River Street, Savannah, Georgia

*remember to click to enlarge pictures
Historic River Street in Savannah Georgia is fun even on a cloudy, rainy day. You can walk the coastline of The Savannah River and enjoy watching the boats and ships come and go. You can see pleasure boats, cruise boats/ships, and cargo ships coming and going from this busy seaport. You can sign up for a fun filled Pirate Ship Tour. This is a particularly good activity for families, the small children love it.
This quaint slippery, steep cobblestone street is closed off. We're at the waters edge looking back up the hill.
Can you begin to see how steep this hill is? How old and uneven the cobblestone is? I was glad I had tennis shoes on for walking; everyone we saw with sandals and less sturdy shoes was having a time of it. It had rained and these aged and very worn stones were treacherous.
Looking down the row of old businesses, you can see how narrow the street is. Savannah you might know is one of the cities saved when Sherman's troops marched through Georgia. It was deemed to pretty to destroy, so the city has many historic streets, houses, and businesses. This would have been the original main street when the port was busy transporting cotton and other trade goods.
We're on a bridge of the now main street looking down watching the old meet the new. This narrow, slippery cobblestone street and parking lot present quite a challenge for today's modern vehicles. Note the Budweiser truck and what little space he has to turn. Note the sawdust. He had made his deliveries and could not keep up the ramp due to the steepness and how slippery the roadbed was. They had quite a team working to get parked cars out of the way in case the truck flipped, slipped, and or needed more space. They had been working on this for over an hour we were told by other interested visitors.
The 2nd truck driver is also watching closely, assuming he'll have the same trouble. Another reminder if you haven't already done so; click on these 2 truck pictures so you can see the situation.
We spent a couple of hours walking this area, stopped for lunch, hit a few shops. A fun way to spent time in Savannah. I do hope we're able to return for a longer visit. We had driven over from Hilton Head and the weather was getting bad, fog rollin in and we felt it best to get back. The road to and from is narrow and curvy; not the best place to be in the low country when the fog moves in.

Recommendations wear comfortable supportive shoes, if you have small children use a stroller; there's too much difficult walking for them. Do a child friendly activity like the Pirate's Cruise.

Up The Indian Mound with Stanley

If you want to stretch your legs, run around, have a picnic and feel like a giant, come along with Flat Stanley. This activity is fun for the whole family, the kids and pets too. On the west side of McKinley Avenue in Columbus just south of Trabue Road is a large grassy mound. If you drive by fast; that may be all you'll see. Slow down and park the car; it's quite a different story. You'll see a small parking area that can accommodate a couple of cars and this stone gate. To the left of the gateway and grassy mound you'll see this 2 sided historic marker.

This mound goes by a couple of names. The area, the park it self is called Campbell Memorial Park named after a man who was governor of the state for 2 short years. Probably more remarkable was his Presidency of The Ohio Historical and Archaeological Society. His daughter Jessie Campbell Coons name this area after him in 1929.

The mound is the last of The Conical Indian Burial Mounds in the city of Columbus. It's 20 feet high and 100 feet in diameter. It was placed on The National Register of Historic Places in 1970, not that long ago.

The Adena Indians date from 800 BC to 100 A.D. and are some of the earliest known settlers in the state; primarily the middle Ohio Valley. They were hunters, gatherers, traders, and farmers. Mounds that have been excavated, or partially excavated show evidence of wooded structures (houses), trash pits, fire pits, bones of important tribal leaders that were cremated, pottery, and other tokens.
The land was deeded by Mrs. Shrum to The Ohio Historic Society (formerly known as Historic and Archeological Society).
An additional marker honoring her is placed on a large boulder just beyond the historic marker.
Stanley is laying there in the grass just to the left of the trail. Take time and climb to the top of mound. Once on the top like this little boy (click to enlarge picture and see how small he looks way up there on top); you can see downtown Columbus in one direction and The Scioto River in another. You get a real feel for the size of the mound and pretty fenced park area.

The mounds were made in layers. Historical evidence indicates an important tribal leader that died would be placed in a wooded house/structure and burned down as part of their burial ceremonies. Tokens would be placed with the cremated remains, then earth piled on top. When another important tribal leader died the process was repeated...over and over; thus making these mounds quite large. Over the years many of the mounds have deteriorated, some have gone by the wayside due to plowing the land, or building for exploding populations throughout the state.
There's The Scioto River just beyond the stone wall of the park. Children enjoy running around The Mound, and following the trail up one side and down the other. Pack a picnic or snack and sit under the shade of one of the many trees so you can talk about your adventure, and perhaps catch your breathe after the climb. This Conical Mound is larger than one I recently visited in Chillicothe; Story Mound, and more accessible.

When you return home get some string....measure (let the kids help you) 100 feet. Make a circle with the string in the backyard. Let the kids burn up some more energy running around it; but also get them thinking about what all could be put in that space. As always grab maps, due math comparing the measurements, the dates etc. Paper and crayons will come in handy as the children draw what they think an Ancient Indian looked like. Make word puzzles with the words from the days adventure:
Mound
Ancient
Adena
Indians
Burial
Conical
Governor
Historical
Archaeological
Society

Do the kids know what those words mean? How bout digging out the play-dough and let them make their own Indian Mound. Ask the kids how tall they felt when they stood at the top....did they feel like a giant?

Learning can always be fun. Join me, Flat Stanley for our next adventure on Friday May 28th when Art will be the focus. Until then Flat Stanley out.

Did you miss Stanley's previous Friday Adventures?

• April 23, 2010 Books and Parks (Upper Arlington, Ohio)
• April 30, 2010 Traitor or Hero (Worthington, Ohio)
• May 7, 2010 Flat Stanley and his friend Captain Pinney (Worthington, Ohio)
• May 14, 2010 First Flight and Flat Stanley (Worthington, Ohio)
• May 21, 2010 Up The Indian Mound with Flat Stanley (Columbus, Ohio)

Boothbay Harbor, Maine

Who doesn't love the idea of getting their picture taken next to this Old Salt? I even have a small version as a Christmas ornament. The words Old Salt conjures up images of hard working, wonderful fishermen, fireplaces at days end, and huge plate of lobster to me. This Old Salt welcomes you to Boothbay Harbor.

Historic Boothbay Harbor Inn, has much to offer you and your family for a relaxed memorable vacation. This historic Inn has been in operation since 1944, and is still owned and operated by The Brown Family; the 3rd generation. It's a proud tradition with emphasis on family. Your family will be comfortable in a quest room, efficiency, or one of the cottages. All accommodations have a view of the water and private deck.


Boating, fishing, sailing, kayaking, shopping, whale watching, and hiking are just some of the activities one can enjoy while vacationing with friends and family in Boothbay Harbor Maine. Maybe that's more activity then you want; kick back then and read a book, or knit on your private deck. Catch the sunset and enjoy an adult beverage at the rustic Old Salt Lounge. The Old Salt Lounge dates back to the 1700's when it housed the salt needed to preserve the cod for local fishermen.

The on site restaurant serves the freshest lobster and seafood possible. You can enjoy fabulous meals inside or outside at the water's edge. Save your spot for dinner and make reservations; as this restaurant is popular with both the tourists and the locals!

There are 7 historic lighthouses in the area to explore including the 2nd oldest lighthouse in Maine, The Sequin Light in Georgetown. On line reservations make booking your special family vacation at Boothbay Harbor Hotels easy. So grab your calendar and book your fun filled family vacation today.

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First Flight and Flat Stanley

Wish this picture had turned out better of Mother swinging a child in great delight with hair blowing in the wind. Art can be fun, can be series, can be controversial; but who doesn't enjoy looking at a statue? Don't we all love to pose by statues. See Flat Stanley is no different. This statue, titled "First Flight" in Worthington, Ohio on High Street in the NW quadrant of The Village Green is in front of The Senior Center. It's the only publicly owned piece of art in Worthington. It was purchased in 1998.

The sculpture is Alfred Tibor, a man with a fascinating story. He was born in Feb of 1920 in Hungary with the name Alfred Goldstein. Being Jewish was beyond difficult in those days. He was a very talented gymnast. He was self taught because of being Jewish he wasn't allowed training. But through hard work and dedication, on his part he qualified for The Hungarian Olympic Team. Though he qualified, he was not permitted to attend and compete in the 1936 Berlin Olympics, simply because he was Jewish. They wouldn't let him register.

In 1940 he was a slave laborer for The Hungarian Army, and was captured by The Soviets and held prisoner for 6 long years in a Siberian Prison Camp. There were 273 men at this camp. Alfred Tibor was one of only 2 men to live through that ordeal, all others, all 271 died. He survived The Holocaust, though most his family didn't. Of the 82 members in his family, only he and his brother Andre lived.

Once freed he changed his name to Tibor after his older brother who'd been executed. He lived in Budapest for 9 years where he worked as the exhibition designer for the Government. He fled the country with his family 2 years after The Hungarian Revolution and made his way to Miami, Florida here in The United States. Sixteen years later he moved to Ohio and has produced many meaningful and beautiful pieces of art. His art can be seen in many outdoor locations around Ohio and The World.

In 2005, he was in the news, but not because of his art. He was injured and hospitalized when a Deer burst through his living room window and attacked him. He's truly a fascinating man and has been honored repeatedly for his wondrous works of art.


Here you can see his signature at the foot of the Statue (on the right), as well as The Statues Title.

Take the kids, walk, ride bikes, stop the car and explore what's around you. Take pictures of the kids individually in front of statues, even the young ones will enjoy it. This topic- in it's detail may not be age appropriate for all; but certainly parts of it are. A wonderful opportunity to discuss religious freedoms. What activity do the kids enjoy, ask them how fair it would be for them not to be able to do it; because they're Catholic, or because they have blue eyes, or red hair?

Have an art activity after you've been to a statue. Does your computer photo software have an option to make coloring book pages? Many do, you take your photo's and with a click can turn them into pages for the kids to color. How cool would that be, with them in the picture? Grab clay or play dough and have the kids make their own statue. As in all previous posts, there's always the math that can be done with dates and ages, places to find on the map, calculate distances, find pictures of flags to color. Make a word puzzle, or look up words in the dictionary.

Active learning is fun and so much more rewarding then too many hours in front of the TV.

Until next time, Friday May 21st Flat Stanley out.

Flat Stanley's Previous Adventures:
First adventure, books and libraries
Second Adventure, Hero or Traitor