Mai Thai Wanderings

Last week I posted Falling for the South: Chattanooga, TN. Unbeknownst to me, Southern Living's Octorber issue had an article on The South's Best Places to Retire (I copied that title for this post), and Chattanooga is the best all around place! I was totally excited. Now you understand why we've been here as long as we have!

You can click on the above link to read the entire article. The list is as follows:

Best All-Around: Chattanooga, TN
Best for Home Buying: Ocean Springs, MS

Best for Healthy Living: Beaufort, NC

Best Beach Town: St Augustine, FL
Best for Outdoor Enthusiasts: Abingdon, VA

Best for Food Lovers: Greenville, SC

Best for Arts and Culture: Savannah, GA

Best for Affordability: Huntsville, AL

Best for City Lovers: Fort Worth, TX

Best Mountain Town: Blowing Rock, NC

Best Access to Nature: Eureka Springs, AR

Best for Lifelong Learning: Lexington, KY

As with any list, you can take it with a grain of salt. We have visited several places on the list - Beaufort, St Augustine, Savannah and Huntsville - and love them. Allow me to stroll down memory lane and share our experiences with you.

Beaufort, N.C.

I do not have photos of Beaufort proper, but do have a clip of the music festival in downtown that spring. And how can we forget that rough night rocking and rolling at Cape Lookout in the Southern Outer Banks? Returning to Beaufort the next morning, we discovered Shackleford Banks, where we enjoyed several mornings of gorgeous sunrise. The shelling was amazing too. Read the rest of the story in this post.

Beautiful sunrise and shelling at Shackleford Banks, Beaufort

Cape Lookout

St Augustine, FL

Located in northeast Florida, St Augustine is the oldest European settlement in America. Beautifully restored buildings dating back as far as the early 1600s await you in the historic district. We called on St Augustine several times when we cruised up and down the East Coast. Mai Thai was usually anchored off the Castillo de San Marcos, the star-shaped Spanish fort built in the mid-1600s, the oldest masonry fortification in North America.

Savannah, Georgia

Our first visit was in the spring, and the azaleas and jasmine were in full bloom. Century-old oak trees lining lovely homes and pretty squares charmed us. Up until then, we've never been to a St Patrick's Day parade/celebration, and we used to live in Philadelphia and Boston, where they have some of the biggest St Patrick's Day parades. The city sure knows how to host a party! We love Savannah so much we came back a few more times.

Looking at one of many squares from a cafe

Huntsville, Alabama

Did you know some of the first rockets and satellites were built at Redstone Arsenal in Huntsville? You can learn more at the U.S. Space and Rocket Center Museum. Huntsville experienced significant growth over the years, surpassing Birmingham to be the biggest city in Alabama.