was that I was already full sampling the tea sandwich tier, so by the time we’d worked our way up to the desserts, I simply didn’t have the capacity to try everything I wanted to try.

We spent our last day walking around downtown Savannah, and we were very surprised by how busy and touristy it was already. Here there were plenty of spots where I was looking for a few more masks. . . it’s funny how disconcerting it feels to encounter crowds in the After Times. In fact, it was so crazy-busy that we reluctantly skipped a trip to Leopold’s, which is almost as famous for its lines as it is for its ice cream and movie decor. But it was lovely walking around River Street, where they’ve expanded with new businesses all over the place. They also had new spray fountains and other fun-for-kids stuff, which we would have appreciated back when the girls were littles.

I also scored this very fabulous new bag–look!

Guess what it’s made out of! Come on, guess!

. . .

. . .

Here’s a closer look. . . .

It’s cork! We got it at the CorkHouse, where you can find all sorts of things made out of cork, which is eco-friendly and sustainable (easily renewable and biodegradable). So: yay! I am interested to see how it holds up. But seriously: they have yoga mats and face masks and boots and all sorts of stuff. Also: bulletin boards, natch.

Anyway, we had a lovely, lovely weekend full of fun times and the best weather ever, and then we flew back on Monday. At the airport, we were all excited to remember that there’s a Leopold’s ice cream shop satellite right at the gate, and we had just enough time to order and eat a few scoops before boarding. Then we headed back up north and brought the sunshine with us. You’re welcome.

2 Comments

  1. nana in savannah

    It was so wonderful to have you in Savannah for a girls weekend and to see you in NJ this past weekend. It almost feels as though we don’t live 950 miles apart! See you in late July.
    xoxo

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