I have always had a romantic vision of the old south; a vision brought out by some of my favorite southern authors whose descriptions of marshes, and spanish moss, magnolias and long beaches that stretch for miles evoke such a strong desire to be there, to smell it and to see it, that travel to the south has always been a goal of mine.  Of course, "Gone With the Wind" is also my favorite movie and before anyone gets up in arms over its romantic and one sided portrayal of the old south, let me say that I'm well aware that slavery is wrong and that the movie is not an accurate portrayal of life for all at that time. That said, Scarlett O'Hara is my favorite fictional character ever, and from the moment I saw the movie, I knew that I needed to be where Scarlett had fiddle dee dee'd.This past October, which turned out to be a fantastic time to visit, I finally got to Charleston, SC, when my husband and I added a few days to our first Family Weekend at my son's college in NC.  After spending a few days with him, we rented a car and drove the 4 1/2 hours to spend three nights in this awesome city.  Do yourself a favor and make this trip!

Where to stay:

The Planter's Inn at 112 North Market Street:  I chose this for several reasons:  It's a Relais & Chateaux, so there is that....Plus, the location is absolutely perfect.  You walk out the door and head anywhere.  I wanted an old, historic hotel to get the feel of southern hospitality and that I was in Charleston, not just anywhere.  This place met those expectations.  We did not eat here, but the Peninsula Grill gets amazing reviews.  It just seemed a bit too quiet for us however, we did have a drink there and that was lovely.  I highly recommend this hotel.

Where to eat:  I will divide this into a few categories.  Also, pls. note that eating is of utmost importance while traveling.  Sorry, but I don't hold back here and I don't work out while on vacation.  If you are looking to stay really healthy and keep to your traditional diets while on vacation, don't read my travel reviews...Breakfast:  We ate one morning at our hotel, The Planter's Inn, and were wholly disappointed.  You are able to eat a la carte or a simple continental breakfast.  We chose the continental breakfast and are sorry we did.  For a Relais & Chateau, I'm so sorry to say, the continental breakfast was embarrassing.  There were very few choices, several of the platters were empty when we arrived and nothing looked as though it was prepared in house. The croissants were terrible as were other pastries.  It just wasn't good.  Unfortunately, I've had better at Hampton Inns.Toast Restaurant, 155 Meeting St:  Now we are talking.  Fabulous, fabulous, fabulous.  Fun, and very southern with some adventurous dishes.  For those less inclined to go crazy, there is all the traditional stuff as well and served by wonderful staff.  I felt very at home and very full.  A good time! Lunches:Slightly North Of Broad, 192 East Bay St.:  Slightly better than awesome!  Fabulous interior space, fun atmoshpere and delicious food.  I had a watermelon salad that I literally moaned over.  I know, crazy, a watermelon salad that is moan worthy?  Yup...I would've gone back to have dinner here, but so many places, so little time.  Can't repeat until I've tried them all.  So, this one is on my list for when I visit again. Middletown Place Restaurant, 4300 Ashley River Rd.:  This restaurant is located at Middleton Place which is a plantation most definitely worth visiting.  The gardens are amazing and we had one of the best tour guides I've ever had for the house tour.  It was a fun day.  As for the restaurant, I didn't love it, but my husband did and it gets great reviews.  My food was fine, I just didn't love the setting.  I felt a little like I was at the museum restaurant,and we were eating there solely for convenience. This is not really fair because it was so much better than that.  I think I might have just been tired and testy.  Give it a try; most seem to love it.Cru Cafe, 18 Pinckney St.:  I wish I lived in Charleston just so I could go here like 3 times a week.  Another moan worthy meal.  I know this sounds crazy, but in Charleston, at this place, I had General Tso's chicken and it was one of the best things I've ever eaten anywhere.  This is not a chinese restaurant by any stretch of the imagination.  Everything I ate and my husband ate was amazing.  I would've licked the plate if I wasn't Katie Scarlett O'Hara. Go, go, and go again.  If it hadn't been our last meal in Charleston, I would've broken my own rules and eaten here again!

Dinners: Magnolias, 185 East Bay St.:  Ok, this is a tough one.  My husband ate his favorite thing here.  What I ate was good too.  Service was fine, but to me, it was just meh...I didn't like the atmosphere; it felt like nothing was going on.  I can't really describe why, but it was disappointing.  I know many people who count this as one of their all time favorite places to eat in Charleston, but I wasn't feeling it.  My cosmo was damn good though!

The Macintosh, 479B King St.:  Fun, good, interesting cocktails and menu.  We enjoyed ourselves here and had great service.  It's on King Street which is fun to walk around.  I'd say I liked it better than Magnolias, but not as much as the next one:

Halls Chophouse, 434 King St.:  This is a scene.  Great bar atmosphere and loud; life is happening here.  We sat upstairs which is fine, but we got a bummer table where my back was to the room the whole time and the whole party scene from downstairs disappeared.  The waiter came over to take our drink order, took one look at us, and said, "I already know what you are going to ask."  We smiled, waited a bit and he came back to move us to a fantastic table.  I love a restaurant that wants you to walk away happy.  We were patient, nice, smiled and we got an amazing table.  Then the food came.  OMG, steak, steak, steak.  Incredible amounts of it and all delicious.  We moved downstairs to have a drink at the bar after dinner and loved the crowd.  Very Charleston, very fun.  Don't miss it and don't forget to make a reservation!

Things to do:  Get to the beach!  While in Charleston, take a quick drive to any of the amazing outer islands and see the long stretches of sand.  Beautiful.

Go be Katie Scarlett at a plantation.  We loved Middleton, but there are others as well.  It's worth it to see the lifestyle.Walk, walk and walk again.  Hit the Battery, stroll and see the magnificent homes of Charleston.  I'm ready to move.

Do you take a carriage ride?  You be the judge.  We were bored and didn't find it particularly helpful in getting a sense of the city.  Because all carriages can't be in the same area at the same time, they are given access to only certain sections of the city at any given time.  Maybe where we were allowed to go wasn't all that interesting, but to be honest, the tour sort of bummed us out because we thought the area of Charleston we were shown was really a far cry from what we had envisioned.  When we walked around ourselves, we got to see the city that everyone raves about.

Overall:  Go to Charleston.  I loved it.  I might want to live there!  October was spectacular but I can only imagine how humid it must get during the late spring and summer months.  All the more reason to buy a beach house.  It lived up to my expectations and I was sure I saw Rhett Butler at every turn.  Next, we must try Savannah.  There's another family weekend at my son's college in January.  Maybe I can sneak in a few days then!  Start packing!